# Characterizing long-range cortical and subcortical dynamics in relation to corticospinal output and motor control

> **NIH NIH U19** · COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES · 2020 · $491,603

## Abstract

Abstract
Even a simple movement, like the extension or flexion of a forelimb, requires the activation requires the input of
activity from many different neural populations across different brain areas onto motor control centers that
control muscle activity. Although many brain areas have been shown to have motor related activity, and to be
involved in movement preparation and execution, the relation between activity in these brain areas and the
output of the brain onto the spinal cord remain elusive. Therefore, it is absolutely essential to characterize the
contribution of upstream neural populations from other cortical and subcortical areas to the activity of the
projection-specific populations of corticospinal neurons characterized in Project 1, during different modes of
motor control. We propose to perform this characterization using a range of functional imaging approaches that
interrogate this problem at different scales. We will utilize wide-field optical mapping (WFOM) to image, in an
unbiased manner, the activity hundreds to thousands of cells across many cortical areas in relation to the
activity of particular CSNs, which represent the output of the cortex to the spinal cord.
Informed by the WFOM imaging, we will then perform simultaneous imaging of populations of neurons, with
single cell resolution, in different brain areas using 2-photon random access mesoscopic (2p-RAM) imaging.
Finally, we propose to use the 2pRAM mesoscope to simultaneously image the activity of thalamus or striatum
through GRIN lenses, and the activity of corticospinal neurons, during particular motor control modes.
The knowledge gained in this project will be critical to understand principles governing activity in motor cortex
versus other cortical areas in relation to motor output as proposed in project 3, as well as to inform the
modelling in project 4. Furthermore, it will help generate predictions that will be tested using closed-loop
optogenetic manipulation experiments in project 5.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9983207
- **Project number:** 5U19NS104649-04
- **Recipient organization:** COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES
- **Principal Investigator:** Elizabeth M. C. Hillman
- **Activity code:** U19 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $491,603
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-09-25 → 2022-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9983207

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9983207, Characterizing long-range cortical and subcortical dynamics in relation to corticospinal output and motor control (5U19NS104649-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9983207. Licensed CC0.

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