Sensory Physiology, Neuroscience, and Behavior

Sensory Physiology, neuroscience, and behavior covers a wide range of fields and scientific areas of study. In the Bell Center these fields are woven together in an interdisciplinary fashion, advancing the boundaries of knowledge produced across all three areas. Jen Morgan's Lab research focuses, in part, on neurostransmitters. Her lab is working to identify "the fundamental molecular mechanisms by which neurotransmission is maintained via local synaptic vesicle trafficking. As part of this project, [they] have developed a synaptic model for Parkinson’s Disease, and [they] are currently exploring the mechanisms underlying synaptic dysfunction associated with the disease" (Morgan Lab ND). Lampreys are used as a model system for this project as well as other projects in the Morgan lab. Lydia Mäthger's Lab focuses on sensory ecology. She looks at the optical functions of animals that have elaborate pupil shapes. Her lab uses a variety of techniques, including "behavioral studies and different optical imaging methods, so that [they] can begin to understand how the various optical components of the eye affect vision and behavior" (Mäthger Lab ND). Roger Hanlon's Lab investigates the mechanisms and functions of camouflage. In this lab there is a lot of fieldwork done in order to observe marine animals in their natural environment. Currently their research focuses on "cephalopods although recently we have studied flatfish, filefish and groupers that can also produce Rapid Adaptive Camouflage on a time scale somewhat similar to squid, octopus and cuttlefish" (Hanlon Lab ND). This lab is highly collaborative and cross discipinary, they "conduct a wide range of experimentation in the laboratory to tease out the details of camouflage that [they] observe and quantify from field studies. These include mechanisms of visual perception and sensory integration as well as the functional morphology of the complex skin that produces the changeable body patterns"(Hanlon Lab ND). In the Rosenthal Lab focuses on RNA editing. This is opposed to splicing which affects a larger regions of RNA, editing can affect change at single bases. The lab researches "cephalopods because they recode proteins through RNA editing far more often than other organisms. We also are developing ways to redirect RNA editing to sites of our choosing" (Rosenthal Lab ND).