# Input-specific imaging and manipulation of synaptic plasticity underlying social memory

> **NIH NIH F32** · MAX PLANCK FLORIDA CORPORATION · 2020 · $69,926

## Abstract

Project Summary / Abstract
Ascertaining the neural basis of behavior has been a cornerstone goal since the conception of neurobiology.
While activity recording and loss-of-function studies have shed light on brain regions involved and necessary for
the expression of certain behaviors, they are unable to determine the information each circuit is responsible for
encoding. Therefore, when different nodes in the circuit are removed, the behavioral phenotype is often identical.
Synaptic plasticity, the ability of synapses to change functional strength depending on experience, is considered
the cellular correlate of learning and memory. Linking changes in the functional strength of synapses following
behavior has begun to indicate what information circuits are responsible for encoding. To provide direct evidence,
a tool that is able to modulate synaptic plasticity in specific circuit nodes during behavior is needed.
The goal of this proposal is to create a photo-activatable inhibitor of presynaptic plasticity that will be input- and
region- specific for use in behaving animals. The first aim of the proposal will create and screen constructs of
photo-activatable PKI (paPKI) in their efficacy for the inhibition of protein kinase A, a kinase necessary for the
induction of presynaptic plasticity. Light-dependency will be ensured and the construct will be evaluated based
on its sensitivity and selectivity using advanced imaging techniques (2-photon fluorescence lifetime imaging)
and biochemical assays. The second aim of the proposal will use paPKI to determine the role of specific circuit
nodes in social memory. Input-specific modulation of plasticity will be paired with in depth behavioral analyses
using computer vision to parse out subtle differences in social interaction. These aims directly address the BRAIN
Initiative 2025 high priority goal #4: the modulation of neural activity with readouts of behavior using advanced
computer vision techniques.
The proposed fellowship project provides excellent training potential as it expands from the applicant’s current
training in systems/circuit neuroscience to molecular and biophysical neuroscience. The project is an intersection
between the mentor’s, Dr. Ryohei Yasuda, expertise in molecular mechanisms of synaptic plasticity and the
development and advanced imaging of biomodulators and sensors, and the applicant’s expertise in circuitry
underlying social memory, electrophysiology and behavioral analyses using computer vision. The Max Planck
Florida Institute for Neuroscience is an intensely collaborative environment filled with leaders in the field and
exceptional resources, resulting in an institute that is highly productive and influential. This fellowship proposal
presents excellent training potential and aims to produce tools that will advance the field.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9962148
- **Project number:** 5F32MH120872-02
- **Recipient organization:** MAX PLANCK FLORIDA CORPORATION
- **Principal Investigator:** Mary L Phillips
- **Activity code:** F32 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $69,926
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-07-01 → 2022-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9962148

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9962148, Input-specific imaging and manipulation of synaptic plasticity underlying social memory (5F32MH120872-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9962148. Licensed CC0.

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