TRITSCH LAB

“You are what you do”. This common expression suggests that the actions we take, whether conscious or not, define our lives. Indeed, our very survival hinges on the ability of our nervous system to generate appropriate behavioral responses to the world around and within us. How then, do we decide which actions to take? How does the brain integrate signals related to sensory inputs, internal state and motor plans to motivate action? And how does experience modify these circuits to reinforce specific behaviors?

 

The goal of the Tritsch lab is to answer these fundamental questions by examining how a group of evolutionarily conserved brain areas known as the basal ganglia (BG) controls behavior in mice. The BG are critical for the selection, execution and reinforcement of motor actions, and their dysfunction in humans is implicated in several neuropsychiatric illnesses, including Parkinson’s disease, drug addiction and mood disorders ; however, the precise mechanisms employed by the BG to influence habitual and goal-directed movements in health and disease remain poorly understood. 

 

Our studies span several levels of analysis, from synapses to circuits, and utilize diverse experimental approaches such as electrophysiology, two-photon imaging, fiber photometry and optogenetics in both brain slices and awake behaving mice. Our research efforts are currently focused on understanding the powerful influence that dopamine- and acetylcholine-producing neurons exert on BG circuits to promote and reinforce motor actions.

 

To learn about our work, we invite you to browse our publications or to get in touch with us.