Neurobiology and Synaptic Function
Group Leader(s): Dr Maike Kittelmann
About us
We are interested in the connection between ultrastructure and function at different levels of the nervous system:
- Nervous system: What did the earliest neurons in animals look like and how did they function (in collaboration with Dr. Pawel Burkhardt, Sars, University of Bergen)?
- Sensory organs: How is ommatidia size regulated in flies and what are the functional consequences in signal detection and processing?
- Synapses: How does presynaptic ultrastructure affect synaptic signalling in C. elegans?
Research impact
![C. elegans synapse C. elegans synapse](/getmedia/9b6043d2-b7fd-4316-8612-210f80097cd6/BOTTOM-c-elegans-synapse.jpg?width=685&height=401&ext=.jpg)
We use a large variety of imaging techniques including Confocal microscopy, Electron microscopy and synchrotron radiation microtomography. Undergraduate and postgraduate students receive hands-on training and experience in microscopy and image processing through their projects and therefore valuable skill sets for academia as well as industry.
Leadership
![Maike Kittelmann](https://media-cdn.brookes.ac.uk/mediacontainer/medialibraries/oxfordbrookes/profile-images/staff/hls/bms/kittelmann-maike-p0077338-small.jpg?width=256&height=256&ext=.jpg)