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WELCOME TO THE RANSDELL LAB
Connecting the electrical activity of neurons to our understanding of behavior and disease
The Ransdell lab is housed on the second floor of Pearson Hall at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.
RESEARCH
Everything we do, think, and feel is caused by electrical activity in neurons.
How is this electrical activity regulated?
What happens if a mutation disrupts this activity?
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The Ransdell lab investigates these fundamental questions using electrophysiology, molecular-genetic, behavioral, and computational strategies.
ELECTROPHYSIOLOGY
Electrophysiolgy rigs allow us to record and dissect the electrical behavior of living neurons.
ANIMAL BEHAVIOR
With efforts in place to determine what affects the electrical activity of neurons, we use mouse behavior tests to determine how neuronal firing is translated into behavior.
COMPUTATIONAL TECHNIQUES
To optimize experiments and test predictions, we use mathematical models to simulate membrane conductances in neurons. Using electrophysiology, we can interface these models with biological neurons in a technique known as dynamic-clamp. This allows us to test how modeled conductance properties affect the firing of real neurons!
MOLECULAR GENETICS
Using molecular techniques, we manipulate the expression of genes in mice to mimic neurological disease.
