General NeuroarchitectureTo unravel how navigation information is encoded in the brain we study the insect brain anatomically, using immunohistochemical techniques combined with imaging and 3D modelling. By staining brains with an anti-synapsin antibody, we can visualize the brain areas in the insect brain. Using a scanning microscope, the whole brain can then be imaged and reconstructed in 3D. By averaging several brains together, we can generate a representative brain atlas of the brain of an insect.
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The Monarch brain (from Heinze and Reppert (2012)
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The dung beetle central brain (from Immonen et al. 2018)
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The beetle central complex (el Jundi et al. 2019); compass network in the locust brain (el Jundi et al. 2011)
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NEural CIrcuitsTo study the neural network in the insect brain, we perform tracer injections into specific brain areas or into single neurons, and conduct stainings against neurotransmitters (e.g. serotonin). The neurons can then be modelled in 3D and warped into a brain atlas.This allow us to gain a detailed knowledge of the neural circuits in general, and the compass network in particular. One main focus of our studies is the analysis of the central-complex network, the brain region that acts as internal compass during insect navigation..
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