David A. McCormick

Modulation of metastable ensemble dynamics explains the inverted-U relationship between tone discriminability and arousal in auditory cortex

Vagus nerve stimulation recruits the central cholinergic system to enhance perceptual learning

This study shows that vagus nerve stimulation enhances perceptual learning in mice by activating the central cholinergic system during auditory tasks.

Decision-making dynamics are predicted by arousal and uninstructed movements

The paper shows that mice's decision-making states during tasks can be predicted by arousal and uninstructed movements.

Pan-cortical 2-photon mesoscopic imaging and neurobehavioral alignment in awake, behaving mice

The paper develops methods to record mesoscale 2-photon Ca2+ imaging data from mice and aligns neural activity with behavior to identify coordinated neural ensembles.

The h-current controls cortical recurrent network activity through modulation of dendrosomatic communication

This study shows that reducing the h-current in pyramidal cells increases recurrent network activity and alters dendrosomatic communication.

Cholinergic and noradrenergic axonal activity contains a behavioral-state signal that is coordinated across the dorsal cortex

This study examines cholinergic and noradrenergic axonal activity in awake mice, finding coordinated signals related to behavioral state across the dorsal cortex.

Visual Thalamocortical Mechanisms of Waking State Dependent Activity and Alpha Oscillations

The paper shows that thalamocortical interactions and cell-intrinsic properties shape state-dependent activity and alpha oscillations in the visual cortex of awake mice.

Phasic arousal suppresses biases in mice and humans across domains of decision-making

This study shows that phasic arousal suppresses decision biases in both mice and humans across different decision-making domains and sensory systems.

Distinct waking states for strong evoked responses in primary visual cortex and optimal visual detection performance

The paper shows that optimal visual detection performance in mice occurs at intermediate arousal levels, while large, reliable visual responses in V1 occur during high-arousal locomotion.

Movement and performance predict widespread cortical activity in a visual detection task

The paper shows that movement and performance predict cortical activity in a visual detection task in mice, with secondary motor cortex linked to lick rate and task performance.