We study how the nervous system works – how it is built, how it operates on cellular and systems levels, how drugs affect it, and how it is damaged in neurodegenerative diseases.
Uncovering the secrets of the brain
Message from the Chair
Welcome to the Department of Neurobiology at the University of Chicago!
These are exciting times for Neurobiology Research at The University of Chicago, which has been expanding rapidly. Over the past four years four new faculty members have joined our department, with diverse research interests spanning cellular/molecular, systems, the neurobiology of disease, cognitive, and computational approaches. These new faculty members have strengthened our already vibrant department, and we expect that this trend for expanding neuroscience research at The University of Chicago will continue in the years to come.
Four new faculty members have recently joined the newly formed Department of Neurobiology. Jason MacLean, previously a postdoctoral fellow at Columbia University, was hired in 2007 as an Assistant Professor, and his laboratory uses cutting edge two-photon imaging techniques to uncover the circuit mechanisms of cortical function. David Freedman joined the Department of Neurobiology as an Assistant Professor in 2008 following postdoctoral fellowships at M.I.T. and Harvard Medical School. His laboratory is focused on the neuronal mechanisms of visual learning, memory and recognition. Christian Hansel, Professor in the Department of Neurobiology, was also hired in 2008 and is focused on understanding the cellular mechanisms of plasticity in the cerebellum. Christian was a postdoctoral fellow at Johns Hopkins University, and most recently was a faculty member in the Department of Neuroscience at Erasmus University in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Leslie Osborne, previously a postdoctoral fellow at the University of California in San Francisco, is the newest addition to the Department of Neurobiology, joining in 2009. She is an Assistant Professor, and her laboratory combines experimental and theoretical approaches to understand the mechanisms of sensory motor processing for controlling eye movements.
On the macro level, these new faculty members have joined and are collaborating with a growing community of more than 75 neuroscience researchers at The University of Chicago. A hallmark of Neuroscience research at The University of Chicago is that all of our faculty can be found in departments throughout the Hyde Park campus, which encompasses all major academic departments including biology, medicine, physical sciences, mathematics, the social sciences and the arts. This diversity and close geographical proximity of our faculty to those of fosters a strong and uniquely interdisciplinary and collaborative neuroscience community.
I invite you to explore the various research programs and labs in the department of Neurobiology at the University of Chicago.
S. MURRAY SHERMAN
ANNOUNCEMENTS
- Department of Neurobiology featured in the Huffington Post. For complete article click here.
- Christian Hansel awarded seed grant from the Brain Research Foundation in Chicago.
- Kamal Sharma featured in ScienceLife. For complete article click here.
