Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences GSN-LMU
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Harald Luksch

Prof. Dr. Harald Luksch

MCN advisory Board member, GSN full member, GSN Scientific Board member

Responsibilities

Chair of Zoology, Technische Universität München

Contact

Technische Universität München
Department of Animal Sciences
Liesel-Beckmann-Straße 4
D-85354 Freising-Weihenstephan

Phone: +49 (0)81 / 61 71 2800

Website: http://www.zoologie.wzw.tum.de/index.php?id=16&L=1

Further Information

Research focus: My focus is on sensory integration in the vertebrate midbrain - the central hub for sensorimotor integration in the brainstem, which we study in bird species (mostly chicken). Here, a multimodal map of sensory space is constructed that, together with additional circuitry, enables fast responses to sensory stimulation. Bottom-up control of attention, stimulus competition, and target detection are functions that can be traced to specific network properties. Currently, we are interested in the dynamics of the system during self-movement and the role of the tecto-isthmic network.

Key words: midbrain, multimodal integration, circuitry, bottom-up attention

Current and graduated GSN students: Dr. Hamed YeganegiDr. Maximilian Bothe

Selected publications:

Garrido-Charad, F*, Vega-Zuniga, T*., Gutiérrez-Ibáñez, C., Fernandez, P., Lopez-Jury, J., González-Cabrera, C., Karten, H.J., Luksch, H.², Marin, G.J.² (2018): Shepherd’s crook neurons drive and synchronize the enhancing and suppressive mechanisms of the midbrain stimulus selection network. PNAS 115 (32), 7615 - 7623. 2018 | DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1804517115

Vega-Zuniga T, Trost D, Schicker K, Bogner EM, Luksch H. (2018): The medial ventrothalamic circuitry: Cells implicated in a bimodal network. Front Neural Circuits 12. DOI: 10.3389/fncir.2018.00009

Niederleitner, B., Gutierrez-Ibanez, C., Krabichler, Q., Weigel, S., and Luksch, H. (2017) A novel relay nucleus between the inferior colliculus and the optic tectum in the chicken (Gallus gallus) J Comp Neurol 525:513-534.| DOI: 10.1002/cne.24082

Schnyder HA, Vanderelst D, Bartenstein S, Firzlaff U, Luksch H. (2014): The avian head induces cues for sound localization in elevation. PLoS One. 2014 Nov 12;9(11):e112178. | DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0112178

Verhaal J, Luksch H. (2013) Mapping of the receptive fields in the optic tectum of chicken (Gallus gallus) using sparse noise. PLoS One. 8 (4): e60782. | DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0060782