Our laboratory studies the neurophysiology and correlative morphology of the central and peripheral vestibular system. We are interested in the cellular determinants of the response dynamics of the vestibular semicircular canal afferent nerves. We are also presently concentrating on a study of neural plasticity (motor learning) in the vestibulo-ocular reflex of a small primate, the squirrel monkey. We have a long term interest in the central nervous system efferent control of the vestibular and auditory systems and in the synaptic organization of the neural circuits responsible for the generation and control of ocular gaze. Our overall goal is to understand the neural basis for the behavior of the organism, particularly behavior controlled by the brainstem.
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