Special Seminar: The Marmoset as a Preclinical Model for Studying Sensory Processing and Social Interactions in Autism

Speaker: Justine Cléry, PhD

Postdoctoral Associate, Robarts Research Institute, University of Western Ontario

Registration: available now on Eventbrite.

Abstract: Information from diverse sensory modalities (e.g., visual, tactile, auditory or proprioceptive) must be processed and combined by the brain promptly so we can make the right decision or generate the right movement. Deficiencies in this process relying on multi sensory integration have been observed in individuals with psychiatric disorders like autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and have been linked to impairments in the ability to interact with physical and social environments. Individuals with ASD represent between 1-2% of the population, resulting in severely compromised quality of life in patients(e.g., difficulty finding a job, lack of independence) and a heavy burden on the health care system. For several decades, mice have been the main preclinical model for studying autism. Despite the increasing knowledge and advanced technics, modeling complex cognitive disorders is difficult and the translation to humans often failed. Recently, the common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) has gained much more interest in neurosciences and has been proposed as an alternative preclinical model for studying psychiatric disorders such as ASD. Indeed, this small New World primate lives in family groups and shares a rich social repertoire with humans (e.g., prosocial behaviour, social cognition, cooperative breeding). In this talk, I will present a series of studies supporting the use of marmosets and fMRI for studying the neural basis of multi sensory integration and social cognition, and for exploring these processes with marmoset models of ASD.

This is a recruitment seminar:

Dr. Cléry is a candidate for a position as an Assistant or Associate Professor (Research) in the Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery at McGill University.

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