Translational Imaging and Behavioral Assessment (TIBA)

ABSTRACT Translational Imaging & Behavioral Assessment (TIBA) Core Cognitive Neuroscience of Development and Aging (CoNDA) Center Critical to understanding the basis of neurocognition and behavior is the imaging of brain structure and function, and ultimately linking these measures to behavioral and cognitive phenotypes. The Translational Imaging and Behavioral Assessment (TIBA) Core of the Cognitive Neuroscience of Development and Aging (CoNDA) Center in Phase II will support Research Project Leaders (RPLs) and Pilot Project Investigators (PPLs) who are performing research in animal models of neurocognitive disorders. The TIBA Core will also be available to other investigators across the CoNDA Campus. The TIBA Core will provide shared centralized research resources that provide access to technologies, instruments, as well as expert consultation and other services to scientific preclinical investigators. The core is composed of three sub-cores to support imaging and behavioral experiments. The Small Animal Magnetic Resonance Imaging (SAMRI) sub-core provides structural and functional imaging on a broader scale. The Intravital Imaging sub-core provides access to a multiphoton microscope and a fluorescent light sheet microscope for functional and structural, cellular and circuit analysis of animal brains. Finally, the Animal Behavior sub-core provides a broad panel of behavioral and cognitive assessments in translational models for neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative disorders. The TIBA Core was established during the second year of Phase I and has grown tremendously in types of services provided and number of users and grants it supported. The TIBA Core will be directed by Dr. Dunaevsky (overall TIBA), with sub-cores directed by Dr. Liu (SAMRI), Dr. Jensen-Smith (Intravital Imaging), and Dr. Samuelson (Animal Behavior).