LABORATORY OF SENSORY PLASTICITY AND LEARNING

Raphael Pinaud, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor/Director of Laboratory - Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences
Assistant Professor - Center for Visual Science

Address: 117 Meliora Hall, River Campus, Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY 14627
Tel: 585-276-4024 (office)
Tel: 585-275-7236 (lab 1)
Tel: 585-275-8457 (lab 2)
Fax: 585-442-9216
E-mail: pinaud@bcs.rochester.edu

Mechanisms of Neural Plasticity

A remarkable property of the vertebrate brain is that both its structural and functional connectivity is malleable and can adapt to alterations in the sensory environment. This intrinsic adaptive capacity, commonly referred to as plasticity, is required for normal brain development, learning, memory formation, and the response of the nervous system to central or peripheral damage. Work in my laboratory is focused on understanding the molecular and cellular basis of experience-dependent plasticity of sensory systems. In addition, we are interested in how normal and abnormal sensory experiences impact sensory perception, behavioral learning and memory formation. We use two experimental models to pursue these questions; the songbird auditory system and the rodent visual system. In both sensory systems we study a series of fundamental issues including (a) characterizing the anatomical and functional organization of circuits underlying sensory processing in these systems; (b) studying the impact of manipulations in the external environment (e.g., enhanced or deprived sensory experiences), or those intrinsic to the brain (e.g., genetic, pharmacological interventions or injury), and characterizing how these plasticity-inducing conditions impact sensory processing, learning and memory formation; (c) uncovering the molecular cascades that mediate these experience- and injury-induced plasticity events, and detailing how they are dynamically regulated; (d) establishing the precise roles that plasticity-related molecules play in modifying the physiology of single cells and neuronal ensembles to generate adaptive neural responses and behavior.

To address the broad research lines outlined above, the Pinaud Lab employs a multi-disciplinary approach that involves rigorous molecular, cellular, anatomical and histological techniques, in addition to in-vitro electrophysiology (patch-clamp) and in-vivo multi-electrode recordings (awake animals). We also use high-throughput molecular screening strategies, including quantitative proteomics (2D-DIGE-based proteomics and mass spectrometry) and genomics approaches, in combination with behavioral methodologies. Finally, to establish causal links between experience-regulated molecular cascades and the physiology of neural circuits and behavior, we have been using knock-out and transgenic animal lines, and developing gene manipulation tools.

The long-term goal of our research is to uncover how experience impacts the molecular and cellular biology of neurons and how these changes lead to altered neural processing strategies of behaviorally-relevant sensory information, ultimately leading to adaptive behaviors such as learning. Our research is also expected to shed light on potential ways to harness and/or alter the intrinsic molecular and cellular machinery of neurons to promote and facilitate functional recovery of sensory loss and a number of other disabilities that follow peripheral or central nervous system injury, such as deafness, blindness, phantom limb sensations and stroke.

The Pinaud Lab Pursues a Multi-Disciplinary Research Program With the Following Tools:

- Molecular biology: molecular cloning, in-situ hybridization, northern-blots, western-blots, etc.

- Proteomics and Genomics: quantitative 2D-DIGE, DNA microarrays and the use of transgenic animals).

- Whole-cell patch-clamp electrophysiology.

- Multi-site, multi-electrode extracellular electrophysiology in awake, behaving animals.

- Neuroanatomy and Histology: stereotaxic microinjections, immunocytochemistry, basic histology.

- Behavioral assays.