Inhibition of neuronal signals is an essential component of the normal processing of information that takes place in the nervous system. Lateral inhibition is a key type of inhibition that is believed to play an especially important role in enabling neuronal computations that mediate visual, tactile, auditory, and olfactory sensation. The experiments undertaken here are designed to clarify the molecular mechanisms of lateral inhibition in the vertebrate retina. The focus of the work is specifically on the role that hydrogen ions (H+) might play in the outermost synaptic connections of the retina and the potential involvement of H+ in lateral inhibition. H+-selective self-referencing sensors and fluorescence imaging studies will be used to examine the molecular mechanisms governing the efflux and influx of H+ from cells in the outer retina, and the effects of neurotransmitters and neuromodulators on H+ efflux and influx will be investigated. This work is structured as a collaborative endeavor between a faculty member and undergraduate students at a strictly undergraduate institution (Indiana Wesleyan University) with two faculty and their undergraduate and graduate students at a Ph.D. granting institution (the University of Illinois at Chicago). It is designed to be one in which undergraduate students truly participate in the research endeavor and become actively engaged in addressing important questions in neurobiology. Undergraduate involvement will be incorporated at both campuses and will include joint video-conference lab meetings and seminar sessions to integrate the undergraduates tightly into the research program. The PI at IWU and several undergraduate students will also travel to spend one month working jointly in the laboratories at UIC. These collaborative studies will serve to better elucidate the role of H+ in synaptic processing in the retina and central nervous system, while catalyzing undergraduate student understanding of and involvement in neuroscience research.
