NIH R01 · 2024
Generation and manipulation of combinatorial connectivity in olfactory perception
ABSTRACT The central problem addressed by this proposal is how the brain represents almost limitless objects to “catego- rize an unlabeled world” (Edelman, 1976). This problem is particularly acute in olfaction, because physical odor signals are not obviously dimensional. While instinctual meanings are imparted through the structure of neural circuits, learning mechanisms can theoretically select experience-relevant representations from circuits lacking a priori structure. By analogy, the vertebrate adaptive immune system defends against novel invaders by se- lectively amplifying B cells carrying strongly binding antibodies from a randomly produced pool. How unstruc- tured, combinatorial…
From the public funding record at NIH RePORTER. Describes the funded project, not the reviews below.