Research Profile Neuroscience

There are at least 500 neuroscientists at RUB that conduct their research in diverse faculties and in our university clinics. These involve in particular the Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology, the Faculty of Chemistry and Biochemistry, the Medical Faculty including the preclinical departments of Anatomy, Biochemistry, Medical Psychology and of Physiology, as well as its university clinics of Neurology, Neurosurgery, Neurooncology, Neuroradiology, and Psychiatry, as well as the Faculty of Psychology. Also part of our community is the Institute for Neural Computation, the Institute of Cognitive Science and the transfacultative Research Department of Neuroscience.

State-of-the-art methodology

Our research methodology is state-of-the art and spans methods such as opto- and pharmacogenetics, light sheet, confocal, STED and (in vivo) endoscopic microscopy, human and small animal fMRI, electrophysiology ranging from invasive and non-invasive approaches in human subjects, through to in vitro and in vivo electrophysiology used to scrutinize cell activity during learning in diverse rodent and avian species. These methods are complemented by state-of-the-art molecular biological, neurochemical and cell biological approaches. This research is underpinned by advanced signal analysis and modelling approaches.

We are particularly interested in cellular processes and signal transduction that support neural integrity, neural transmission and cognition. We also research the processes that underlie the creation and modification of memory, as well as study the mechanisms that lead to memory, cognitive and functional impairments in the brain. Our research community collaborates with one another closely, meaning that as a PhD candidate you have the possibility to acquire a broad portfolio of methodological expertise and can be exposed to many different aspects of neuroscience research.