Kenneth Amaya

Research/Areas of Interest

While much is known about how valenced outcomes are encoded and said values are used, relatively little is known about the precise neural mechanisms underlying the task of information routing. Specifically, the Maguire lab has shown that parvalbumin-expressing interneurons (PVIs) in the basolateral amygdala (BLA) are essential to governing local activity patterns tied to valenced learning. However, further dissection is needed of the mechanisms by which PVIs orchestrate BLA activity, how PVIs recruit BLA ensembles, and how the influence of PVIs over downstream target areas may govern more complex behavior. I am addressing these questions while incorporating my background in learning theory and neural circuit dissections while leveraging the technologies available through the lab.