Congratulations to Prof Ian Duguid (Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences and SIDB Group Leader ) who has received a £3M Wellcome Discovery Award to explore neural mechanisms underlying voluntary motor control. Image Prof Ian Duguid Executing appropriately timed, reproducible limb movements is essential for interacting with our environment and ultimately survival. From object manipulation and tool use to complex locomotion and prey capture, the brain continuously processes sensory information to learn, initiate and coordinate well-timed, accurate movements. This requires the continuous interaction of multiple brain areas to generate and refine movements depending on task requirements, but a causal mechanistic understanding of how the brain does this remains elusive. “Our aim is to understand how distributed brain areas combine to plan, initiate, and control complex voluntary movements. The longer-term funding that a Discovery Award provides will give us the flexibility to explore new and ambitious lines of enquiry using state-of-the-art recording and manipulation approaches,” said Prof Duguid. Prof Duguid and his team will use advanced optical and neural recording techniques, viral-based manipulations, in silico modelling and quantitative behaviour in mice, to determine the key circuit mechanisms underlying the planning, initiation, and coordination of complex voluntary movements with a view to ultimately creating a multiscale biophysical model of motor control. The Wellcome Discovery Award provides funding for established researchers and teams from any discipline who want to pursue bold and creative research ideas to deliver significant shifts in understanding that could improve human life, health and wellbeing. Further information Prof Ian Duguid lab page Publication date 18 Jul, 2023
