SISSA Colloquium returns on Wednesday, March 18th, at 2 PM in Aula Magna Budinich. This time, we will have the pleasure of hosting Professor Huib Mansvelder (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam), who will deliver a lecture titled
Neuronal Mechanisms Supporting Human Cognitive Ability
Abstract: Why are some people able to think faster than others? How do neurobiological factors such as brain circuits, cellular properties, or molecular networks contribute to differences in cognition? Research on the neurobiology of intelligence has traditionally focused on brain structure and function through brain imaging techniques, or on genes and genetic loci through genome-wide association studies. Yet the intermediate level remains largely unexplored. The emergence of single-cell transcriptomics combined with functional and morphological analysis of neurons in the human neocortex offers a way to bridge this gap. In this talk, Huib Mansvelder will present recent findings on the structural and functional adaptations of human neurons that distinguish them from those of laboratory animals, and discuss new approaches linking genetic, cellular, and brain-imaging data to better understand human cognitive ability.
Huib Mansvelder is Professor of Integrative Neurophysiology at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. During his PhD, he studied calcium channel control of vesicle release in neuroendocrine pituitary cells. As a postdoc with Dan McGehee at the University of Chicago, he investigated drug-induced synaptic plasticity in dopamine neurons and uncovered how nicotinic receptors modulate synaptic transmission in the ventral tegmental area. At Columbia University, working with Rafael Yuste, he examined rapid calcium dynamics in dendritic spines using two-photon imaging. His current research focuses on how the prefrontal cortex and subcortical brain areas orchestrate attention behaviour in rodents. In parallel, his lab investigates the anatomical and functional organization of human neocortical microcircuits and how the properties of human neurons relate to human cognition.
After the Colloquium, refreshments will be offered.
