Neural representations of space in the hippocampus of a food-caching bird
Schedule
Wednesday, December 1, 2021
17:00 UTC
Hannah Payne
Aronov lab, Columbia University
Host: WWNeuRise
Recording
Open recording
Event Information
Recording
Available
Host
WWNeuRise
Duration
35 minutes
Abstract
Spatial memory in vertebrates requires brain regions homologous to the mammalian hippocampus. Between vertebrate clades, however, these regions are anatomically distinct and appear to produce different spatial patterns of neural activity. We asked whether hippocampal activity is fundamentally different even between distant vertebrates that share a strong dependence on spatial memory. We studied tufted titmice – food-caching birds capable of remembering many concealed food locations. We found mammalian-like neural activity in the titmouse hippocampus, including sharp-wave ripples and anatomically organized place cells. In a non-food-caching bird species, spatial firing was less informative and was exhibited by fewer neurons. These findings suggest that hippocampal circuit mechanisms are similar between birds and mammals, but that the resulting patterns of activity may vary quantitatively with species-specific ethological needs.
Topics
Related Seminars
SeminarSeminarSeminar
Deciphering the Dynamics of the Unconscious Brain under General Anesthesia
Stanford Neurosciences Seminar Series talk by Emery Brown (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Neuroscience Statistics Research Lab) on deciphering the dynamics of the unconscious brain under…
Upcoming · Sep 17, 2026
Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute, Stanford University
Engineering human myelination in vitro: Mechanobiologically compatible platforms for CNS drug discovery
UCL Department of Neuroinflammation Seminar by Professor Emad Moeendarbary (Professor of Cell Mechanics and Mechanobiology, UCL Mechanical Engineering) on how biophysical factors such as substrate…
Upcoming · Sep 30, 2026
UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology — Department of Neuroinflammation
Colloquium on the Brain and Cognition with Christopher Harvey, PhD, Harvard University
Picower Institute Colloquium on the Brain and Cognition featuring Christopher Harvey, PhD, of Harvard University, held in Singleton Auditorium (46-3002) at MIT Building 46, 43 Vassar Street.
Upcoming · Oct 1, 2026
The Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, MIT
Related Job Opportunities
JobJobJob
PhD Studentship: Mitochondrial Metabolism and Novel Therapeutic Strategies for Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease (MASLD) (Fixed Term)
Supervisors: Professor Andrew Murray, Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge Dr Ross Lindsay, Novo Nordisk Funding: Fully funded PhD studentship (Home/UK…
Posted Aug 10, 2026
Research Associate (Fixed Term)
We seek a highly motivated Postdoctoral Research Associate to join the laboratory of Professor Kathy Niakan. We are based in the Loke Centre for Trophoblast Research (LCTR), in the Department of…
Posted Aug 11, 2026
Research Assistant/Associate (Fixed Term)
Applications are invited for a postdoctoral research associate position to study the neural mechanisms of visual learning in mice, in the laboratories of Professor Ole Paulsen and Dr Jasper Poort…
Posted Aug 11, 2026