Featured Scientist
Kanaka Rajan, PhD
Associate Professor of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School
Founding Faculty, Kempner Institutes for the Study of Natural and Artificial Intelligence
Founding Faculty, Kempner Institutes for the Study of Natural and Artificial Intelligence
We are a computational neuroscience lab where we bring together the fields of brain research and artificial intelligence/machine learning to figure out how the brain works. We use mathematical and computational models based on data collected from neuroscience experiments to design an artificial system that can perform realistic behaviors using only the machinery the biological nervous system has access to (i.e., neurons and synapses operating at a fast timescale). We build such systems and then we ‘reverse engineer’ them to reveal the operating principles of the real brain.
Community Stories
Thyroid Hormone Levels Predict Longevity and Economic Behavior
Thyroid signaling plays a central role in metabolism. Ralph Lawton and Daniel Hochbaum of the Sabatini Lab share new research revealing it may regulate human behavior and other important components of health as well.
Thyroid signaling plays a central role in metabolism. Ralph Lawton and Daniel Hochbaum of the Sabatini Lab share new research revealing it may regulate human behavior and other important components of health as well.
Unforeseen Relationships of Mouse and Human Retinas
One cell, the “midget retinal ganglion cell,” carries the vast majority of visual information from the eye to the brain in humans. It has been thought to be a primate-specific innovation, making it impossible to study in accessible model systems. Josh Sanes shares how, using molecular comparison of retinas from 17 vertebrate species, researchers from his team and that of former postdoc Karthik Shekhar, were able to trace back through evolution and identify mouse orthologues of midget cells.
One cell, the “midget retinal ganglion cell,” carries the vast majority of visual information from the eye to the brain in humans. It has been thought to be a primate-specific innovation, making it impossible to study in accessible model systems. Josh Sanes shares how, using molecular comparison of retinas from 17 vertebrate species, researchers from his team and that of former postdoc Karthik Shekhar, were able to trace back through evolution and identify mouse orthologues of midget cells.
Google Map of the Mouse Brain at Molecular Resolution
Yichun He and Hailing Shi share new work from labs of Jia Liu and Xiao Wang, on the creation of publicly accessible spatial atlas of the mouse brain with unprecedented level of detail—featuring an analysis of over one million individual cells that pinpointed approximately 230 unique molecular cell types and delineated 106 distinct molecular tissue regions.
Yichun He and Hailing Shi share new work from labs of Jia Liu and Xiao Wang, on the creation of publicly accessible spatial atlas of the mouse brain with unprecedented level of detail—featuring an analysis of over one million individual cells that pinpointed approximately 230 unique molecular cell types and delineated 106 distinct molecular tissue regions.
Upcoming Events
Neural Development Club Data Blitz
March 19, 2024
5:00 pm to 6:30 pm
Location: Armenise Building, Room 108
Learn about research in neural development across Harvard at an NDC data blitz!5:00 pm to 6:30 pm
Location: Armenise Building, Room 108
gNeuro – April 2024 Meeting
April 1, 2024
4:00 pm to 6:00 pm
Location: Armenise Amphitheater
Featuring talks by Angela Kim (Lowell Lab, BIDMC) and John Manion (Dong Lab, BCH)4:00 pm to 6:00 pm
Location: Armenise Amphitheater