Our group is interested in understanding the cellular basis of neural computation in the mammalian brain. Specifically, we are investigating how the integrative properties of neuronal dendrites and the anatomical and functional connectivity of neural circuits contribute to coding and processing of information in the intact brain. We have chosen the cerebellum and neocortex as our model systems, where we use a combined strategy of in vitro and in vivo imaging and electrophysiology, taking advantage of a range of high-tech approaches developed in the lab. These include two-photon imaging techniques, patch-clamp recordings from axons and dendrites and simultaneous recordings from multiple synaptically connected cells. Our experiments are complemented by computational models of single neurons and networks of neurons. At each stage of our work, our aim is to link different levels of brain function, in order to reveal how activity in single neurons and neural circuits encodes defined behaviours and, importantly, what kinds of changes take place within these circuits during learning. 

For further information, contact Michael Häusser: m.hausser@ucl.ac.uk