Principal Investigator Mriganka Sur
A large proportion of the genes in the human genome are expressed in the cerebral cortex, which makes up 80% of the brain in higher mammals. Understanding how the cortex develops and changes is critical to understanding how the brain works. We study the genes that lay down a scaffold for wiring in the visual and other cortex, and the ways in which patterned electrical activity shapes gene expression and neuronal connectivity. We approach this work from several levels: the function of individual genes, the interactions between genes, and the processes by which external stimuli influence molecules of the developing cortex to create neuronal networks that process sensory information.