Recent Dissertations


The principle focus of the curriculum is the doctoral dissertations. After selection of a dissertation advisor and completion of the Preliminary Examination, a Dissertation Advisory Committee is set up to advise and support the student. This committee meets with the student every 9 months until the dissertation is written. The dissertation is then defended and submitted to the University registrar in fulfillment of the Ph.D. degree requirements. The dissertation may substantially draw on research publications, but it must conform to the guidelines in The Form of the Doctoral Dissertation. Degrees are awarded in June, November, and March.

 

Jocelyn LeBlanc

  • Critical period plasticity and sensory function in a neuroligin-3 model of autism.

Michela Fagiolini, advisor

 

Yessenia Ibarra

  • Characterization of human TRPA1 and TRPV1 channels in response to naturally occurring defensive compounds.

David Clapham, advisor

 

Ashlee Van't Veer

  • Role of Kappa-Opioid Receptors in Stress-Induced Behaviors.

William Carlezon, advisor

 

Alan Mardinly

  • Regulation of Synapse Development by Activity Dependent Transcription in Inhibitory Neurons.

Michael E. Greenberg, advisor

 

Mónica Feliú-Mójer

  • Coupling the small GTPase Rab3 to the Synaptic Vesicle Cycle.

Joshua Kaplann, advisor

 

David Ferrero

  • Olfactory Control of Instinctive Behavior.

Stephen Liberles, advisor

 

Kathleen Quast

  • Functional Development and Plasticity of Parvalbumin Cells in Visual Cortex:  Role of Talamocortical Input.

Takao Hensch, advisor

 

Alexandra Smolyanskaya

  • Dynamics of cortical decision circuits during changes in the fidelity of sensory representations.

Richard Born, advisor

 

Lia Min

  • Experience-dependent Loss of Cross-Modal Plasticity in Mouse Visual Cortex.

Michela Fagiolinih, advisor


Alice Yiqing Wang

  • Neural substrates of choosing actions and motivational drive, a role for the striatum.

Naoshige Uchida, advisor


Michael Soskis

  • A chemical-genetic study of EphB receptor tyrosine kinase signaling in the developing nervous system.

Michael E. Greenberg, advisor

 

Vijay Ganesh

  • Identification and Characterization of Genes Essential for Human Brain Development.

Christopher A. Walsh, advisor


Irina De la Huerta

  • Expression and role of cadherins in the mammalian visual system.

Joshua Sanes, advisor

Soyon Hong

  • Probing the in vivo economy of amyloid beta-protein during the development of Alzheimer's disease-type pathology.

Dennis Selkoe, advisor

Kuo-Hua Huang

  • Control of Turning Behaviors by Spinal Projection Neurons.

Florian Engert, advisor

Juliette Han

  • The Role of TSC in Oligodendrocyte Differentiation and Myelination.

Mustafa Sahin, advisor

Maria Gelfand

  • Characterization of the in vivo role of Neuropilin1 during development.

Chenghua Gu, advisor