Welcome to the incoming Neuroscience PhD Program class of 2023!
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The Helen Wills
Neuroscience Institute
Deepening our understanding of the brain and the rest of the nervous system through original research and neurotechnology innovation, and training the next generation of neuroscientists.
The Helen Wills
Neuroscience Institute
Deepening our understanding of the brain and the rest of the nervous system through original research and neurotechnology innovation, and training the next generation of neuroscientists.
An image of dendritic spines on neurons in the mouse cortex, produced using new microscopy technology developed by HWNI member Eric Betzig.
A Multidisciplinary Approach to Neuroscience
The Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute (HWNI) is the nexus for campus-wide multidisciplinary neuroscience research at UC Berkeley. Our community includes over 70 faculty members in 12 academic departments. This unique cross-departmental structure brings together experts from a variety of fields to use the power of interdisciplinary research to achieve breakthroughs in the study of the brain and nervous system, and to drive the development of novel treatments and technologies.
We support our faculty and their labs in their individual research aims, and foster opportunities for collaboration. We also sponsor major research initiatives, run five innovative neurotechnology and research centers, and train the next generation of neuroscientists through our Neuroscience PhD Program and the training of postdoctoral fellows who conduct research in HWNI faculty labs. We also have over 100 PhD Program alumni who work in a variety of careers across the globe.
Latest News
Bat study reveals how the brain is wired for collective behavior
The Yartsev lab has found that neurons that encode location also represent the social environment.
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Brain recordings capture musicality of speech — with help from Pink Floyd
The Knight lab and collaborators reconstructed music from intracranial brain recordings for the first time.
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Solving medical mysteries: PhD alum and neuro-ophthalmologist Aubrey Gilbert
Our Q&A with Neuroscience PhD alum Aubrey Gilbert, Northern California neuro-ophthalmology lead for Kaiser.
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Nina Dronkers wins Distinguished Career Award from the Society for the Neurobiology of Language
Congratulations to Nina Dronkers!
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Noah Whiteman named Faculty Director of Essig Museum of Entomology
Congratulations to HWNI member Noah Whiteman!
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Michael Breakspear visits UC Berkeley as inaugural Gloria Sedran Visiting Speaker
The new Gloria Sedran Speakers Program and Prizes support the advancement of Alzheimer’s disease research.
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Shekhar wins Scialog: Microbiome, Neurobiology and Disease award
Congratulations to HWNI member Karthik Shekhar!
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Recent Faculty Publications
25
Sep
2023
Front Neurol. 2023 Sep 7;14:1254297. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2023.1254297. eCollection 2023.ABSTRACTIndividuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) exhibit a diverse range of behavioral features and genetic backgrounds, but whether different genetic forms of...
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25
Sep
2023
Front Aging Neurosci. 2023 Sep 6;15:1236335. doi: 10.3389/fnagi.2023.1236335. eCollection 2023.ABSTRACTBACKGROUND: The locus coeruleus (LC) produces catecholamines (norepinephrine and dopamine) and is implicated in a broad range of cognitive functions including...
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21
Sep
2023
J Vis. 2023 Sep 1;23(11):11. doi: 10.1167/jov.23.11.11.ABSTRACTVision restoration therapies aim to restore light sensitivity to the retina following photoreceptor (PR) degeneration. Physiological changes in retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) have been...
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Alzheimers Dement. 2023 Sep 12. doi: 10.1002/alz.13449. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTThe Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) aims to improve Alzheimer's disease (AD) clinical trials. Since 2006, ADNI has shared clinical,...
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11
Sep
2023
Trends Cogn Sci. 2023 Sep 9:S1364-6613(23)00207-3. doi: 10.1016/j.tics.2023.08.011. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTGoals play a central role in human cognition. However, computational theories of learning and decision-making often take goals as...
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