06/23/06

Neural Strategies for Learning During Sensitive Periods of Development

Sarah W. Bottjer, University of Southern California

Introduction by Wiliam Beers, MBL


Lecture Abstract:
Development in animals is characterized by periods of heightened capacity for both neural and behavioral change. “Sensitive periods” of development are those in which brain and behavior are most susceptible to modification by experiential factors. Certain types of learning occur only during sensitive periods of development, and coincide with heightened phases of neural plasticity. In humans, for example, children are much more adept at learning languages than are adults, and the time at which the capacity for language acquisition decreases seems to correlate with the end of the period of maturation of the cerebral hemispheres. One of the few groups of organisms other than humans that learn vocal sounds used for communication during a sensitive period of development are songbirds. Vocal learning and behavior are controlled by circuits of highly localized, interconnected neural circuits in the songbird brain. This brain-behavior system provides an ideal model in which to address basic questions pertaining to relationships between mechanisms of neural development and complex processes of learning and behavior. Our goal is to elucidate mechanisms that regulate basic processes of neural development, and in so doing to shed light on factors governing the emergence of a learned behavior.

Sarah W. Bottjer is a Professor of Biological Sciences at the University of Southern California (USC), where she has been a faculty member since 1986. She is also a Director of the MBL’s Neural Systems & Behavior Course. Dr. Bottjer received her B.A. in Psychology from the State University of New York in 1975 and a Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology from Indiana University in 1979. She completed her postdoctoral training in Neuroscience at the Brain Research Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles, where she subsequently joined the faculty as an Assistant Research Scientist in the Department of Psychology. Dr. Bottjer has received numerous honors and awards, including the Research Career Development Award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). She currently serves on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Neurobiology, Trends in Neuroscience, and Developmental Brain Research.

Dr. William Beers will introduce Dr. Bottjer. Dr. Beers is the Chief Academic and Scientific Officer of the MBL. He received an A.B. in Biochemical Sciences from Harvard, completed his doctorate in Biochemistry and Pharmacology at The Rockefeller University, and held a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Illinois before serving as an Associate and Assistant Professor of Cell Biology at The Rockefeller University from 1973 to 1978. Dr. Beers joined the faculty of New York University in 1978, where he served as a Professor in the Departments of Biology and Cell Biology, as well as Biology Department Chair and Director of Undergraduate Studies. From 1987 to 2000, Dr. Beers held various positions at The Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California. There he oversaw all scientific departments and support services, and acted as a key player in the articulation and implementation of the Institute's vision and mission. Dr. Beers served as Vice President of Facilities and Research Support at The Rockefeller University from 2000 to 2002. Prior to joining the MBL, Dr. Beers had been Vice President of Operations and a member of the Board of Trustees of The Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies in San Diego. Dr. Beers has conducted research in the area of female reproduction and is the author of numerous publications in leading scientific journals. He has served as a Trustee of several institutions and currently serves on the Boards of the Foundation for Biomedical Research and the Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies. Dr. Beers has received the Rockefeller Foundation Special Postdoctoral Fellowship in Reproductive Biology, the Public Health Service Research Career Development Award, and the Dean's Distinguished Faculty Award from New York University.