The detailed agenda for this workshop, along with abstracts for each talk, can be found here.
As high-throughput single-cell experimental workflows become standard in the field of neuroscience, the immense heterogeneity of neurons in the human brain has become increasingly apparent. While this heterogeneity is in part reflected in the historical pursuit of canonical “cell types,” contemporary data highlights variability in key intrinsic cellular properties, even within classical cell types. Whether this heterogeneity serves a functional purpose in the human brain, or is merely a byproduct of biological noise, remains an open question. Computational and mathematical techniques are particularly well suited to address this question considering the experimental challenges involved in varying heterogeneity
in vitro or
in vivo—indeed, most common experimental manipulations inherently reduce heterogeneity by grossly up or down-regulating a particular neuronal characteristic.
In this workshop, we will highlight the growing interest within the field of computational neuroscience to leverage
in silico tools to study the functional role of neuronal heterogeneity. This research addresses a wide variety of neuroscientific questions of interest to OCNS attendees, ranging from mechanisms underlying neuronal synchronization (e.g. epileptic seizures) to memory formation in neural networks. Talks will cover a diverse set of approaches, ranging from foundational mathematical theory to biophysically detailed models reflecting experimentally observed neuronal heterogeneities.
Confirmed speakers include:
Dr. Richard GastPostdoc; Dorris Center for Neuroscience, Scripps Research
Sanjna KumariGraduate Student; Indian Institute of Science
Dr. Jeremie LefebvreAssociate Professor; University of Ottawa; Department of Biology
Dr. Andre Longtin Professor; University of Ottawa; Department of Physics
Dr. Laura MedlockPostdoc; Krembil Research Institute, University Health Network
Dr. Scott Rich Assistant Professor; University of Connecticut; Departments of Physiology and Neurobiology, Biomedical Engineering, Mathematics, and Institute for Brain and Cognitive Sciences
Marco Zenari (filling in for Dr. Luca Mazzucato)Padova Neuroscience Center, University of Padova, Italy
