Investigating how the brain learns to predict the sensory world. Dr Rebecca Jordan Simons ESAT Fellow 1 George Square Edinburgh, EH8 9JZ Contact details Email: rjordan3@ed.ac.uk Personal profile 2023 - present: Simons ESAT Fellow 2018 - 2023: Postdoctoral fellow, Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Switzerland 2018: PhD in neuroscience at the Francis Crick Institute 2013: BA in Natural Sciences, University of Cambridge Research Theme Synapses, Circuits and Behaviour Research We are remarkably capable of distinguishing sensory inputs caused by our own movements and very similar sensory inputs caused by external sources. To achieve this, our brains must learn to predict incoming sensory information. Our aim is to understand how the brain learns to predict the sensory world, with a particular focus on how the cortex and neuromodulatory systems work together to achieve this. To this end, we study the mouse brain at the neurophysiological level using a combination of virtual reality systems, electrophysiology, behaviour, and optical methods. Our current main research focuses are: How the locus coeruleus integrates information, like prediction errors, to generate a meaningful output relevant for learning. How both cortical and neuromodulatory prediction errors act to drive cortical plasticity. How neuromodulatory and cortical activity is altered in mouse models of autism spectrum disorder, and what behavioural impact this has. By answering these questions, we hope to drive a new understanding of how the brain learns to predict the sensory world, and how the process may be altered in neurological disorders. Funding Simons Collaboration on the Global Brain Bridge to Independence Award Simons Initiative for the Developing Brain Selected Publications Jordan, R. and Keller, G.B. 2022. The locus coeruleus broadcasts prediction errors across the cortex to promote sensorimotor plasticity. bioRxiv. https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.11.08.515698 Vasilevskaya, A., Widmer, F.C., Keller, G.B., and Jordan, R., 2022. Locomotion-induced gain of visual responses cannot explain visuomotor mismatch responses in layer 2/3 of primary visual cortex. bioRxiv. https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.02.11.479795 Jordan, R., 2021. Optimized protocol for in vivo whole-cell recordings in head-fixed, awake behaving mice. STAR Protoc. 2, 100347. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xpro.2021.100347 Jordan, R., and Keller, G.B., 2020. Opposing Influence of Top-down and Bottom-up Input on Excitatory Layer 2/3 Neurons in Mouse Primary Visual Cortex. Neuron. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2020.09.024 Jordan, R., Kollo, M., and Schaefer, A.T., 2018. Sniffing fast: paradoxical effects on odor concentration discrimination at the levels of olfactory bulb output and behavior. eNeuro ENEURO.0148-18.2018. https://doi.org/10.1523/ENEURO.0148-18.2018 This article was published on 2022-11-29
