Research
The Centre for Neuroscience is home to over 90 scientists exploring every facet of brain structure and function.
Their research interests can be classified into the ten overlapping research themes described below. The primary purpose of these themes is to help prospective students or collaborators find researchers with common research interests. As noted, these themes overlap and individual researchers may have programs of study that incorporate multiple research themes. Read the brief descriptions below and click on the links to view a detailed description of each research theme and view the Faculty members with research interests fitting that theme.
Rehabilitation Neuroscience - Brain damage and degeneration can result in permanent disability in those afflicted. Researchers in this theme explore how rehabilitation therapy and treatments that encourage brain rewiring can improve recovery from neurological disorders including spinal cord injury, tramautic brain injury, and stroke.
Sensory and Motor Systems - The brain and spinal cord construct our perceptions of the world from sensory information across all sensory modalities. Moreover, motor systems in the brain allow us to move through and interact with the world around us. Researchers in this theme examine how the brain interprets and organizes sensory information and how the brain and spinal cord facilitate motor behaviours including locomotion, voluntary movement, and respiration.
Synapses And Signaling - The brain includes approximately 100 billion neurons with over 100 trillion connections. Researchers in this theme use primarily electrophysiological approaches to understand how these individual neurons communicate and form the integrated neuronal networks that underlie brain function.
Neural Development - From conception through death, the central nervous system is constantly developing and changing in response to experience. Researchers in this theme study how the central nervous systems grows and changes during development and experience dependent plasticity.
Neurochemistry and Psychiatry - Disturbances in brain structure or function can lead to the development of debilitating mental illness. Researchers in this theme use a variety of approaches to understand the etiology of neuropsychiatric illness and develop novel approaches to treatment.
Neuroimaging - Watching the brain in the intact human or animal has long been a goal of neuroscientists. Researchers in this theme use a variety of approaches, including magnetic resonance imaging as well as cellular functional microscopy, to image brain structure and function in vivo.
Cognition & Behaviour - The central nervous system allows to think, feel, and interact with the world around us. Researchers in this theme use a variety of approaches to study how the brain facilitates and coordinates complex thought and behaviour.
Neural Death and Degeneration - Injury to neurons or glial cells in the brain can lead to immediate or delayed cell death. Researchers in this theme study how damage and pathophysiological signaling cascades lead to cell death, and how these events related to traumatic brain injury or neurodegenerative disease.
Neurogenetics - Genes and environment interact to shape the development and function of the central nervous system. Researchers in this theme investigate how our genetic code regulates function or dysfunction in the healthy or diseased brain.
Clinical Neuroscience - Brain damage, disease, and degeneration can lead to debilitating disability or death. Researchers in this theme work with human patients to better understand the causes of brain disorders and translate new and exciting treatments into clinical practice.