NBIO Presents: Jason Shepherd, PhD (University of Utah)
2026-05-21 09:30 - 10:30 (America/Los_Angeles) | Health Sciences G-328
Seminar information coming soon!
Health Sciences G328 and Zoom

NBIO Presents: Marius Pachitariu (HHMI Janelia Research Campus)
2026-05-28 09:30 - 10:30 | Health Sciences G-328
Linking neural representations to behavior using generalization
Sensory-guided decisions are the result of sensorimotor transformations across many brain areas. Recent studies have localized the motor components of these transformations using correlations between brain-wide neural activity and behavior. It has been more difficult to localize sensory computations with the same approach, as it requires pushing animal performance close to psychophysical thresholds, which is typically not feasible. Here we developed a new approach for linking sensory computations to behavior by training mice to discriminate between two stimuli and testing their responses to new stimuli. We then calculated the similarity of neural representations between train and test stimuli, using recordings of over 50,000 simultaneously-recorded neurons from 9 primary and higher-order visual areas (HVAs) and across cortical depths. We found that neural discrimination on the test images but not the train images correlated with the behavioral discrimination of the animals, across a large number of stimulus pairs and animals. The link between neural and behavioral performance was highest in the medial HVAs, suggesting this region as a critical component of sensory transformations and generalization.

Virginia Merrill Bloedel Hearing Research Center presents: Prentice Bloedel Research Day
2026-06-04 12:30 - 18:00 | Haring Center Auditorium CD 150, 1701 NE Columbia Ave, Seattle, Washington, 98195, United States
Virginia Merrill Bloedel Hearing Research Center presents:
Prentice Bloedel Research Day
Thursday 4 June 2026
Talks: 12:30 PM – 4:30 PM | Poster Session: 4:30 PM – 6:00 PM
Platform Speakers
“Two Ears Are Better Than One:
From Brain to Behavior in Developing Listeners”
Bonnie Lau, PhD, CCC-SLP | University of Washington
“Highlights from Research on Cochlear Development”
Olivia Bermingham-McDonogh, PhD | University of Washington
“Maturation of Binaural and Spatial Hearing
in Children with Typical Hearing and Bilateral Cochlear Implants”
Ruth Litovsky, PhD | University of Wisconsin
“Wiring the Lateral Superior Olive: It Takes Three to Tango”
Karl Kandler, PhD | University of Pittsburgh
UW Trainee Talks
“Regional Specializations of Supragranular Pyramidal Neurons
in the Macaque Auditory Cortex”
Jeffrey Parra Munevar | Graduate Student, Neurobiology & Biophysics
“Vestibular Hair Cell Patterning in Zebrafish: A Balancing Act”
Selina Baeza-Loya, PhD | Postdoctoral Fellow, Otolaryngology-HNS
“How Do Bilingual and Monolingual Brains Respond to an Unfamiliar Language?”
Farhin Ahmed, PhD | Postdoctoral Fellow, Otolaryngology-HNS
“Auditory Language Processing in Adults with Developmental Language Disorder”
Noelle Abbott, PhD | Postdoctoral Fellow, Speech and Hearing Sciences

Wayne E. Crill Endowed Lecture: Kristen Brennand, PhD (Yale University)
2026-06-09 16:00 - 17:15 | Foege Genome Sciences Auditorium S-060, 3720 15th Ave NE, Seattle, WA, 98195, United States
Gene x Environment Interactions in Brain Disease
Kristen Brennand, PhD, Professor in Psychiatry & Genetics at Yale University School of Medicine
Abstract: Each person’s distinct genetics and environment predispose them to some phenotypes and confers resilience to others. We seek to understand the genetic regulation of phenotype, and how it is impacted by developmental, cellular, and environmental contexts. Our functional genomics approach integrates human induced pluripotent stem cell models with
CRISPR-based genome engineering to introduce and reverse genetic variation, yielding precision models that can be combined with genetic and pharmacological screens. Given the complex genetic risk architectures associated with psychiatric disorders and neurodegenerative diseases, we ask how diverse risk variants share convergent downstream impacts, and whether when added together, combinatorial perturbations yield outcomes that cannot yet be predicted by individual manipulations alone. Likewise, we ask how stress, inflammation, hormones, and other exposures exacerbate or ameliorate the effect of disease-associated risk factors. We study how genotype-phenotype relationships vary across people and dynamic conditions, within and between the cell types of the brain. Thus, rather than just characterize the impact of trait-associated variants, we seek to uncover modifiers that alter it. Our goal is to decipher the frameworks that buffer genetic risk, in order to confer biological resilience and promote healthy development. Understanding the basic biology governing the complex interplay between genetic variants and the environment will springboard the development of novel, personalized approaches to improve health and prevent brain disease

NBIO Presents: Kara Marshall, PhD (Baylor College of Medicine)
2026-06-11 09:30 - 10:30 | Health Sciences G-328
Feeling the Force: PIEZO ion channels in interoception
Abstract: The Marshall lab studies how mechanosensory molecules and cells—those that sense forces like pressure and stretch—regulate physiology. Inside our bodies, various organs distend and contract as they perform their functions, and embedded neurons monitor and transmit the resulting mechanical sensations to the brain to guide the appropriate behaviors. For example, stretch sensors in the stomach initiate digestion and mediate the sensation of fullness, and bladder stretch alerts us to find a bathroom. Despite their importance, the mechanosensory systems that govern these processes are not well understood. We previously have found that the mechanosensory PIEZO ion channels are critical for a number of interoceptive functions, and we continue using these sensors as genetic handles to understand how mechanosensation contributes to physiology in health and disease

Virginia Merrill Bloedel Hearing Research Center presents: Craig A. Buchman, MD, FACS (University of Utah)
2026-06-11 15:00 - 16:30 | Haring Center Auditorium CD 150, 1701 NE Columbia Ave, Seattle, Washington, 98195, United States
Simultaneous Multi-Electrode Recordings Along Human Scala Tympani: Evidence for Level Dependent Coding

NBIO Presents: Hernandez Moura Silva, PhD (Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT and Harvard)
2026-06-18 09:30 - 10:30 | Health Sciences G-328
Ironing Out the Ferrostatic Role of Vasculature Associated Macrophages
Iron is an essential micronutrient required by nearly all living organisms, and maintaining its homeostasis represents a fundamental biological challenge across multiple levels, from individual cells to entire tissues and the whole organism. We propose that local iron regulation within adipose tissue is centrally coordinated by vasculature-associated macrophages (VAMs), a specialized population of resident tissue macrophages closely associated with the vasculature and known to perform key homeostatic functions. While VAMs and other resident tissue macrophages have been historically linked to host defense/innate immunity, there is a major gap in our understanding of their diverse functions beyond immunity, and how their dysfunction drives the progression of chronic inflammatory diseases. Gene expression profiling reveals that VAMs express a comprehensive suite of genes involved in iron import, export, processing, and storage. Our data further demonstrate that VAMs are the most efficient cell type within adipose tissue at importing transferrin-bound iron from the circulation and also function as significant intracellular iron reservoirs. Based on these findings, we demonstrate that VAMs act as central regulators of adipose tissue iron content, continuously sensing local demand and modulating iron availability to support tissue homeostasis.

2026 Lamport Lecture: Rachel Wilson, PhD (Harvard University)
2026-10-08 00:00 - 23:59 | TBA
Seminar Title and Abstract TBA

NBIO Presents: James Bisley, PhD (UCLA)
2026-10-15 09:30 - 10:30 | Health Sciences G-328

NBIO Presents: Arpiar Saunders, PhD (OHSU)
2026-11-05 09:30 - 10:30 | Health Sciences G-328

NBIO Presents: Ulrich Mueller, PhD (Johns Hopkins University)
2026-11-12 09:30 - 10:30 | Health Sciences G-328

NBIO Presents: Anthony Peng, PhD (University of Colorado Anschutz)
2026-12-03 09:30 - 10:30 | Health Sciences G-328

NBIO Presents: Josefina del Mármol, PhD (Harvard)
2026-12-10 09:30 - 10:30 | Health Sciences G-328

NBIO Presents: Matt Carter, PhD (Williams College)
2027-03-18 09:30 - 10:30 | Health Sciences G-328
Title and Abstract coming soon!

NBIO Presents: Daniel Levenstein, PhD (Yale University)
2027-03-25 09:30 - 10:30 | Health Sciences G-328
