Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory | UCI CNLM

Embodiology®: From Ancestral Movement-Music Practices to Phenomenal Being
2021-12-02 13:00 - 20:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Herklotz Conference Center, 300 Qureshey Research Lab, Irvine, CA, United States
Embodiology®: From Ancestral Movement-Music Practices to Phenomenal Being
A Neuro-Arts Symposium Led by Professor S. Ama Wray and Professor Michael Yassa
When: Dec. 2, 1-2:15 pm and 7-8:30 pm PDT
Where: The Herklotz Conference Center

Nii Addy, Ph.D.
2021-09-28 11:00 - 12:00 | Herklotz Conference Center, 300 Qureshey Research Lab, Irvine, CA, United States
The CNLM will be hosting Dr. Nii Addy, Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the Yale School of Medicine, in a colloquium where he will present his latest research.
This year, the series will be held in a virtual format with some speakers presenting in-person as well. We will keep registered participants updated on the possibility of an in-person event as the situation with COVID-19 evolves.

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Virtual CNLM Summer Research Symposium
2021-08-13 10:00 - 14:00 | Virtual
Join us for a virtual symposium featuring the 2021 Interns of the Irvine Summer Institute in Neuroscience. Participants will share poster presentations of their summer research projects.
Agenda
10:00am – Welcome
10:15am – Keynote Lecture by CNLM Director, Michael Yassa
11:30am – Break
12:00 – 1:40pm – Poster Session
For more information, please visit: https://cnlm.uci.edu/reu/

Lulu Y. Chen, Ph.D.
2021-08-10 11:00 - 12:00 | Virtual
Role of Neurexin 2 in Autism Spectrum Disorder and Epilepsy
The 2021 CNLM Summer Seminar Series is hosted by the Irvine Summer Institute in Neuroscience, a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Program funded by the National Science Foundation and Department of Defense. The program is directed by Dr. Luis Colon-Perez and Manuella Oliveira Yassa and provides an intensive research training and professional development experience for undergraduates interested in interdisciplinary neuroscience research.
Lulu Y. Chen, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Anatomy and Neurobiology at UC Irvine’s School of Medicine, is one of the speakers in the 2021 Virtual CNLM Seminar Series.

Jodi Quas, Ph.D.
2021-08-03 11:00 - 12:00 | Virtual
Lessons From Science: Interviewing Children about Trauma to Obtain Accurate and Complete Accounts
The 2021 CNLM Summer Seminar Series is hosted by the Irvine Summer Institute in Neuroscience, a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Program funded by the National Science Foundation and Department of Defense. The program is directed by Dr. Luis Colon-Perez and Manuella Oliveira Yassa and provides an intensive research training and professional development experience for undergraduates interested in interdisciplinary neuroscience research.
Jodi Quas, Ph.D., Professor of Psychological Science at UC Irvine’s School of Social Ecology, is one of the speakers in the 2021 Virtual CNLM Seminar Series.

Gyorgy Lur, Ph.D.
2021-07-27 11:00 - 12:00 | Virtual
Sex Dependent Short- and Long-term Effects of Stress on the Parietal Circuit
The 2021 CNLM Summer Seminar Series is hosted by the Irvine Summer Institute in Neuroscience, a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Program funded by the National Science Foundation and Department of Defense. The program is directed by Dr. Luis Colon-Perez and Manuella Oliveira Yassa and provides an intensive research training and professional development experience for undergraduates interested in interdisciplinary neuroscience research.
Gyorgy Lur, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Neurobiology and Behavior at UC Irvine’s School of Biological Sciences, is one of the speakers in the 2021 Virtual CNLM Seminar Series.

Javier Diaz Alonso, Ph.D.
2021-07-20 11:00 - 12:00 | Virtual
Exploring AMPA Receptors Synaptic Trafficking During Long-term Potentiation
The 2021 CNLM Summer Seminar Series is hosted by the Irvine Summer Institute in Neuroscience, a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Program funded by the National Science Foundation and Department of Defense. The program is directed by Dr. Luis Colon-Perez and Manuella Oliveira Yassa and provides an intensive research training and professional development experience for undergraduates interested in interdisciplinary neuroscience research.
Javier Diaz Alonso, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Anatomy and Neurobiology at UC Irvine’s School of Medicine, is one of the speakers in the 2021 Virtual CNLM Seminar Series.

UCI Virtual Brain Camp
2021-07-19 09:30 - 2021-07-30 15:30 | Virtual
Summer 2021 Brain Camp will be held July 19 – July 30.

Due to the COVID pandemic and the university closures, we will be hosting this year’s camp remotely. The UCI CNLM has been hosting virtual programs for K-12 children for nearly one year and we are designing an engaging, stimulating and rewarding experience for this year’s brain camp participants. Students should expect to engage I program activities from 9am – 3:30pm M-F.
Each child will receive a kit with equipment and materials that will allow them to participate in hands-on activities from home!

Registration now open!
Space is limited! Early registration is strongly encouraged.

Learn More and Register Today

How addiction hijacks the brain: what animal models can tell us about the neurobiology of drugs of abuse
2021-07-13 18:00 - 19:30 | Virtual
Research using animal models has begun to shed light on how drugs of abuse and addiction impact brain and behavior. But what can these models tell us about the mechanisms of addiction in humans, and what is the current state of the science regarding clinical support for drug use disorders? Join the CNLM Ambassadors for a virtual panel discussion featuring four UCI experts, Dr. Christie Fowler, Associate Professor in the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Dr. Ariana Nelson, Associate Clinical Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology & Perioperative Care, Dr. Jessica Childs, Postdoctoral Scholar in the Department of Neurobiology and Mitchell Farrell, Ph.D. Candidate, studying how drug use changes neural circuitry underlying learning, memory, and future drug-seeking behaviors.
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Alyson K. Zalta, Ph.D.
2021-07-13 11:00 - 12:00 | Virtual
Exploring the Therapeutic Potential of Morning Bright Light for PTSD
The 2021 CNLM Summer Seminar Series is hosted by the Irvine Summer Institute in Neuroscience, a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Program funded by the National Science Foundation and Department of Defense. The program is directed by Dr. Luis Colon-Perez and Manuella Oliveira Yassa and provides an intensive research training and professional development experience for undergraduates interested in interdisciplinary neuroscience research.
Alyson K. Zalta, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Psychological Science at UC Irvine’s School of Social Ecology, is one of the speakers in the 2021 Virtual CNLM Seminar Series.

Michael Leon, Ph.D.
2021-07-06 11:00 - 12:00 | Virtual
Environmental Enrichment as an Effective Treatment for Autism
The 2021 CNLM Summer Seminar Series is hosted by the Irvine Summer Institute in Neuroscience, a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Program funded by the National Science Foundation and Department of Defense. The program is directed by Dr. Luis Colon-Perez and Manuella Oliveira Yassa and provides an intensive research training and professional development experience for undergraduates interested in interdisciplinary neuroscience research.
Michael Leon, Ph.D., Professor of Neurobiology and Behavior at UC Irvine’s School of Biological Sciences, is one of the speakers in the 2021 Virtual CNLM Seminar Series.

Memory: It's About Time Virtual Conference
2021-05-27 09:00 - 2021-05-28 14:30
May 27 & 28, 2021
9:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Memories are the record of our experiences, but they also shape them. We now know that memory recall is a fundamentally constructive process, reassembling multiple views of past experience to interpret the present and imagine the future. The three symposia for this year’s Learning and Memory meeting will examine recent and ongoing research building this new, dynamic, multi-scale understanding of memory. The first,” Connections and Components,” will investigate the ways in which neural circuits are “hard-wired” to encode certain features of experience and what this means for how and what we remember. The second, “Construction and Formation,” will examine the fundamental building blocks of memories as they are encoded and reshaped by later experience. The third, “Sequences and Structures,” will discuss how memories link together to reflect the regularities of the world around us. Discussion sections will synthesize the findings we’ve learned about and sketch out new directions for memory research in the years ahead, including implications for neurological disease.
For more information, please visit: https://cnlm.uci.edu/2021-spring-conference/
Register Today!

2021 CNLM Awards Ceremony
2021-05-18 15:00 - 17:00 | Virtual
Join the Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory (CNLM) for the 2021 CNLM Awards Ceremony The CNLM offers awards to exceptional postdoctoral researchers, graduate trainees, and undergraduates students. Awardees will be presented with a plaque and $1,000 stipend and will be invited to present their work in brief Elevator Pitch format to the UCI academic community and the public at our annual CNLM Awards Ceremony.

RSVP for the Award Ceremony on May 18

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For more information, please visit: https://cnlm.uci.edu/awards/

CNLM Virtual Colloquium with Kimberlei A. Richardson, Ph.D.
2021-05-11 11:00 - 12:00 | Zoom
Opportunities and Obstacles: Investigating the Orexin System Beyond Food Preference
The CNLM will be hosting Dr. Kimberlei Richardson, from the Department of Pharmacology of Howard University College of Medicine, in a virtual colloquium where she will present her latest research.
Co-sponsored by the UC Irvine Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory (CNLM) and the UC Irvine Center for Addiction Neuroscience (ICAN)
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Black in Neuro Seminar Series: Dr. Yasmin Hurd
2021-05-07 09:00 - 10:00 | Virtual
Black in Neuroscience…the Road Less Traveled to Scientific Discoveries”
Please join Black in Neuro for a virtual seminar featuring Dr. Yasmin Hurd, Director of the Addiction Institute within the Mount Sinai Behavioral Health System and the Ward Coleman Chair of Translational Neuroscience and Professor of Psychiatry and Neuroscience at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York.
Please register here to attend.

About Dr. Hurd:
Dr. Yasmin Hurd is an internationally renowned neuroscientist whose translational research examines the neurobiology of drug abuse and related psychiatric disorders. Her research exploring the neurobiological effects of cannabis and heroin has significantly shaped the field. Using multidisciplinary research approaches, her research has provided unique insights into the impact of developmental cannabis exposure and epigenetic mechanisms underlying the drug’s protracted effects into adulthood and even across generations. Dr. Hurd’s basic science research is complemented by clinical laboratory investigations evaluating the therapeutic potential of novel science-based strategies for the treatment of opioid addiction and related psychiatric disorders. Based on these high impact accomplishments and her advocacy of drug addiction education and health, Dr. Hurd was inducted into the National Academy of Medicine that complements other honors she has received in the field. In 2020, she also received the Mika Salpeter Lifetime Achievement Award from the Society for Neuroscience. The impact of her research has also attracted popular attention, including articles and interviews in Time magazine, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and on CNN, PBS NOVA, PBS/Netflix series Human: The World Within; Netflix series (The Business of Drugs); NPR/Freakonomics radio.

UCI Giving Day 2021
2021-04-28
Supporting the CNLM’s Director’s Excellence fund will support our highest mission-critical priorities and goals including investments in new equipment, funding innovative research projects, recruiting and training the next generation of brilliant neuroscientists, and supporting our community education and outreach activities.

Memory is the sum of who we are. It stretches our consciousness over a lifetime and allows us to enjoy meaningful lives. It enables us to learn from our mistakes and plan for our futures. It chronicles the history of our species and will tell our tale long after we are gone. Yet, for something so essential, we still know very little about how it works. The pathbreaking Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory was the first program in the world to take on this challenge. Today, we continue to lead the way in uncovering memory’s mysteries.
Unlocking the mystery of how memories are made and how our brains are wired to accomplish this incredible feat will transform our future and catapult us to new frontiers in technology, medicine, and education.
Sound like science fiction?
This promising future can be here sooner than you think. You hold the power to make it a reality. Partner with us and the next transformative discovery is just on the horizon.

CNLM Virtual Colloquium with Corey Harwell, Ph.D.
2021-04-27 11:00 - 12:00 | Zoom
Development and diversity of neural cell types in the septum
The CNLM will be hosting Dr. Corey Harwell, from the Department of Neurobiology of Harvard Medical School, in a virtual colloquium where he will present his latest research.
Abstract: The septum is ventral forebrain structure responsible for the regulation of emotional states including anxiety, fear and depression. The septum contains an extremely diverse array of short- and long-range projecting GABAergic neurons distributed across its two histological subdivisions, the medial and lateral septal nuclei. Both of these regions are heavily interconnected with other brain areas. It is currently unclear how septal neuronal diversity and circuit wiring are specified during development. Using molecular genetics and single-cell/nuclei RNA-seq we have begun to unravel the developmental logic for producing diverse neural cell types in the septum. Our future work is focused on understanding the specific contribution of developmentally specified neural cell types to the regulation of internal states carried out by the septum.

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Sleep to feel, to think, and to remember
2021-04-13 18:00 - 19:00 | Virtual
We spend nearly one-third of our lives asleep. Despite its universal nature and apparent necessity, why we sleep remains largely a mystery. Sleep to feel, to think, and to remember is a virtual panel discussion featuring three UCI experts studying how sleep affects our emotions and the way we think, and how stress impacts a good night’s rest. This event will spark exciting conversations and provide a fun interactive experience with both early-career and established UCI scientists. We hope you will be able to join us!
To register, please visit: https://cnlm.uci.edu/ambassadors/

CNLM Virtual Colloquium with Kate M. Wassum, Ph.D.
2021-04-06 11:00 - 12:00 | Zoom
Amygdala-cortical circuitry in reward learning and pursuit
To make adaptive decisions we must cast ourselves into the future and consider the outcomes of our potential choices. This prospective consideration is informed by our memories. I will discuss our lab’s recent work investigating the neural circuits responsible for encoding, updating, and retrieving reward memories for use in the considerations underlying decision making. We have taken a multifaceted approach to these investigations, combining recording, modern circuit dissection, and behavioral tools. Our results indicate that the orbitofrontal cortex and basolateral amygdala work in a reciprocal circuit to mediate in these functions. The cognitive symptoms underlying many psychiatric disorders result from a failure to appropriately learn about and/or anticipate potential future events, making these basic science data relevant to the understanding and potential treatment of mental illness.

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Irvine Brain Bee
2021-03-20 09:00 - 13:30 | Virtual
Join us for an interactive, engaging day of neuroscience fun featuring a keynote lecture, virtual poster session, demonstrations and activities for high school students.
Students will have opportunities to network with UCI neuroscience faculty and students throughout the day to learn more about pathway to neuroscience and careers in neuroscience.
For more information, please visit: https://cnlm.uci.edu/irvinebrainbee2021/

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CNLM Virtual Colloquium with Alicia Izquierdo, Ph.D.
2021-03-09 11:00 - 12:00 | Zoom
The CNLM will be hosting Dr. Alicia Izquierdo, from the University of California, Los Angeles Department of Psychology, in a virtual colloquium where she will present her latest research.
Frontocortical circuits in reward learning and choice under uncertainty
Orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) and Anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) have been assigned various overlapping roles ranging from learning and responding to reward, signaling value and uncertainty, and supporting economic decisions, to name a few. Both of these regions share reciprocal anatomical connections with basolateral amygdala, and not surprisingly, there is a great deal of functional similarity among these circuits. Using a combination of novel behavioral paradigms, DREADDs, and calcium imaging in freely-moving rats, our lab has sought better resolution of these diverse frontocortical processes. In this talk I will present data comparing OFC and ACC, together with basolateral amygdala, in flexible reward learning under uncertainty. Our results suggest highly overlapping, less specialized, roles for ACC and OFC in learning under uncertainty that point to complementary roles in keeping track of outcomes over repeated experience. Our more recent data will be discussed with an eye toward similarities in ACC and OFC function across cognitive domains, from perceptual to value- based decisions. Collectively these findings may have implications for how we view frontocortical contributions in flexible learning and value-based decision making across rodent and primate species.

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CNLM Virtual Colloquium with Beth Stevens, Ph.D.
2021-02-09 11:00 - 12:00 | Zoom
(Re) Defining Myeloid Cell States and Function in Alzheimer’s Disease
Emerging evidence from genetic association studies shows that dysregulation of the brain’s immune system plays a key role in the onset and progression of neurodegenerative disease. Our research aims to identify and validate disease mechanisms informed by human genetics and identify functional and mechanistic markers of myeloid and glial cells in detrimental states, before cognitive decline, that can be readily detected through imaging and fluid biomarkers. Using single-cell RNA sequencing, spatial transcriptomics and proteomic approaches we identified molecular signatures that can be used to localize and monitor distinct microglia functional states in human and mouse brain. Our results show that microglia assume diverse functional states in development, aging and injury, including populations corresponding to known microglial functions including proliferation, migration, inflammation, and synaptic phagocytosis. In addition, we identified several innate immune pathways by which microglia recognize and prune synapses during development and in models of disease, including the classical complement cascade. Illuminating the mechanisms by which developing synaptic circuits are sculpted is providing important insight on understanding how to protect synapses in Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases of synaptic dysfunction.

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CNLM Virtual Colloquium with Staci D. Bilbo, Ph.D.
2021-01-12 11:00 - 12:00 | Zoom
Prenatal environmental stressors impair postnatal microglial function and behavior in male mice
The CNLM will be hosting Dr. Staci D. Bilbo, from Duke University’s department of Psychology and Neuroscience, in a virtual colloquium where she will present her latest research.

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CNLM Virtual Colloquium with Charan Ranganath, Ph.D.
2020-12-08 11:00 - 12:00 | Zoom
Memory at the scale of episodes: How the neocortex and hippocampus support memory for complex events
Dr. Ranganath’s research focuses on characterizing the psychological processes that support human memory, and their neural underpinnings. In particular, they have investigated the functions of brain regions in the prefrontal cortex and medial temporal lobes.

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POSTPONED: Colloquium with Kate M. Wassum, Ph.D.
2020-10-27 11:00 - 12:00 | Zoom
Our thoughts are with those who are impacted by the Silverado Canyon and Blue Ridge Fire which are currently burning in Orange County.
In light of the evacuations and lives impacted, we have decided to postpone this event.
The CNLM will be hosting Dr. Kate Wassum, from UCLA’s department of Psychology, in a virtual colloquium where she will present her latest research on reward circuitry.

Amygdala-cortical circuitry in reward learning and pursuit
To make adaptive decisions we must cast ourselves into the future and consider the outcomes of our potential choices. This prospective consideration is informed by our memories. I will discuss our lab’s recent work investigating the neural circuits responsible for encoding, updating, and retrieving reward memories for use in the considerations underlying decision making. We have taken a multifaceted approach to these investigations, combining recording, modern circuit dissection, and behavioral tools. Our results indicate that the orbitofrontal cortex and basolateral amygdala work in a reciprocal circuit to mediate in these functions. The cognitive symptoms underlying many psychiatric disorders result from a failure to appropriately learn about and/or anticipate potential future events, making these basic science data relevant to the understanding and potential treatment of mental illness.

Colloquium with Judith F. Kroll, Ph.D.
2020-10-06 11:00 - 12:00 | Zoom
Join the CNLM in this virtual colloquium with professor Judith Kroll, from the department of Language Science here at UCI, where she will present her research on the consequences that bilingualism has on the mind and the brain.
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The consequences of bilingualism for the mind and the brain
In the last two decades there has been an upsurge of research on the bilingual mind and brain. Although the world is multilingual, only recently have cognitive and language scientists come to see that the use of two or more languages provides a unique lens to examine the neural plasticity engaged by language experience. But how? Bilinguals proficient in two languages appear to speak with ease in each language and often switch between the two languages, sometimes in the middle of a sentence. In this last period of research we have learned that the two languages are always active, creating a context in which there is mutual influence and the potential for interference. Yet proficient bilinguals rarely make errors of language, suggesting that they have developed exquisite mechanisms of cognitive control. Contrary to the view that bilingualism adds complication to the language system, the new research demonstrates that all languages that are known and used become part of the same language system. A critical insight is that bilingualism provides a tool for examining aspects of the cognitive and neural architecture that are otherwise obscured by the skill associated with native language performance in monolingual speakers. At the same time, recent studies reveal variation in these dynamics as a function of the interactional context in which bilingual speakers find themselves. In this talk I illustrate this approach, consider the consequences that bilingualism holds more generally for cognition and learning, and demonstrate how the observed consequences may be shaped by the opportunities available to use each language.

CNLM Virtual Colloquium with Julian F. Thayer, Ph.D.
2020-09-29 11:00 - 12:00 | Zoom
Why Should Cognitive Neuroscientists Care About the Vagus Nerve?: A Neurovisceral Integration Perspective, CNLM Virtual Colloquium with Julian F. Thayer, Ph.D., Distinguished Professor Department of Psychological Science, University of California, Irvine

Dismantling Systemic Racism – A UCI Town Hall Discussion
2020-07-21 16:00 - 17:30 | Zoom
Dear colleagues,
It has been a few weeks since you last heard from me, but a lot has been going on in the interim. The summary report from our #ShutDownSTEM Town Halls was made available on June 15th. Since then, we have had over 700 individuals sign up to our BLM Mailing List and 170 volunteers sign up to join the BLM Working Groups. This is a tremendous response!
We have also received much support from campus leaders and UCI’s administration. We are now ready to move forward on charging the working groups and making progress on our goal to dismantling systemic anti-Black racism on campus.
Our next town hall, scheduled for July 21st at 4:00PM, will be a kickoff meeting for these efforts. We will be joined by Vice Chancellor for Equity, diversity and Inclusion and UCI’s Chief Diversity Officer, Dr. Douglas Haynes, who will address the group and provide an overview of campus efforts and plans to dismantle systemic racism.
The goal of the town hall will be to discuss how we can harness the grassroots effort and goodwill that has sprung up across the whole campus and the strong desire across numerous stakeholder groups to be part of the process of making a difference, while capitalizing and building on our campus’ achievements in this area as well as strategic plans for diversity, equity, and inclusion as embodied in the Office of Inclusive Excellence Action Plan.
We will discuss working group structure and leadership as well as the process by which the groups will be supported, expectations for their deliverables, and next steps for how to implement their recommendations.
It will be an exciting meeting, and we hope you all can join us. Please click below to register for the event and you will receive the zoom meeting information the morning of the town hall.
I look forward to seeing you all soon. If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to email me.
Sincerely,
Michael A. Yassa, Ph.D.

Virtual Young Scholars Award Ceremony - 2020
2020-05-20 16:00 - 18:00
Join us for the 2020 CNLM Virtual Award Ceremony to celebrate young scholars on Wednesday, May 20, 2020
Each year, the Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory (CNLM) offers awards to exceptional postdoctoral researchers, graduate trainees, and undergraduates students. Recipients receive awards of up to $1,000 and will present their work in brief, elevator pitch format to the CNLM community.
Due to recent COVID-19 outbreaks and concern about the safety of attendees, the CNLM will host a virtual award ceremony via Zoom Video Conferencing. Awardees will pre-record their presentation and will be available to answer questions about their research.
For those in our community who have not participated in a Zoom event, we have put together a Zoom Event Guide to help you get started. We recommend setting up Zoom on your computer or device prior to joining the event. After you RSVP for the event, you will receive an email with information on accessing the Zoom meeting.
For more information on the awards and to browse past recipients, please visit: https://cnlm.uci.edu/awards/

Virtual Colloquium with Andrew P. Maurer, PhD
2020-05-13 13:00 - 14:00 | Zoom
Using “Model-Result” Interactions to Understand Hippocampal LFPs: Implications for Cognitive Disorders
