Federal Grant Award Summary

Harvard Medical School received a $579,740 Project Grant award from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) under the Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders program (CFDA 93.853), effective June 1, 2026 through March 31, 2031. The award supports fundamental neuroscience research investigating cell type- and circuit-specific error signals that underlie cognitive flexibility and learning. The research will identify specialized brain cell types and neural circuits responsible for detecting deviations from expected outcomes and utilizing those error signals to update internal models of the world—processes critical to perception, decision-making, motor execution, and adaptive behavior.

The project delivers two primary research products: (1) investigation of somatostatin inhibitory interneurons across multiple cortical areas (posterior parietal cortex, retrosplenial cortex, and visual cortex) to determine whether these cells universally signal errors in a modality-specific manner and whether their activity is necessary for neural and behavioral learning; and (2) characterization of the mediodorsal nucleus of the thalamus as a potential focal point for outcome-related error signaling used to update stimulus-action rules for cognitive flexibility. The research will advance understanding of fundamental brain mechanisms underlying learning and cognitive adaptation through mechanistic cellular and circuit-level analyses.