RIKEN Center for Brain Science Laboratory for Neural Circuits and Behavior
Laboratory Head: Andrea Benucci (Ph.D.)
Research Summary
Our laboratory studies the neural basis of sensory processing with a major focus on vision. We are particularly interested in understanding the computational rules used by populations of neurons in the visual cortex to process visual information: how does the coordinated activity of groups of neurons, “talking” among each other via action potentials, produce a visual percept? What are the relevant spatial and temporal scales used to process visual information? To address these questions, we are using as a model system the primary visual cortex of mice trained in behavioural tasks. The experimental tools we are using are based on cutting-edge methods in Optogenetics, optical imaging, and electrode recording. This research provides an ideal test-bed for understanding the neural mechanisms of visual perception and its outcomes have the potential to provide important clinical applications in the field of cortical visual prostheses.
Main Research Fields
- Biology
Related Research Fields
- Biological Sciences
Keywords
- optogenetics
- recurrent neural networks
- electrophysiology
- artificial intelligence
- decision-making
Selected Publications
- 1.
Orlandi, J.G., Abdolrahmani, M., Aoki, R., Lyamzin, D.R., Benucci, A.,
"Distributed context-dependent choice information in mouse dorsal-parietal cortex."
bioRxiv, 2021.03.02.433657, (2021)
10.1101/2021.03.02.433657 - 2.
Abdolrahmani, M., Lyamzin, D.R., Aoki, R., Benucci, A.,
"Attention Separates Sensory and Motor Signals in the Mouse Visual Cortex."
Cell Rep., 36(2):109377, (2021)
10.1016/j.celrep.2021.109377 - 3.
Lyamzin, D.R., Aoki, R., Abdolrahmani, M., Benucci, A.,
"Probabilistic discrimination of relative stimulus features in mice."
PNAS, July 27;118(30):e2103952118, (2021)
10.1073/pnas.2103952118 - 4.
Makino, Y., Polygalov, D., Bolaños, F., Benucci, A., McHugh, T.J.,
"Physiological Signature of Memory Age in the Prefrontal-Hippocampal Circuit."
Cell Rep., 29(12):3835-3846.e5, (2019)
10.1016/j.celrep.2019.11.075 - 5.
Lyamzin, D., Benucci, A.,
"The mouse posterior parietal cortex: Anatomy and functions."
Neurosci. Res., Mar;140:14-22 (2019)
10.1016/j.neures.2018.10.008 - 6.
Aoki, R., Tsubota, T., Goya, Y., Benucci, A.,
"An automated platform for high-throughput mouse behavior and physiology with voluntary head-fixation."
Nature Comms., 8:1196, (2017)
10.1038/s41467-017-01371-0 - 7.
Pisauro, M.A., Benucci, A., Carandini, M.,
"Local and global contributions to hemodynamic activity in mouse cortex."
J.Neurophysiol., Mar 16;00125.2016, (2016)
10.1152/jn.00125.2016 - 8.
Zoccolan, D., Cox, D., Benucci, A.,
What can simple brains teach us about how vision works."
Front. Neural Circuits, 9:51, (2015)
10.3389/fncir.2015.00051 - 9.
Madisen, L., ...,Benucci, A., ..., Zeng, H.
"Transgenic mice for intersectional targeting of neural sensors and effectors with high specificity and performance."
Neuron, Mar 4;85(5):942-58, (2015)
10.1016/j.neuron.2015.02.022 - 10.
Carandini, M., Shimaoka, D., Rossi, L.F., Sato, T.K., Benucci, A., Knöpfel, T
"Imaging the awake visual cortex with a genetically encoded voltage indicator."
J.Neurosci., Jan 7;35(1):53-63, (2015)
10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0594-14.2015
Recent Research Results
Related Links
Lab Members
Principal investigator
- Andrea Benucci
- Laboratory Head
Core members
- Mohammad Abdolrahmani
- Research Scientist
- Dmitry Lyamzin
- Research Scientist
- Javier Orlandi Gomez
- Research Scientist
- Ryo Aoki
- Special Postdoctoral Researcher
- Federico Bolanos
- Junior Research Associate
- Yuka Iwamoto
- Technical Staff I
- Yuki Goya
- Technical Staff I
- Rie Nishiyama
- Technical Staff I
Careers
| Position | Deadline |
|---|---|
| Seeking a Research Part-time Worker (W22303) | Open until filled |
Contact Information
101b Brain Science Neural Circuit Genetics Research Bldg.
2-1 Hirosawa, Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan
Tel: +81-(0)48-462-1111
Fax: +81-(0)48-467-5221
Email: andrea.benucci [at] riken.jp