Sensory systems play an important role in integrating information from an animal’s environment to drive an appropriate behavioral response. The auditory system is one of the first sensory systems to fully develop in many animals and often shows the first signs of nervous system impairment. Processing of sound location that computes information from both ears occurs in the auditory brainstem of mammals. The early development and sensitivity to disruption of this part of the auditory system makes the auditory brainstem an ideal circuit to understand the brain in both normal and altered states.

The lab has three main research areas:

Weird Organisms

Autism and Fragile X Syndrome

Modern Techniques