Huberman, Andrew

<p>see Neurotree</p>

<p>

Feb 12, 2015 05:30 PM &nbsp;one talk today in Clark Aud intro by Carla S

also see SRO talk on Jan 27 in Munzer Aud. intro by Steve B.</p>

<p>

All of our behaviors, thoughts and perceptions stem from <b>the activity of neural circuits</b>:&nbsp;

<b>highly precise sets of connections formed between specific types of neurons</b>.</p>

<p>

The three major goals of our laboratory are to:

&nbsp;</p>

<ol >

<li >Understand the <b>functional architecture of the neural circuits</b> that enable us to see and respond to particular aspects of the visual environment</li>

<li ></li>

<li >Discover how those circuits achieve specificity of their connections during development</li>

<li ></li>

<li >Develop strategies to replenish functional visual circuits in response to injury or disease</li>

<li ></li>

</ol>

<p >A cornerstone our work is the identification of genes that are selectively expressed by functionally specialized neurons in the eye and brain. This allows us to delineate the specific circuit connections made by those neurons and to monitor and manipulate their activity during perceptual and behavioral tasks. It also allows us to probe the genes used by those neurons during development to find and form connections with their appropriate synaptic partners.

Extending from these studies of the healthy brain is the exciting opportunity to address whether the mechanisms that assemble functionally precise visual circuits during development can be reactivated in response to diseases that normally cause irreversible blindness, such as glaucoma. To that end, we are using molecular genetic approaches to preserve and re-wire damaged visual circuits, and then testing what sorts of visual perceptions and behaviors those circuits can support.</p>