My lab studies the assembly, function, and evolution of circuits. Specifically, we focus on sensorimotor circuits, such as those in the spinal cord. These circuits process a variety of stimuli such as heat, light touch, pain, and self-movement. These circuits generate patterned muscle contractions underly animal movement.
Movement control- My lab is interested in understanding how neural circuits implement the motor programs that allow animals to move. Our goal is to understand the functional architecture of a sensorimotor system at the cellular level.
Circuit assembly- We are interested in understanding how circuits self-assemble starting from a small number of stem cells. This should generate developmental insight relevant to stem cell reprogramming that could be used to replace diseased/damaged neural tissue.
Evolution of circuits- We are interested in how sensorimotor circuits change over evolutionary time scales to allow animals to control different body forms and behaviors.
Elizabeth S. Heckscher, PhD
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Associate Professor of Molecular Genetics and Cell Biology
Associate Professor of Neuroscience Institute
Committee on Development, Regeneration, and Stem Cell Biology
Committee on Genetics, Genomics and Systems Biology
Committee on Neurobiology - Research and Scholarly Interests: Drosophila, Evolution, Biological, Lineage, Cell, Motor Activity, Neuron, Sensory Function, Stem Cell, Transcription Factor
- Websites: Heckscher Lab Website, MGCB Heckscher Lab, Research Network Profile
- Contact: heckscher@uchicago.edu
- Graduate Programs: Cell & Molecular Biology, Development, Regeneration & Stem Cell Biology, Genetics, Genomics & Systems Biology, Neurobiology, UChicago Biosciences, PhD Program in Neurobiology