Staff Profiles

Stephanie joined the Allen Institute for Brain Science in 2016 to aid in research efforts exploring circuit connectivity and processing in mouse visual cortex. Stephanie earned her Ph.D. in Neuroscience from the University of Washington. There she worked with Dr. Steve Perlmutter and Dr. Eberhard Fetz to understand the connectivity and plasticity of sensorimotor cortex using in vivo recordings of population local field potentials. Stephanie previously researched synaptic processing in the auditory brainstem using in vitro electrophysiological methods under Dr. Nace Golding at the University of Texas, Austin. Stephanie earned her B.S. in Biology from Union College in Schenectady, NY.

Research Interests

The complex processing of the brain is intimately tied to the structural and functional connections that individual neurons and networks of neurons make. For many decades anatomical studies have guided us as to which brain regions and local populations likely make synaptic contact. I am interested in understanding the functional interactions served by these physical connections as this is how the brain communicates. With the multi-patch team I will record from many neurons simultaneously to uncover the transmission of neural signals between them. By utilizing transgenic mouse lines we can describe the connections of specific neuron types in order to form a rich view of specific connectivity in the brain and ultimately how this leads to behavior.

Expertise

• In vivo and in vitro electrophysiology
• Systems Neuroscience
• Neural Circuits
• Synaptic Plasticity

Research Programs

• Ephys Core
• Multi-patch