The Francis Crick Institute Limited
Kohl Lab | Function and flexibility of instinctive behaviour circuits
The Francis Crick Institute Limited, Monaca, Pennsylvania, United States,
A 2025 Crick PhD project with Jonny Kohl.Project background and description
Our overarching goals are to understand how neural circuits for instinctive behaviours are organised and how physiological states shape information processing in such circuits. Instinctive behaviours such as parenting, aggression or feeding are orchestrated by evolutionarily sculpted neural circuits. Considerable progress has been made in deconstructing these circuits in recent years (e.g., Kohl et al, 2018) and it has become clear that their function profoundly depends on the animal's current physiological (reproductive, metabolic etc.) state. However, we know little about the mechanisms by which reproductive and other internal states affect circuit function to orchestrate behavioural changes. We have recently shown that pregnancy hormones remodel parenting-critical neurons in the hypothalamus (Ammari, Monaca et al., 2023), but it remains unknown whether such remodelling occurs at circuit-wide scale.Two PhD projects are available this year:Project 1This project will use novel viral tracing approaches and spatial transcriptomics (Chen et al., 2019) to perform high-throughput mapping of hypothalamic connectivity. You will use recently developed barcoded rabies viruses to trace connectivity between hypothalamic cell types at unprecedented scale. The goal will then be to uncover how states such as pregnancy remodel this connectivity matrix. This project will be performed in close collaboration with the Znamenskiy lab.Project 2This project will use in vivo calcium imaging (head-fixed and freely moving) to address how hormonal states change population codes in parenting circuits. Population-level analysis of neural dynamics during behaviour (e.g., linear dynamical system analysis; Nair et al., 2023) will be used to decode parental states in parenting circuits, and targeted viral-genetic perturbations used to probe the functional and behavioural relevance of such states.Note that additional projects can be discussed based on candidates’ interests.Candidate Background
Candidates should have a background in neuroscience, biosciences, engineering, or a related field. We are looking for highly motivated and creative individuals that thrive in a collaborative setting. Since projects in the lab typically involve acquiring and analysing complex datasets, quantitative and programming skills are desirable. Project 1 is suitable for candidates with an interest in high-throughput neuroanatomy, viral tracing and slice electrophysiology. Prior experience with these techniques is advantageous but not necessary. Project 2 is suitable for candidates with an interest in behaviour and in vivo calcium imaging. This project requires some prior experience in computational neuroscience.References
Functional circuit architecture underlying parental behaviour.High-throughput mapping of long-range neuronal projection using
in situ
sequencing.An approximate line attractor in the hypothalamus encodes an aggressive state.
#J-18808-Ljbffr
Our overarching goals are to understand how neural circuits for instinctive behaviours are organised and how physiological states shape information processing in such circuits. Instinctive behaviours such as parenting, aggression or feeding are orchestrated by evolutionarily sculpted neural circuits. Considerable progress has been made in deconstructing these circuits in recent years (e.g., Kohl et al, 2018) and it has become clear that their function profoundly depends on the animal's current physiological (reproductive, metabolic etc.) state. However, we know little about the mechanisms by which reproductive and other internal states affect circuit function to orchestrate behavioural changes. We have recently shown that pregnancy hormones remodel parenting-critical neurons in the hypothalamus (Ammari, Monaca et al., 2023), but it remains unknown whether such remodelling occurs at circuit-wide scale.Two PhD projects are available this year:Project 1This project will use novel viral tracing approaches and spatial transcriptomics (Chen et al., 2019) to perform high-throughput mapping of hypothalamic connectivity. You will use recently developed barcoded rabies viruses to trace connectivity between hypothalamic cell types at unprecedented scale. The goal will then be to uncover how states such as pregnancy remodel this connectivity matrix. This project will be performed in close collaboration with the Znamenskiy lab.Project 2This project will use in vivo calcium imaging (head-fixed and freely moving) to address how hormonal states change population codes in parenting circuits. Population-level analysis of neural dynamics during behaviour (e.g., linear dynamical system analysis; Nair et al., 2023) will be used to decode parental states in parenting circuits, and targeted viral-genetic perturbations used to probe the functional and behavioural relevance of such states.Note that additional projects can be discussed based on candidates’ interests.Candidate Background
Candidates should have a background in neuroscience, biosciences, engineering, or a related field. We are looking for highly motivated and creative individuals that thrive in a collaborative setting. Since projects in the lab typically involve acquiring and analysing complex datasets, quantitative and programming skills are desirable. Project 1 is suitable for candidates with an interest in high-throughput neuroanatomy, viral tracing and slice electrophysiology. Prior experience with these techniques is advantageous but not necessary. Project 2 is suitable for candidates with an interest in behaviour and in vivo calcium imaging. This project requires some prior experience in computational neuroscience.References
Functional circuit architecture underlying parental behaviour.High-throughput mapping of long-range neuronal projection using
in situ
sequencing.An approximate line attractor in the hypothalamus encodes an aggressive state.
#J-18808-Ljbffr