This NSF Minority Postdoctoral Research Fellowship would enable the PI to work on a project that merges two fields together and ask questions that have not been posed before. The formation and preservation of appropriate synaptic connections in the central nervous system are critically dependent on normal neuronal activity. Given its role in organizing the extracellular space, the neural extracellular matrix (ECM) is thought to be critical in modulating synaptic plasticity during development. The perineuronal net (PN), a subcomponent of the neural ECM, likely mediates the decrease in synaptic plasticity by enveloping the synapses and providing stabilization. This project examines the effects of increased neuronal activity on the development and maturation of the PN. In addition, a potential role for the PN structure in the observed cognitive decline following increased neuronal excitation is explored through behavior analysis, immunohistochemstry, biochemistry, and physiology. This project provides a better understanding of the role the PN plays in synaptic plasticity and cognitive functioning in the developing brain.
The Fellow's graduate work has provided her with a unique knowledge base about the extracellular environment in the central nervous system. During her Postdoctoral training she plans to continue exploring the developing brain and the extracellular matrix using seizures as a model of increased neuronal excitation. This project will allow the Fellow to gain new technical skills including exposure to an animal model of epilepsy, new behavioral techniques, and tissue slice physiology, all of which are skills that will enhance her technical abilities and contribute to her progression as a scientist.
With regard to braodening participation, the Fellow is herself an African American and she expresses the desire to set an example for future generations by attaining a faculty position and helping to guide other students to consider the academic profession a viable career option. Members of the academic community are contributing to the edification of society and it is imperative that they are able to reach out to all groups of people. This fellowship will help the Fellow realize her goal of developing into an independent scientist so that she may be a contributing member of the academic research community.
