Internal Brain States and How They Shape Decision-Making
Official title: P3: Internal Brain States
Funded at Princeton University · NIH-11385507 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project will explore how rodents’ decisions change with different internal brain states and how specific brain areas influence those states.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Princeton University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Princeton, UNITED STATES) |
| Project start | August 8, 2023 |
| Project end | June 30, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $316,263 |
| NIH project number | 5U19NS132720-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11385507 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are individuals with a condition characterized by processing and decision-making challenges, who could participate in future translational studies or related research.
✕Less likely to help
Healthy individuals not enrolled in a disease-focused program may not directly benefit.
What this research studies
Researchers at Princeton will study how sensory decisions in mice vary with internal brain states. They have created a model to detect these states from behavior and will test brain activity during decision tasks. The team will use causal perturbations and large-scale recordings, plus closed-loop optogenetic inactivation, to see how different brain regions contribute to decisions in each state. The work aims to map how internal states govern working memory and choices across the brain. This follows up on surprising findings that animals use multiple strategies rather than a single, fixed approach.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Understanding internal brain states could lead to new ways to help people with cognitive disorders that affect decision-making.
How similar studies have gone: prior work shows state-dependent decision-making is feasible to study in animals, with growing evidence of distinct neural circuits per state.
Where this research is happening
-
Princeton University
Princeton, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Pillow, Jonathan William — Princeton University
- Study coordinator: Pillow, Jonathan William
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
How neuropeptides could influence aging and Alzheimer’s risk
Researchers at Princeton are studying whether changing brain signaling chemicals called neuropeptides can extend healthy aging and reduce Alzheimer’s-related brain changes, with a focus on people at risk for Alzheimer’s disease dementia.
-
Sleep and aging brain resilience in a short-lived vertebrate model
A young-aged-friendly project explores how sleep quality affects brain health during aging, using a tiny, fast-lived fish model to understand Alzheimer’s-related changes.
-
How hepatitis C adapts to other species to help develop vaccines
Researchers are making a mouse-friendly version of hepatitis C so scientists can better test vaccines and understand the virus for people living with or at risk of hepatitis C.
-
Mapping how cells push and pull in living tissues
A science project at Princeton aims to map and control the forces between cells in 3D tissues to better understand cancer, development, and healing, with potential benefits for patients in the future.
-
Understanding how brain signals give rise to thinking using brain-wide recordings
Researchers at Princeton are developing new brain theories and computer tools to understand how complex neural signals relate to thinking and behavior.
-
Cancer metabolism revealed through mass spectrometry and isotope tracing
A scientist team at Princeton will study how cancer cells use nutrients by analyzing metabolites with advanced mass spectrometry and labeled tracers.
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.