Our goal is to understand how circuits of the hippocampal region, a critical area for memory formation, are established during development
Cajal-Retzius cells in the postnatal hippocampus
Studies on neocortical circuit development have showed that specific cell types and specific circuits are critical for this early period of network maturation, and that perturbation of their activity leads to long-lasting deficits. However, a similar analysis of the development of the circuit of the hippocampal region is still lacking. A specific, transient cell-type characterizes the hippocampus during postnatal development. These cells are called Cajal-Retzius (CR) cells and have been discovered in the XIX century by Ramon y Cajal, one of the founding fathers of neuroscience.
Synapse formation
Communication between neurons is mediated by billions of synapses, creating neuronal circuits that support complex brain functions. How are these synapses created during development? And how different are synapses one from another?
Cell-type emergence in the hippocampal formation
Recent advances in transcriptomic analysis have greatly expanded the number of cell-types in cortical region. However, how these cell-types emerge in development is still poorly understood.
Quattrocolo Lab 