How life experience shapes a brain area that helps us notice and track moving things
Official title: Experience-Dependent Plasticity in Superior Colliculus and Natural Visual Behavior
Funded at University of Nevada Reno · NIH-11128747 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project explores whether life experience changes specific brain cells in a deep visual brain area so it alters how animals notice and track moving objects, with implications for autism, ADHD, and PTSD.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Nevada Reno NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Reno, United States) |
| Project start | September 30, 2021 |
| Project end | June 30, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $333,695 |
| NIH project number | 5R01EY032101-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11128747 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
This grant does not enroll people (it uses mouse models), but its findings are most relevant to people with autism, ADHD, or PTSD who have trouble noticing or tracking visual information.
✕Less likely to help
People whose symptoms do not involve visual orienting or attention are unlikely to receive direct benefits from this work.
What this research studies
This work studies the superior colliculus, a deep-brain visual center that helps animals orient to important sights. Researchers will use mice to compare two types of neurons, change visual experience during development, and record cell activity and natural visual detection and pursuit behaviors. By linking changes in specific cell types to measurable behavior, they aim to reveal how experience shapes orienting and tracking. That basic knowledge could point to targets for future treatments for people with visual attention or orienting problems.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this research could identify brain-cell mechanisms to guide new treatments that improve visual attention and orienting in conditions like autism, ADHD, or PTSD.
How similar studies have gone: Prior animal studies show experience can reshape superior colliculus function and orienting behavior, but tying changes in specific cell types to natural tracking behavior is a newer approach.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Nevada Reno
Reno, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Hoy, Jennifer Lyn — University of Nevada Reno
- Study coordinator: Hoy, Jennifer Lyn
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.