Gatsby Initiative In Brain Circuitry Awards Inaugural Grants

Gift from Gatsby Charitable Foundation Supports New Research Grants, Scientific Collaborations, Academic Talent

(New York, NY – March 23, 2006) – Eight research teams at Columbia University have been awarded grant support as part of Columbia’s recently established Gatsby Initiative in Brain Circuitry, a new and comprehensive research program aimed at unraveling the many complexities of brain circuitry. Supported by a $5 million grant from the UK-based Gatsby Charitable Foundation, the initiative is run through Columbia’s Center for Neuroscience Initiatives.

“The Gatsby funds help solidify Columbia’s stature as one of the world’s premier centers for neuroscience research and inquiry allow us to respond rapidly to support interesting and innovative projects and collaborations,” said Larry Abbott, Ph.D., professor of neurobiology and behavior, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, and Co-Director of the Center for Theoretical Neuroscience. “We received many excellent applications along these lines and were happy to be able to support a number of them.”

The inaugural projects and awardees, selected in January 2006, include:

“The Generation of Central Somatosensory Circuitry” (Dr. Jane Dodd, Dept. of Physiology) “Genetic Dissection of Complex Signaling Pathways in Schizophrenia” (Dr. Jay Gingrich, Dept. of Psychiatry) “Classical Conditioning in Aplysia: Roles of Nitridergic Neurons in the Neuronal Circuit for Siphon Withdrawal” (Dr. Robert Hawkins, Dept. of Psychiatry) “Neurons Networks on Active Arrays” (Drs. Lance Kam and Kenneth Shepard, Depts. of Biomedical Engineering/Electric Engineering) “Identification and Genetic Manipulation of a Model Sensorimotor Neuronal Circuit” (Drs. Brian McCabe and Wesley Grueber, Dept. of Physiology) “Neural Mechanisms and Theoretical Principles Underlying Context-Dependent Learning About Value” (Dr. Daniel Salzman, Dept. of Psychiatry) “Lentiviral Vectors for Mosaic Loss-of Function Analysis in the Mouse Hippocampus (Dr. Peter Scheiffele, Dept. of Physiology) “Neuroinformatics of Expectancy in Pain” (Dr. Tor Wager, Dept. of Psychology) "I am delighted at the development of a tie between Columbia and our institution’s Gatsby Unit,” said Peter Dayan, Ph.D., professor, Gatsby Computational Neuroscience Unit, University College, London, UK. “We are particularly looking forward to taking advantage of this link with such a strong centre for theoretical and experimental neuroscience."

“This Gatsby Initiative in Brain Circuitry Award will also allow us to strengthen ties with the larger neuroscience community at Columbia University, providing a new, novel, and powerful system for understanding and reverse-engineering neural circuitry,” said Lance Kam, Ph.D., assistant professor of biomedical engineering and Kenneth L. Shepard, Ph.D., associate professor of electrical engineering, Columbia University.

“We are combining our expertise in dense micro-bioelectrode arrays and creating defined networks of living neurons to ultimately yield insight into how the layout of neural circuits, both in themselves and in relation to other components of living tissue, influence information processing in these systems,” added Drs. Kam and Shepard.

“The goal of our work is to understand the molecular mechanisms that control the assembly of neuronal networks during development of the central nervous system,” said Peter Scheiffele, Ph.D., assistant professor of physiology & cellular biophysics in the Center for Neurobiology and Behavior at Columbia University Medical Center. “In the project sponsored by the Gatsby award we are using viral vectors to manipulate individual neurons in the intact mouse brain and explore how these manipulations alter their connectivity. The award allowed us to obtain equipment that we are now using to measure the electrophysiological properties of the virally infected neurons.”

The Human Brain: Science’s Last, Greatest Frontier? In recent decades, neurobiologists have learned that many of the things that make us uniquely human—for example, our ability to smell a rose, experience profound joy and sadness, or walk down the block with purpose—are generated by the vast circuits of interconnecting neurons that comprise the central nervous system and relay information to the brain.

Through the power of cell and molecular biology, the basic building blocks of these circuits – its neurons and the connections they make among themselves – are beginning to be understood. But, except for a few simple reflexes, how neurons assemble into the circuits that control mood and behavior remains largely obscure.

In addition to the grants program, the Gatsby Initiative is also supporting the recently established Center for Theoretical Neuroscience; and aims to forge new intellectual collaborations with the Gatsby Computational Neuroscience Unit at University College-London. Future plans include a seminar and symposium series, an official scientific exchange program between Columbia and the Gatsby Unit at University College-London, and a public website designed to clarify and translate research findings for scientific and non-scientific audiences alike.

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Columbia University Medical Center provides international leadership in pre-clinical and clinical research, in medical and health sciences education, and in patient care. The medical center trains future leaders in health care and includes the dedicated work of many physicians, scientists, nurses, dentists, and public health professionals at the College of Physicians & Surgeons, the College of Dental Medicine, the School of Nursing, the Mailman School of Public Health, the biomedical departments of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and allied research centers and institutions. Columbia University Medical Center researchers are leading the discovery of novel therapies and advances to address a wide range of health conditions. www.cumc.columbia.edu

Founded in 1754 as King’s College, Columbia University in the City of New York is the fifth oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and today is one of the world’s leading academic and research institutions. www.columbia.edu.

The Gatsby Charitable Trust makes grants for charitable activities in the hope they may make life better for people, especially those who are disadvantaged. Over more than 30 years of grant-making, the Trustees have chosen to concentrate their support in a limited number of fields of activity, including mental health and cognitive neuroscience. www.gatsby.org.uk/

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Columbia University, Gatsby Unit, Lance Kam, Peter Scheiffele, UK