# The Nanoscale Connectome of the Cochlear Nucleus

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA · 2020 · $620,597

## Abstract

The cochlear nucleus is the gateway for central nervous system processing of auditory information in
mammals. It has been proposed that parallel processing channels are set up in the CN, and these form
the basis for further computation at higher stations of the auditory system. Despite decades of study,
enumeration of CN cell types is incomplete and CN circuitry is described only superficially. In
neuroscience generally, classification and naming of neurons has relied primarily upon qualitative
approaches based upon human observational capabilities. We have implemented and in some cases
developed novel high-throughput and unbiased techniques for labeling, segmenting and classifying
neurons in 3D, generated from large-scale electron microscopy image volumes. We propose to deliver a
nanoscale map, or connectome, of the mouse CN with enumerated and localized cell types and their
synaptic connections. This effort is unbiased because all neurons will be sampled. To achieve this goal,
we bring together four parallel modes of tissue analysis for neuron classification: morphology, connectivity,
molecular identity and function. We propose that connectivity analysis will define long-proposed parallel
processing circuits that will be tested functionally using realistic biophysical models of identified cell types.
Notably, the cochlear nucleus contains both amorphous and layered organizations of cells, which serve as
templates for all other brain regions. By investigating the fundamental structure of this sensory center, we
will establish principles of neural computation and methods for structural and functional phenotyping that
will apply to other brain regions regardless of their particular neural architecture.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9898347
- **Project number:** 5R01DC015901-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA
- **Principal Investigator:** Mark H Ellisman
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $620,597
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-04-01 → 2024-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9898347

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9898347, The Nanoscale Connectome of the Cochlear Nucleus (5R01DC015901-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9898347. Licensed CC0.

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