Daniel A. Dombeck Optical dissection of the neuronal circuits underlying mammalian navigation

Research Interests

The neuronal activity underlying mammalian spatial navigation represents one of the most striking examples of behavioral correlation in the brain. We are interested in the cellular and circuit mechanisms responsible for the neuronal activity that allows mammals to navigate and find their way to specific destinations. To accomplish this, we develop and apply novel optical and genetic techniques to perform cellular and subcellular resolution imaging and manipulation of neuronal population activity in mice navigating in virtual reality environments. By understanding the navigation circuitry, we hope to extract general principles about neuronal population dynamics in behaving mammals.

Selected Publications

Rapid signalling in distinct dopaminergic axons during locomotion and reward. Howe MW and Dombeck DA. Nature. 2016 July 28;535(7613):505-510.

Calcium transient prevalence across the dendritic arbour predicts place field properties. Sheffield MEJ and Dombeck DA. Nature. 2015 January 8;517(7533):200-204.

The Functional Micro-organization of Grid Cells Revealed by Cellular-Resolution Imaging. Heys JG, Rangarajan KV, and Dombeck DA. Neuron. 2014 December 3;84(5):1079-1090.

Functional imaging of hippocampal place cells at cellular resolution during virtual navigation. Dombeck DA, Harvey CD, Tian L, Looger LL, and Tank DW. Nature Neuroscience. 2010 November;13(11):1433-1440.

Imaging Large-Scale Neural Activity with Cellular Resolution in Awake, Mobile Mice. Dombeck DA, Khabbaz AN, Collman F, Adelman TL, and Tank DW. Neuron. 2007 October 4;56(1):43-57.

View all publications by Daniel A. Dombeck listed in the National Library of Medicine (PubMed).