fmuqolli@uci.edu
RESEARCH PROJECT
My role in the lab is to preform behavioral testing on the mice used for Aaron Wilber’s project studying impaired spatial navigation in a mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease. The mice run a task that requires them to get reoriented after being experimentally manipulated in order to create the sensation of being “lost.” Mice that are able to run to and stop in an unmarked goal zone, where they receive a brain stimulation reward, successfully demonstrate an ability to get reoriented. Some mice also complete a similar task on a virtual reality program that mimics the surroundings of the real world task. After analysis of the behavioral data, we can study spatial navigation impairments by assessing the neural network that influences this ability.
This past winter I received an appointment as a fellow in the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) for 2017/2018 for my work with Zaneta titled ‘Place Cell Responses to Novel Experiences in a Familiar Virtual Environment’. You may find my funded project application in PDF here.
Previously, I received an appointment as a fellow in the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) for 2016/2017 for my work on fluorescence miniature microscope imaging and behavior studies in memory-impaired mice. You may find the announcement in our news or here and the full PDF version of my proposal here.
Fjolla joined the McNaughton research group in October 2015 and has worked with former postdoctoral scientist Aaron Wilber and current project scientists Soyun Kim and Zaneta Navratilova.