Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence (Martinsried site)

A shift to a fruit diet may have paved the way for the evolution of spectacular displays in manakins

The individual steps of nest-building are instinctive, but only through practice do the fish become true masters

Neurons that control when zebra finches call back fire more strongly when the caller is familiar

A Europe-wide citizen science study reveals common buzzards are becoming more uniform in colour 

Evolution finds both repeated and unique solutions as birds adapt to high-sugar diets

The amygdala is the brain's emotional center, a brain region that links specific events with positive or negative emotions, thereby influencing our decisions. The amygdala also plays a crucial role in appetite regulation. Different types of nerve cells within the amygdala perform different functions. Appetite-stimulating neurons increase our desire for food or drink, while appetite-suppressing neurons suppress it. This makes the amygdala a potential target for pharmacotherapy in the treatment of obesity.

Nerve cells in the visual cortex respond to simple light stimuli, e.g. lines or edges of a certain orientation in space. Surprisingly, the preferred orientation of a cell changes over time, it shows “drift”. Our experiments not only reveal the characteristics of this phenomenon in the visual cortex, but also provide clues as to what causes it and which mechanisms counteract the drift.

We do not always perceive odors in the same way. Instead, our perception is modulated by previous experiences, context and internal states such as hunger or stress, which also modulates the behavioral response. Our research group investigates what happens in the brain during this process, using the zebrafish as a model. In the transparent brains of the animals, we are able to investigate how sensory, associative and motor circuits interact to produce odor-controlled behavior.

Depression is a disorder that affects thoughts, but also the ability to engage in the most basic actions, as simple as getting out of bed. Therefore, this disorder must perturb a core network of brain regions implicated in our motivation to act. Our team at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology investigates in mice what part of the brain is active when they spontaneously engage in an action, using a novel method to record whole-brain activity. The goal is to better understand what brain circuits controls our drive to act and how they become dysfunctional in psychiatric disorders.

Neurodegenerative diseases are devastating disorders for which no cure currently exists. The molecular mechanisms of these diseases are still not well understood. A characteristic feature of neurodegeneration is the accumulation of protein aggregates in the brain. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology investigate the effects of aggregates on nerve cells, using histological and biochemical methods, behavioral tests and in vivo microscopy. The aim of these studies is to gain a deeper understanding of how diseases develop, in order to develop better treatments in the future.