1ER JUILLET 2016 - 13H

Amphi Charpak - LPNHE - RDC Tour 22

How experience changes synapses in the mammalian brain - Séminaire externe IBPS

Tobias Bonhoeffer, Director of the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology (Martinsried, Germany).

Research overview

One of the most fundamental properties of the brain is its ability to adapt rapidly to environmental changes. This is achieved mainly by changes in the connectivity between individual nerve cells. We have, over the years, investigated many different aspects of the underlying mechanisms, in particular morphological changes that occur alongside with the process of strengthening and weakening of individual synapses. The discovery – obtained in vitro – that such changes occur on the level of dendritic spines has been an important one but it is equally important to investigate whether such changes also occur in the intact brain during synaptic plasticity and learning. 

We have therefore used new imaging methods to investigate the effects of sensory experience on synaptic changes in cortical circuits. In particular, in vivo two-photon microscopy has enabled us to study morphological as well as functional plasticity at the level of individual neurons in the neocortex of anesthetized and lately also behaving animals. These experiments are now closing the gap between traditional cellular and systems studies, and they will enable us to obtain a much more comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon of synaptic plasticity and its role in cortical function and ultimately behavior.

Curriculum vitae - Tobias Bonhoeffer

Physics Degree at Eberhard-Karls Universität Tübingen (1984).

PhD in Neurobiology, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tübingen (1988).

Postdoc with Amiram Grinvald and Torsten Wiesel, Rockefeller University, New York (1989/90).

Research Assistant with Wolf Singer, Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, Frankfurt (1991/1992).

Independent Group Leader, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Martinsried (1993-1998).

Director, Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, Martinsried (since 1998).

Professor at the Ludwig Maximilians University München (since 2002).

Adjunct Professor at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim Norway (since 2014).

Governor, Wellcome Trust, London, UK (since 2014).