The Thermoregulation Lab was started in 2019 driven by the strong desire to understand the neural principles of vertebrate thermoregulation. We aim to understand this homeostatic process from sensation, via neuronal processing to behavioral output. We accomplish this using a blend of computational and laboratory techniques, including functional imaging, behavioral tracking and gene expression analysis in our favorite model organism, the larval zebrafish.

Our research uncovered brainstem circuits for heat and cold avoidance using a deep learning model that can be expanded to any model organism’s neuronal activity and any sets of behaviors. Building on these discoveries and techniques, we are exploring how internal states and the environment influence behavioral thermoregulation.

We are always striving to expand the scope of our research by exploring innovative techniques and the many other biological processes that depend on thermoregulation.