The Project
The COFLEX project adopts an interdisciplinary approach that combines electrophysiological experiments in primates, in vivo imaging of neural activity in rodents, and biologically inspired artificial neural networks, in order to uncover the mechanisms of cognitive flexibility.
Cognitive flexibility refers to the ability to process information according to the demands of the current behavior. According to current theories, the prefrontal cortex in the brain maintains representations of behaviorally relevant instructions and goals, and these neural representations change dynamically in line with our behavior. However, it remains unclear how a neural circuit adjusts its activity to shape what is represented in the brain, when, and in what way. Contemporary experimental approaches do not allow simultaneous measurements of changes at the synaptic, cellular and population level during behavior.
Through the interdisciplinary strategy adopted by COFLEX—via the collaboration of two research teams at the University of Crete and FORTH, the combination of findings from two animal species and different methodologies, and the use of biologically inspired artificial neural networks—the project aims to generate new knowledge about the mechanisms of cognitive flexibility in the prefrontal cortex, revealing neural changes across different spatial scales.