![]() Could this mean the tract also plays a role in sensation? Liu wondered why part of a so-called motor tract projected to a sensory region. These projections are common to all mammals. But in recent decades, scientists had found that some corticospinal nerves also project into the dorsal horn of the spinal cord, which receives information about touch and sensation from the body. In apes and humans, nerves in the corticospinal tract project into an area at the front of the spinal cord known as the ventral horn, which relays signals to skeletal muscles to initiate movement. Liu’s first inkling of a broader role for the corticospinal tract came during his postdoc studies at Boston Children’s Hospital at Harvard Medical School. These findings, Liu says, “could open up possibilities for how we might manipulate our mind to control pain. But Liu’s research reveals that the tract controls more than just movement-it also appears to regulate pain signals from the body. The corticospinal tract is well-known for carrying signals that govern voluntary movements like walking and fine motor skills like grasping in apes and humans. Liu, who recently joined NIDCR as an Earl Stadtman Tenure-Track Investigator, studies a bundle of nerves called the corticospinal tract, which originates in the brain’s outer layers (cortex) and projects into the spinal cord. “I was so fascinated by the science that I decided to devote myself to the field, and now this is my career.” “He’d tell you, ‘Neuroscience is a subject where a brain studies a brain that’s why it’s so special,’” says Liu. His interest was sparked by his mentor at the time. ![]() ![]() Liu discovered his calling to neuroscience as a college intern at the Institute of Neuroscience in China. Liu studies the conversation between the brain and spinal cord to understand how the brain perceives sensory information, which could reveal potential treatments for pain. ![]()
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