Mentor/s:
Christian Bravo-Rivera, Ph.D
Project Title:
Ventral Pallidal Circuits Governing Approach/Avoidance Conflict
Project Description:
The approach/avoidance conflict is a key phenomenon in motivational decision-making, where individuals must manage situations involving rewards and punishments. This project focuses on studying the neural circuits in the ventral pallidum (VP), a brain region involved in regulating these behaviors. By manipulating GABAergic neurons in the VP of transgenic mice using optogenetics, we aim to understand how changes in neuronal activity affect behavior related to avoiding negative stimuli and seeking rewards. To measure these effects, behavioral paradigms such as Platform-Mediated Avoidance (PMA) are used to assess how mice react to situations of conflict between approaching a reward or avoiding a punishment. Additionally, neuronal activity is analyzed using fiber photometry to correlate behavior with patterns of activity in the ventral pallidum. This work aims to provide new insights into how brain circuits that regulate these processes may be involved in disorders such as addiction and depression, where the balance between approach and avoidance is disrupted
Mentor/s:
Christian Bravo-Rivera, Ph.D
Project Title:
Ventral Pallidal Circuits Governing Approach/Avoidance Conflict
Project Description:
During the summer of 2024, I continued working on the same project focusing on the ventral pallidum and its role in approach/avoidance behavior. I used optogenetics and fiber photometry to manipulate and measure neuronal activity in the VP of transgenic mice, assessing how these manipulations affect behavior related to reward and punishment. This work expanded on the data collected earlier, allowing me to deepen the understanding of how the brain circuits in the VP influence motivational decision-making.