Join us for “Top-down influences on sensory processing" a keynote presentation by Dr. Shane Crandall, College of Arts & Science – Biological Sciences, MizzouForward faculty candidate.  Dr. Crandall will present on his research for approximately 40-minutes with a 20-minute question and answer session to follow.

Dr. Shane Crandall is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Physiology at Michigan State University.  He completed his undergraduate degree in Biology-Neuroscience at Boston University, his Ph.D in Neuroscience at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and his postdoctoral fellowship in Neuroscience at Brown University.  He currently serves as the Graduate Program Committee Chair for the Department of Physiology at Michigan State University.

The central goal of Dr. Crandall’s lab is to understand how sensory information is processed to mediate sensory-guided behavior. Toward this goal, his research group studies how brain function depends on the biophysical properties of individual neurons, their synapses, and the circuits they form with other neurons. Most of their work centers on the neocortex and the thalamus, two forebrain areas essential for normal sensation, motor control, and cognition. The broad hypothesis driving his research is that the fundamental goal of forebrain computations is to provide dynamic flexibility in the optimal processing of information on millisecond-to-second time scales. More specifically, they believe that the cellular connectivity and synaptic signaling within these circuits contribute to this flexibility and their dysfunctions as the underpinnings of certain neuropsychiatric disorders. Their experiments combine in vitro and in vivo electrophysiological techniques with various optogenetic, imaging, anatomical, and behavioral methods. They also employ several virus-mediated and transgenic tools to probe distinct circuit components, such as genetically defined neurons and synapses. In recent years, they have been pushing the application of optical stimulation of axons/terminals as part of an effort to apply these methods to understand the connectivity and signaling of long-range forebrain circuits. Their model system is the mouse whisker-mediated touch system, which is widely studied and technically tractable for investigating forebrain circuits, sensory processing, and sensorimotor learning.

Cortical feedback pathways are thought to mediate cognitive processes such as attention, prediction, expectation, and awareness. Altered feedback communication has also been associated with certain neuropsychiatric disorders. Ultimately, the results of our research will provide fundamental knowledge about the brain that may help reduce the burden of disease.

You can access Dr. Crandall’s CV via OneDrive here:

 Crandall_CV 11.14.23.pdf (University log in required to access)

After the keynote, please provide candidate feedback with our brief survey.