# Significance of excitatory and inhibitory synaptic integration by interneurons for local circuit dynamics and behavior

> **NIH NIH F32** · DUKE UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $69,926

## Abstract

Localized structuring of neuronal output by inhibitory microcircuits is a fundamental component of
neuronal information processing. Interneuron subpopulations contained within these microcircuits integrate
afferent excitatory and inhibitory inputs, transforming these external signals into broad modulatory effects.
Simple on-off dichotomies do not accurately account for the modeled variations in interneuron activity
resulting from excitatory or inhibitory inputs alone. These modeled activity profiles position interneuron
microcircuits as unique relays of incoming neurotransmission that may be able to generate distinct patterns of
output neuron recruitment. This proposal aims to examine these non-binary signal transformations performed
by interneuron microcircuits using striatal fast-spiking interneuron (FSI) microcircuits as a model system. We
will utilize a novel pharmacological approach to separate the contribution of excitatory and inhibitory FSI
inputs, hypothesizing that vector-conserved changes in excitation or inhibition will have non-overlapping
effects on circuit output. Our objective is to reveal fundament properties of information processing by
inhibitory microcircuits, providing a physiological model for the investigation and interpretation of
microcircuit manipulations across neuronal systems.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9991142
- **Project number:** 1F32MH123017-01
- **Recipient organization:** DUKE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Brandon David Turner
- **Activity code:** F32 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $69,926
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2020-06-01 → 2023-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9991142

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9991142, Significance of excitatory and inhibitory synaptic integration by interneurons for local circuit dynamics and behavior (1F32MH123017-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9991142. Licensed CC0.

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