Werner Reichardt Center for Integrative Neurosciences

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Werner Reichardt Center for Integrative Neuroscience (CIN)
founding November 2007
place Tübingen
Homepage www.cin.uni-tuebingen.de
speaker Hans-Peter Thier
Area of ​​Expertise Neuroscience
Type of Institution Cluster of Excellence

The Werner Reichardt Center for Integrative Neurosciences (CIN) is a cluster of excellence in the field of neurosciences .

It claims to be the common platform for systemic neurosciences at the University of Tübingen . It was set up in 2007/2008 as part of the excellence initiative of the federal and state governments as a cluster of excellence of the University of Tübingen and is funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG). Almost 90 scientists and their working groups, 21 of which are currently made possible primarily by funds from the Excellence Initiative, are members of the CIN. The focus of her work is on basic systems neurobiological research and, based on an interdisciplinary and integrative approach, includes projects that are thematically located in biology , medicine , physics , computer science and engineering as well as cognitive research and neurophilosophy . CIN funding runs until 2019.

The namesake Werner Reichardt was a pioneer in researching the fundamentals of vision and information processing.

history

The CIN is a cluster of excellence that was successfully applied for as part of the first round of the Excellence Initiative (application: 2006/2007; start of funding: November 1, 2007) and was officially inaugurated on December 8, 2008. In addition to the 25 Principal Investigators (PIs) who jointly initiated the application, a further 23 founding members joined the founding of the cluster. Since the CIN is intended as a common platform for exchange, coordination and cooperation in the Tübingen neuroscientific landscape, its membership has developed dynamically since then. Its members currently include around 90 Tübingen neuroscientists who were selected on the basis of science-oriented criteria.

In the last round of the Excellence Initiative (application: 2010/2011; start of funding: November 1, 2012), the CIN applied for an extension of its funding as a cluster of excellence for a further five years and received it. In the same year, the University of Tübingen was also able to score with its future concept and a graduate school.

The accommodation of the CIN in its own building on the Schnarrenberg campus of the university clinic, which was available in spring 2012 (official opening: May 14, 2012), ensures that it is in close proximity to institutes that are closely related in terms of content and science. The CIN building is located directly between the Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research (HIH) and the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) . Before moving into this building, the CIN was temporarily housed in the immediate vicinity of the Tübingen Max Planck campus in a building of the Technology Park Tübingen-Reutlingen (TTR).

Since it was founded, the cluster's spokesman has been the neurobiologist Peter Thier , Medical Director of the Cognitive Neurology Department of the Center for Neurology / Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research at the University Hospital of Tübingen.

Research approach and research questions

Research at the CIN focuses on the twofold question of how the brain produces its functions (such as perception , memory , emotion , communication , motor skills ) and how diseases of the brain ( Alzheimer's , Parkinson's , ALS, etc.) affect these functions.

Answers to these questions is hoped an integrative approach be included in the different levels of observation, the genetic, cellular from the lowest level, and molecular basis of brain functions over greater information-processing structures in the form of neural circuits and further distributed nerve cell - networks up to the consideration of the Principles of cognition and behavior .

These different levels of observation require different scientific methods and can develop prerequisites for use in medicine and technology in different ways .

Research at the CIN is roughly divided into five work areas. Three working areas are defined by the level of observation shared by the respective working groups: The cellular level ("The sensory and neuronal basis of integrative brain function (Cellular Level)"), the network level ("The sensory and neuronal basis of integrative brain function ( Network Level) ”) and the cognitive-behavioral level (“ Cognition and behavior originating from integrative brain functions (Cognitive Level) ”). In all areas, methods of computational neuroscience are taken into account in addition to biological or cognitive science approaches.

In addition, there are two work areas with a cross-sectional character, in which method development and application development are in the foreground. In the work area “Designing the tools to probe integrative brain functions (Advanced Tools)”, the focus is on imaging processes ( MEG , fMRI, etc.). The work area "Brain-related technical applications and neuroprosthetics (Neurotechnology)" is about using the results of basic neurobiological research to promote innovative rehabilitation approaches and prosthetic procedures and to develop neurotechnology .

Methods

A wide range of methods is used in research at the CIN, which corresponds to the multitude of levels of consideration in the research program. In examinations of the human brain, non-invasive imaging methods dominate, such as electroencephalography (EEG) and magnetoencephalography (MEG), which are characterized by high temporal resolution of the measurement data, but offer comparatively poor spatial resolution. By combining these electrophysiological methods with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) - a method that enables a spatial resolution that is around two orders of magnitude higher - it is possible to improve the anatomical allocation of the electrophysiological signals. In order to further improve the spatial resolution of magnetic resonance imaging, working groups at the CIN are exploring the potential of high-field techniques, including a. in the form of an experimental 9.4 Tesla MRI scanner for examinations of the brains of human subjects and a 14.1 Tesla animal MRI at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics under the direction of CIN Professor Klaus Scheffler . In non-invasive molecular imaging, working groups at the CIN use magnetic resonance tomography in combination with positron emission tomography (PET).

Even higher spatial-temporal resolutions are currently only possible with invasive procedures, which in most cases require the use of animals . The electrophysiological registration of membrane currents including action potentials through extracellular or intracellular electrode leads , single-unit recording , the examination of neurons in larger groups with multi-electrode arrays (MEA) and patch-clamp techniques , which allow the examination of membrane currents in enable individual areas of the nerve cell.

In addition to these electrophysiological methods, which are constantly being refined, the CIN also uses numerous optical methods with which individual cells and cell clusters are made visible in vitro or in vivo and their activity can be observed in real time ( fluorescence microscopy , in particular with the help of confocal and 2- Photon microscopes ). The latest innovation in the use of optical methods is the localization of defined proteins in certain parts of nerve cells by combining super-resolution microscopy, which allows a resolution below the Abbe limit of conventional light microscopy, with a molecule-specific marking . This method is u. a. used by a newly established junior research group at the CIN to analyze axonal damage as a result of inflammatory or neurodegenerative diseases, such as multiple sclerosis .

The role of neural circuits for certain brain functions is also examined with the help of classic methods such as analyzing the consequences of brain lesions . In addition, a large number of experimental methods are used, such as non-invasive transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), or invasive techniques such as electrical microstimulation or local pharmacological manipulation. They are increasingly being supplemented by invasive optogenetic techniques in which genetically modified neurons are activated and deactivated by light of a specific wavelength.

Biological data are analyzed and processed at the CIN using modern statistical methods . Methods from theoretical neuroscience are used to simulate neural networks and to obtain experimentally verifiable predictions.

Several working groups at the CIN are building bridges to humanities , especially philosophy . A new professorship for neurophilosophy , which emerged from a young research group on the same topic, plays a special role .

Location and partnerships

The CIN is an inter-faculty institution to which three faculties of the University of Tübingen contribute: the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, the Faculty of Medicine and the Faculty of Philosophy. Close partnerships at the site connect the CIN with the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics , with which the CIN has a joint professorship and working group for high-field magnetic resonance imaging, and with the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems .

Together with the HIH and the DZNE, which are located in neighboring buildings, the CIN forms the “Schnarrenberg” neurocampus, which, thanks to the short distances, enables the efficient use of resources and equipment and invites scientific discourse. To encourage the latter, the participating institutions organize colloquia and informal meetings as well as an annual neurocampus “get-together”. The close interlinking of the facilities is shown u. a. in the fact that CIN and HIH operate several joint working groups in the areas of sensorimotor skills as well as learning and memory .

There are also close ties to the Natural Science and Medical Institute at the University of Tübingen (NMI), the Tübingen branch of the German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD) and the Stuttgart Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation (Fraunhofer IPA). With the significant participation of numerous members of the CIN, the acquisition and establishment of the Tübingen Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience, which was coordinated by CIN Professor Matthias Bethge and as part of the Bernstein Initiative from 2010 to 2015 by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, was also successful in 2010 Research was funded.

Promotion of young talent

At the CIN, the promotion of young talent required by clusters of excellence takes place on several levels. The international Graduate Training Center of Neuroscience (GTC) is responsible for the training of master’s and doctoral students . It brings together three graduate schools with different focus areas under one roof. The starting point was the Graduate School of Neural and Behavioral Sciences founded in 1999, which is still an International Max Planck Research School to this day . With the establishment of the CIN, this facility was supplemented by two further graduate schools and combined with these in the Graduate Training Center in order to provide a common structural basis and ensure the coordination of the training content. The graduate schools that have been added are the Graduate School of Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience and the Graduate School of Neural Information Processing. At these new graduate schools - in contrast to the behavioral and systems neurobiological oriented first graduate school - the focus is on cell and molecular biology neuroscience and theoretical neuroscience.

The language of instruction in all three graduate schools is English. More than 50% of the students come from abroad, selected on the basis of a multi-stage process. Currently, around 85 students at GTC are on their way to achieving a master's degree ( M.Sc. ), while around 250 are striving for a doctorate ( Dr. rer. Nat. ).

Introducing the GTC students to their own scientific projects as part of laboratory rotations is an essential aspect of the training. Members of the GTC have extensive design options; they can, for example, invite their own guest speakers and organize the annual conference of young neuroscientists in Tübingen, the NeNa conference (neuroscientific conference for young scientists) on their own.

The CIN has implemented a tenure track concept for scientists who are more advanced in their careers . It allows promising young scientists after a postdoc phase to take on their own working group, which is independently managed. Junior research group leaders receive additional support from the scientific advisory board of the CIN, whose members act as mentors. After four years as a junior research group leader, a competitive evaluation takes place, which takes numerous indicators of scientific performance into account ( scientific publications , acquisition of third-party funds, etc.). The decision on the success of the evaluation and the resulting appointment to a professorship is based on external expert reports.

With the establishment of the CIN, the neurosciences school laboratory also began its work. The school laboratory is an extracurricular learning location that is used to convey scientific work and neuroscientific issues to schoolchildren. Most of these come from upper secondary school levels, but also from middle school and primary schools. It is characterized by a stable number of visitors (more than 2,000 students per year) and offers its young visitors full-day laboratory internships with various experimental tasks. The neurosciences school laboratory also holds a summer academy every year, in which around 20 schoolchildren work on a project for a week, visit local research institutions and experience lectures and guided tours. Teachers are offered advanced training courses that are well received with up to 200 participants. The head of the school laboratory has been Uwe Ilg since it was set up.

In addition to the CIN, foundations ( non-profit Hertie Foundation , Robert Bosch Foundation , Klaus Tschira Foundation ) have repeatedly supported the neurosciences school laboratory. In 2014 a support association was also set up. The school laboratory repeatedly receives attention for its work in the local press. In 2010 it was recognized as a selected location as part of the “Germany - Land of Ideas” initiative.

Scientific Advisory Board

The statutes of the CIN stipulate that an external scientific advisory board accompanies the work of the CIN in an advisory and supervisory manner. The members of the advisory board are internationally respected scientists whose specialty lies in one or more of the research fields of the CIN. The members are appointed by the rector of the University of Tübingen. The Scientific Advisory Board visits Tübingen at least once a year, receives a report on the scientific and structural developments at the CIN, evaluates and advises the work and role of the young scientists. The advisory board then discusses developments over the past year and reports to the rector.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ "The CIN in a nutshell". Retrieved July 28, 2017 .
  2. ↑ DFG GEPRIS. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  3. ↑ Press release of the Ministry for Science, Research and the Arts Baden-Württemberg, August 8, 2008. Accessed August 4, 2017 .
  4. ^ Report to the DFG “Setting up the CIN. 2008-2010 Report ", December 2010, p. 22.
  5. ↑ https://www.uni-tuebingen.de/exzellenzinitiative.html. Retrieved August 7, 2017 .
  6. ↑ https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/de/fachbeitrag/pm/neubau-fuer-exzellenzcluster-cin/. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  7. ↑ DFG GEPRIS. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  8. ↑ http://www.tuebingenresearchcampus.com/research-in-tuebingen/excellence-initiative/. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  9. ↑ http://www.cin.uni-tuebingen.de/research/research-areas.html. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  10. ↑ http://www.cin.uni-tuebingen.de/mission-methods/methods.html. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  11. ↑ z. B. Markus Siegel, Tobias H. Donner, Andreas K. Engel (2012): Spectral fingerprints of large-scale neuronal interactions. Nature Reviews Neuroscience 13: 121-134. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  12. ↑ http://www.kyb.tuebingen.mpg.de/research/dep/ks.html. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  13. ↑ https://medizin-aspekte.de/67699-emmy-noether-projekt-fuer-tuebinger-neurowwissenschaftlerin/. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  14. ↑ https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/distant-goal-retina-generation/. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  15. ↑ Joachim Müller-Jung, “A network researched with a system”, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, May 31, 2017.
  16. ↑ https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/de/fachbeitrag/pm/neubau-fuer-exzellenzcluster-cin/. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  17. ↑ http://www.cin.uni-tuebingen.de/research/giese/. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  18. ↑ http://www.cin.uni-tuebingen.de/research/ehrlich/ . (No longer available online.) Formerly in the original ; accessed on August 4, 2017 .  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.cin.uni-tuebingen.de  
  19. ↑ http://www.cin.uni-tuebingen.de/about-cin/our-partners/regional-national-partners.html. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  20. ↑ http://www.bccn-tuebingen.de/about-bccn/press/release/foundation-of-bernstein-center-for-computational-neuroscience-tuebingen-29.html. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on August 7, 2017 ; accessed on August 4, 2017 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.bccn-tuebingen.de
  21. ↑ http://www.neuroschool-tuebingen.de/. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  22. ↑ http://www.neuroschool-tuebingen.de/. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  23. ↑ NeNa homepage. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  24. ↑ http://www.cin.uni-tuebingen.de/about-cin/background/the-cin-in-a-nutshell.html#c1573. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  25. ↑ http://www.neuroschool-tuebingen-schuelerlabor.de. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  26. ↑ http://www.neuroschool-tuebingen-schuelerlabor.de/index.php?id=189. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  27. ↑ http://www.neuroschool-tuebingen-schuelerlabor.de/index.php?id=189. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  28. ↑ http://www.cin.uni-tuebingen.de/about-cin/structure/external-advisory-board.html. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .