Thalamic Spike Dynamics
How does the brain integrate new experiences into internal models that enable animals to predict, interpret, and interact effectively with their environment? Although sleep is known to strengthen newly acquired memories, the neural mechanisms that transform individual experiences into generalized knowledge remain poorly understood.
Our laboratory investigates how thalamic circuits coordinate sleep oscillations that support this process. We are particularly interested in the interactions between thalamocortical spindles and hippocampal sharp-wave ripples, two fundamental population events whose temporal coordination is thought to facilitate the integration of new experiences into long-term knowledge.
We use extracellular electrophysiology, optogenetics, and behavioral neuroscience in freely behaving rodents, we record and manipulate higher order thalamic circuits while animals learn and sleep. By combining experimental and computational approaches, we aim to understand how the precise timing of thalamic spikes influences communication across distributed brain networks, supports hippocampal-neocortical information transfer, and enables the formation of internal models that guide future behavior.
Learning from Unexpected Events
To learn effectively, the brain must identify when events differ from expectations and determine which information is important to update existing knowledge. Detecting unexpected or behaviorally relevant events is therefore a fundamental first step in learning, allowing neural circuits to revise internal models of the environment. Although prediction error and deviance detection have been extensively studied in cortical circuits, the contribution of thalamic networks to these processes remains poorly understood.
Our laboratory investigates how thalamic circuits detect unexpected events and contribute to learning. We are particularly interested in how thalamic neurons integrate sensory information and cortical feedback to identify deviations from expected patterns, and how these signals influence downstream circuits involved in perception and memory.
Sleep Stability
Quiet states such as sleep provide an opportunity for neural circuits to consolidate new experiences and integrate them into existing knowledge. Disruptions in these restorative states can impair memory and are associated with increased risk for cognitive decline and neurodegenerative disease. However, the circuit mechanisms that maintain stable brain states and promote memory consolidation remain poorly understood.
Our laboratory investigates how midline thalamic circuits regulate quiet states and support memory function. We are particularly interested in how the firing patterns of thalamic neurons influence stable sleep, and how these firing patterns shape the consolidation of episodic memories.
Using a combination of extracellular electrophysiology and pharmacological approaches in behaving rodents, we manipulate and record thalamic circuits across learning and sleep. We aim to uncover the mechanisms through which thalamic networks stabilize brain states, coordinate hippocampo-cortical circuits, and promote learning.
