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About the speaker
Cornelius is a neuroscientist, who earned his PhD from Yale University in 1995, before undertaking his postdoctoral research at Columbia University. Since 2003, Gross has been at EMBL Rome as a group leader, where he has led research into the neural circuits that influence emotional behavior. In 2009, he was appointed Deputy Head of Outstation and Senior Scientist. He then became the Interim Head of EMBL Rome in 2020. He also heads the Epigenetics and Neurobiology unit.
Abstract
Exposure to predators or predator-like stimuli elicit powerful negative emotions and uncontrollable escape responses across animal species. Over the last decade we have dissect the brain circuits that mediate such innate threat responses in mice in order to learn more about human fear. We have identified the brain pathways that mediate innate responses to predators and shown that these are independent from those that mediate responses to social threats. We have recorded the responses of individual neurons while animals initiate escape from threat and have identified a local microcircuit that supports the escape decision. More recently, we have found that social hierarchy and social context can modulate the threshold for escape, showing that innate emotional behavior responses can be reshaped by experience. We are currently exploring how territoriality impact social fear and aggression, and how our neurocircuit findings in the mouse may be relevant for human social behavior. My talk will be preceded by a short overview of EMBL’s current scientific programme – Molecules to Ecosystems.
About the seminar series
Once a month, NCMM invites international guest speakers to present on topics within molecular life science and medicine.
The seminar is open to all, with no registration needed.
Tea, coffee and a simple lunch will be served at 11.30 before the seminar.