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Dr. Thomas PreussAssistant Professor Kennedy Center
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Research in my lab focuses on mechanistic questions of neural decision-making and plasticity in sensorimotor systems. More specifically, we are studying how the sensory and social environments modify the expression of adaptive behaviors at the level of individual neurons and their networks. For this purpose, we use two different model systems, the Mauthner cell system of teleost fish and the squid giant-axon system, which mediate the startle escape behaviors in these animals. These systems are remarkable in that individual neurons and their connections are identifiable and can be investigated in vivo at the synaptic, cellular, and network levels. Moreover, the neural activity of these neurons can be related quantitatively to distinct aspects of the startle-escape behavior. The behavior and the underlying neural networks have been shown to be modifiable by experience, situational context, environmental conditions, and social status. We employ a wide range of approaches including high-speed video analysis of behavior, in vivo electrophysiology, neuroanatomy, immunohistochemistry, and pharmacology. Most recently, we also use the Mauthner cell system as an identifiable target for single-cell molecular biology. Current projects focus on the Mauthner-cell escape system and include (i) dendritic integration of complex visual and auditory stimuli and decision-making in the Mauther neuron (ii) the celluar mechanisms that underlie the sensory filtering phenomenon prepulse inhibition (PPI) (iii) adaptive changes in the escape behavior of African cichlid fish that are influenced by the social status and its underlying cellular mechanisms. Selected Publications
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