Talk Title: BREATHING MATTERS

Abstract: Breathing is a vital rhythmic motor behavior with a surprisingly broad influence on the brain and body. The apparent simplicity of breathing belies a complex neural control system, the breathing central pattern generator (bCPG), that exhibits diverse operational modes to regulate gas exchange and coordinate breathing with an array of behaviors. In my lecture, I will focus on selected advances in our understanding of the bCPG. At the core of the bCPG is the preBötzinger Complex (preBötC), which drives inspiratory rhythm via an unexpectedly sophisticated emergent mechanism. Synchronization dynamics underlying preBötC rhythmogenesis imbue the system with robustness and lability. These dynamics are modulated by inputs from throughout the brain and generate rhythmic, patterned activity that is widely distributed. The connectivity and an emerging literature support a link between breathing, emotion, and cognition that is becoming experimentally tractable. These advances bring great potential for elucidating function and dysfunction in breathing and other mammalian neural circuits.

Bio: Jack L Feldman is Distinguished Research Professor in the Department of Neurobiology and David Geffen School of Medicine Chair in Neuroscience at UCLA. By identifying and characterizing brain sites critical for control of breathing, Professor Feldman revolutionized our understanding of basic physiological processes controlled by the brain. He is widely recognized as the leading expert on how the brain controls breathing. His recent work includes a focus on understanding how breathing practice has positive effects on emotion. Among his recent awards are the Hodgkin Huxley Katz Prize, the 125^th Faculty Research Lecture UCLA, and the National Institutes of Health Outstanding Investigator Award in 2017 and 2023. For more information and further background: https://youtu.be/GLgKkG44MGo. 

Talk will also be available on zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89238458002