ELSC Seminar Series

The ability to adapt to and learn from novel experiences is essential for an animal’s survival, and key questions in neuroscience concern the underlying molecular, cellular and circuit mechanisms. Genes whose transcription is altered in response to sensory and emotional experiences are required for the development of neurons and synapses and for experience-dependent processes such as memory formation. However, the circuit function of experience-induced transcription and of the underlying genomic mechanisms remain unknown: for example, what are the effects of experience-regulated genetic networks on the flow of information in neural circuits? And: do such genetic networks indeed increase the plasticity of neural circuits as has traditionally been suggested or rather restrict it? In my talk, I will discuss my lab’s recent experiments in which we focus on the visual cortex of adult mice and combine genomic, genetic, electrophysiological and in vivo imaging approaches to address these fundamental questions in neuroscience.