A5052502015- Visual perception and processing mechanisms
- Retinal Development and Disorders
- Neural dynamics and brain function
- Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research
- Neurobiology and Insect Physiology Research
- Photoreceptor and optogenetics research
- Glaucoma and retinal disorders
- Olfactory and Sensory Function Studies
- Neuroinflammation and Neurodegeneration Mechanisms
- Neurogenesis and neuroplasticity mechanisms
- Ophthalmology and Visual Impairment Studies
- Neuroscience and Neural Engineering
- Cellular transport and secretion
- Vestibular and auditory disorders
- Advanced Fluorescence Microscopy Techniques
- Animal Behavior and Reproduction
- Advanced Memory and Neural Computing
- Animal Vocal Communication and Behavior
- Calpain Protease Function and Regulation
- Protease and Inhibitor Mechanisms
- Nerve injury and regeneration
- Ophthalmology and Eye Disorders
- Advanced Neuroimaging Techniques and Applications
- S100 Proteins and Annexins
- Circadian rhythm and melatonin
University of Göttingen
2010-2021
Universitätsmedizin Göttingen
2018
Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience Göttingen
2010-2016
Friedrich Schiller University Jena
2008-2012
Focus (Germany)
2012
Institute of Zoology
2011
Max Planck Society
1992-2010
Max Planck Institute for Brain Research
1987-2010
Weizmann Institute of Science
2010
Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology
1998-2008
In the visual cortex of brain, long-ranging tangentially oriented axon collaterals interconnect regularly spaced clusters cells. These connections develop after birth and attain their specificity by pruning. To test whether there is selective stabilization between those cells that exhibit correlated activity, kittens were raised with artificially induced strabismus (eye deviation) to eliminate correlation signals from two eyes. area 17, cell driven almost exclusively either right or left eye...
Photoreceptor degeneration is one of the most prevalent causes blindness. Despite photoreceptor loss, inner retina and central visual pathways remain intact over an extended time period, which has led to creative optogenetic approaches restore light sensitivity in surviving retina. The major drawbacks all tools recently developed tested mouse models are their low lack physiological compatibility. Here we introduce a next-generation tool, Opto-mGluR6, designed for retinal ON-bipolar cells,...
An important step in the processing of visual patterns is segmentation retinal image. Neuronal responses evoked by contours individual objects need to be identified and associated for further joint processing. These grouping operations are based on a number Gestalt criteria. Here we report that connections cortex cat exhibit highly significant anisotropy, preferentially linking neurons activated have similar orientation aligned colinearly. anatomical data suggest close relation between...
Neuroligins (NL1–NL4) are postsynaptic adhesion proteins that control the maturation and function of synapses in central nervous system (CNS). Loss-of-function mutations NL4 linked to rare forms monogenic heritable autism, but its localization unknown. Using retina as a model system, we show is preferentially localized glycinergic postsynapses loss accompanied by reduced number glycine receptors mediating fast transmission. Accordingly, NL4-deficient ganglion cells exhibit slower miniature...
The brain's visual cortex processes information concerning form, pattern, and motion within functional maps that reflect the layout of neuronal circuits. We analyzed orientation preference in ferret, tree shrew, galago--three species separated since basal radiation placental mammals more than 65 million years ago--and found a common organizing principle. A symmetry-based class models for self-organization cortical networks predicts all essential features these circuits, but only if...
Background Short monocular deprivation (4 days) induces a shift in the ocular dominance of binocular neurons juvenile mouse visual cortex but is ineffective adults. Recently, it has been shown that an can still be elicited young adults (around 90 days age) by longer periods (7 days). Whether same true also for fully mature animals not yet known. Methodology/Principal Findings We therefore studied effects different (4, 7, 14 on C57Bl/6 mice ages (25 days, 90–100 109–158 208–230 using optical...
Significance Experimental animals are usually raised in small, so-called standard cages, depriving them of numerous natural stimuli. We show that raising mice an enriched environment, allowing enhanced physical, social, and cognitive stimulation, preserved a juvenile brain into adulthood. Enrichment also rejuvenated the visual cortex after extended periods cage rearing protected adult from stroke-induced impairments cortical plasticity. Because local inhibitory tone was not only...
The progression of rod and cone degeneration in retinally degenerate (rd) mice ultimately results a complete loss photoreceptors blindness. inner retinal neurons survive several recent studies using genetically targeted, light activated channels have made these intrinsically sensitive. We crossbred transgenic mouse line expressing channelrhodopsin2 (ChR2) under the control Thy1 promoter with Pde6b(rd1) mouse, model for (rd1/rd1). Approximately 30-40% ganglion cells offspring expressed ChR2....
Significance During critical periods, cortical neural circuits are refined to optimize their functional properties. The prevailing notion is that the balance between excitation and inhibition determines onset closure of periods. Here, we show postsynaptic density protein-95 (PSD-95)–dependent maturation silent glutamatergic synapses onto principal neurons was sufficient govern duration period for ocular dominance plasticity (ODP) in visual cortex mice. Loss PSD-95 before CPs resulted...
The responses of cells in the visual cortex to stimulation two eyes changes dramatically following a period monocular deprivation (MD) during critical early life. This phenomenon, referred as ocular dominance (OD) plasticity, is widespread model for understanding cortical plasticity. In this study, we designed stimulus patterns and quantification methods analyze OD mouse using optical imaging intrinsic signals. Using periodically drifting bars restricted binocular portion field, obtained...
How size and shape of presynaptic active zones are regulated at the molecular level has remained elusive. Here we provide insight from studying rod photoreceptor ribbon-type after disruption CAST/ERC2, one cytomatrix zone (CAZ) proteins. Rod photoreceptors were present in normal numbers, a-wave electroretinogram (ERG)--reflecting their physiological population response--was unchanged CAST knock-out (CAST(-/-)) mice. Using immunofluorescence electron microscopy, found that zones, Ca(2+)...
The development of both long-range intracortical and interhemispheric connections depends on visual experience. Previous experiments showed that in strabismic but not normal cats, clustered horizontal axon projections preferentially connect cell groups activated by the same eye. This indicates there is selective stabilization fibers between neurons exhibiting correlated activity. Extending these experiments, we investigated cats: (1) whether tangential remain confined to columns similar...
To investigate the role of visual experience for gross layout ocular dominance (OD) columns in cortex, I compared respective patterns normally raised and strabismic cats. OD domains were visualized by (1) transneuronal labeling afferents from left or right eye with intraocular 3H-proline injections (2) 14C-2-deoxyglucose autoradiography after monocular stimulation awake animals. obtain complete pattern columns, flat-mount sections prepared unfolded cortical hemispheres. Eliminating...
We examined relationships between the pattern of geniculocortical innervation and dendritic fields cells in layer 4 cat primary visual cortex. Experiments were performed on normal animals cats which projection was altered by monocular deprivation or induction divergent squint during critical period. Thalamic afferents providing input from contralateral eye anterogradely labeled injecting fluorescent tracer Dil into lamina A lateral geniculate nucleus. Intracellular staining with Lucifer...
As shown previously, neurons in various areas of the cat's visual cortex respond to appropriate stimuli with oscillatory activity frequency range 30-70 Hz. It has been suggested that synchronization such responses serves define assemblies coherently active cells which represent individual objects. In this study, we have investigated putative binding mechanism strabismic cats. We used six adult cats divergent squint had induced surgically at age 3 weeks. Multiunit was recorded from area 17...
In the brain, including retina, interneurons show an enormous structural and functional diversity. Retinal horizontal cells represent a class of that form triad synapses with photoreceptors ON bipolar cells. At this first retinal synapse, modulate signal transmission from to by feedback feedforward inhibition. To test how fully developed retina reacts specific loss cells, these were specifically ablated adult mice using diphtheria toxin (DT)/DT-receptor system <i>connexin57</i> promoter....
Purpose: Little is known about neuronal changes during ageing in the visual system of mice which are increasingly being used as animal models for human disorders. Methods and results: Measuring optomotor response to moving gratings, acuity C57BL/6-mice was 0.39 cycles/degree (cyc/deg) until 12 months age declined 0.27 cyc/deg (by 30%) at 26 months. In water task, a cortex-dependent task based on discrimination learning, remained stable 0.58 up 21 then 0.48 19%) 27 Visual cortical activity...
We tested the influence of a photothrombotic lesion in somatosensory cortex on plasticity mouse visual system and efficacy anti-inflammatory treatment to rescue compromised learning. To challenge mechanisms, we induced monocular deprivation (MD) 3-mo-old mice. In control animals, MD an increase acuity open eye ocular dominance (OD) shift towards this eye. contrast, after photothrombosis, there was neither enhancement nor OD-shift. However, OD-plasticity present hemisphere contralateral...
In the primary visual cortex (V1), monocular deprivation (MD) induces a shift in ocular dominance (OD) of binocular neurons towards open eye (Wiesel and Hubel, 1963; Gordon Stryker, 1996). V1 C57Bl/6J mice, this OD-plasticity is maximal juveniles, declines adults absent beyond postnatal day (PD) 110 (Lehmann Löwel, 2008) if mice are raised standard cages. Since it was recently shown that brief dark exposure (DE) restored young adult rats (PD70-100) (He et al., 2006), we wondered whether DE...
The disc-large (DLG)–membrane-associated guanylate kinase (MAGUK) family of proteins forms a central signaling hub the glutamate receptor complex. Among this family, some regulate developmental maturation glutamatergic synapses, process vulnerable to aberrations, which may lead neurodevelopmental disorders. As is typical for paralogs, DLG-MAGUK postsynaptic density (PSD)-95 and PSD-93 share similar functional domains were previously thought synapses similarly. Here, we show that they play...
The layout of functional cortical maps exhibits a high degree interindividual variability that may account for individual differences in sensory and cognitive abilities. By quantitatively assessing the orientation preference columns primary visual cortex, we demonstrate column sizes shapes as well measure homogeneity across cortex are significantly clustered genetically related animals two hemispheres brains. Taking developmental timetable formation into account, our data indicate...
Meng et al . conjecture that pinwheel density scales with body and brain size. Our data, spanning a 40-fold range of sizes in Laurasiatheria Euarchonta, do not support this conclusion. The noncolumnar layout Glires also appears size-insensitive. Thus, size may be understood as constraint on the evolution visual cortical circuitry, but determining factor.