Neurobehavioral Evaluation Core

Abstract
The mission of the Neurobehavioral Evaluation Core (NEC) is to provide District of Columbia Intellectual and
Developmental Disabilities Research Center (DC-IDDRC) investigators with resources to link underlying
biological mechanisms of neurodevelopmental disorders with behavioral and cognitive outcomes as measured
in humans and animal models. DC-IDDRC investigators have access to state-of-the-art neurobehavioral
assessment tools in humans and cognate animal models to integrate preclinical and clinical studies with
genetic and neurobiological analysis of abnormalities associated with IDDs. The NEC enhances efficiency by
providing access to expert personnel and testing tools not available to individual labs or investigators. The
NEC is comprised of two complementary subcores; the Human Neurobehavior Core (HNEC), directed by
Madison Berl, PhD and the Animal Neurobehavior Core (ANEC) directed by Joshua Corbin, PhD. The primary
objectives of the NEC are to provide: (a) overall vision, planning, training and implementation of human
behavioral tasks and complementary behavioral assessments in cognate animal models of human
neurodevelopmental disorders, (b) to develop, maintain and implement state of the art platforms and resources
for human and animal neurobehavior investigation and across multiple animal models, (c) to collaborate and
integrate with all DC-IDDRC cores to unravel neurobiological mechanisms from genes to circuits to behaviors
underlying a host of IDDs, (d) to facilitate the conduct of robust, reproducible and rigorous scientific
investigation with a high impact on the field of neuroscience and IDDs, (e) to disseminate findings broadly to
the scientific and academic communities via publications, presentations and international conference forums,
(f) to use the knowledge gained from human and animal behavior assessments to test and translate findings
from the bench to the bedside. These goals will be achieved in the following specific aims: (1) To define the
consequences of IDDs on human neurobehavior and animal behavioral correlates, (2) To expand and
implement the use state-of-the-art technologies for human and animal behavior assessment and (3) To
develop/identify longitudinal assessment paradigms that are sensitive to change in IDDs in humans
and animal models and that will be critical for monitoring success of intervention studies. The NEC has
long standing strengths in the analysis of humans and animal models of a number of neurodevelopmental
disorders including autism spectrum disorders, epilepsy, fetal alcohol syndrome and fetal/neonatal brain injury.
Over the past years, our highly successful animal model studies have elucidated cellular and molecular
mechanisms underlying physiological and behavioral abnormalities in these prevalent conditions, while our
human investigation has linked atypical trajectories of brain development to their structural and behavioral
correlates. Building on these strengths, our increasing variety and sophisticated human and animal behavioral
assessment platforms will also be widely applicable across a host of neurodevelopmental conditions.

Grant Number: 5P50HD105328-05
NIH Institute/Center: NIH
Principal Investigator: Madison Berl