Sylvain Williams

My laboratory is using a combination of techniques to understand how neurons of the hippocampus play a role a role in memory encoding and recall in freely behaving mice. We are also interested in how neurons of the the medial septum, a region well known to project massively to hippocampus, can enhance learning and memory. We perform the experiments using electrophysiology to determine brain-states, optogenetics to manipulate brain circuits and miniature epifluorescent microscope (also named UCLA miniscopes) to understand neuronal dynamics at the population level during memory tasks. We also have an interest in revealing how sleep, and especially REM sleep, enhances memory consolidation (Boyce et al., 2016). The overarching goal of my laboratory is to understand the neuronal mechanisms underlying memory function in normal and in Alzheimer’s disease.