COSI: Cerebellar modules and the ontogeny of sensorimotor integration

Project summary

The perfect execution of a voluntary movement requires the appropriate integration of current bodily state, sensory input and desired outcome. To assure that this motor output becomes and remains appropriate, the brain needs to learn from the result of previous outputs. The cerebellum plays a central role in sensorimotor integration, yet -despite decades of studies- there is no generally excepted theory for cerebellar functioning. It is my long-term goal to identify the ontogeny of anatomical and physiological differences between modules, and their functional consequences.

Ultimately, the outcomes of this study will reveal how distinct difference between cerebellar modules develop, and how this ensemble ensures proper cerebellar information processing for optimal coordination of timing and force of movements. Combined with the growing body of evidence for a cerebellar role in higher order brain functions and neurodevelopmental disorders, a unifying theory would be fundamental for understanding how the juvenile brain develops.