Georg F. StriedterAssociate Professor, Neurobiology and Behavior Associate Professor, Joint Appointment, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology Fellow, Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory
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Research Interests |
Evolutionary Developmental Neurobiology | |
| URL | The Lab's Home Page | |
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Academic Distinctions |
2002-03 Fellowship at the Institute for Advanced Study in Berlin (Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin) 1998 C.J. Herrick Award from the American Association of Anatomists 1995-97 Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellowship 1995 Honorable Mention- Capranica Foundation Prize for Neuroethology 1993 Ferguson Graduate Teaching Award - Caltech 1986-87 Regents Fellowship - University of California, San Diego |
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| Appointments | 1990-94 Postdoctoral Scholar at California Institute of Technology (with Dr. M. Konishi) | |
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Research Abstract |
Although the brains of different species share myriad similarities, they also differ in many respects. Our laboratory wants to understand how and why those species differences arose. To that end, we conduct two kinds of research. First, we ask how the brains of different species diverge in their development. We ask, for instance, at what point in development the brains of parrots become larger, relative to body size, than the brains of other birds. The aim here is to determine what evolutionary changes in the cellular and molecular mechanisms of development underlie the species differences in adult brain anatomy. Ultimately, we intend to manipulate development experimentally in order to mimic some of the adult species differences in brains, and thus to test our hypotheses about how evolution modified development. Second, we seek to understand the functional consequences of those species differences in brain anatomy. Why, for instance, do only parrots, songbirds, and hummingbirds have direct projections from the forebrain to the brainstem vocal motor neurons. Probably, they have those unusual projections because they facilitate a bird’s ability to mimic sounds. But why was it useful for parrots to become vocal mimics? Our research has revealed that parrots probably evolved vocal mimicry because female parrots prefer males that share their calls. In the long run, we intend to construct a comprehensive, mechanistic explanation of why parrots are so “smart.” More generally, we seek to understand how and why species differences in brain anatomy evolved. | |
| Publications | Charvet, C.J., and Striedter, G.F. (2009) Developmental origins of mosaic brain evolution: morphometric analysis of the deveoping zebra finch brain. Journal of Comparative Neurology, 514: 203-213. | |
| Striedter, G.F., and Charvet, C.J. (2009) Telencephalic enlargement by the convergent evolution of expanded subventricular zones. Biology Letters, 5: 134-137. | ||
| Charvet, C.J., and Striedter, G.F. (2008) Developmental species differences in brain cell cycle rates between bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus) and parakeets (Melopsittacus undulatus): implications for mosaic brain evolution. Brain, Behavior, and Evolution, 72: 295-306. | ||
| Striedter, G.F., and Charvet, C.J. (2008) Developmental origins of species differences in telencephalon and tectum size: morphometric comparisons between a parrot (Melopsittacus undulatus) and a quail (Colinus virgianus). Journal of Comparative Neurology, 507: 1663-1675. | ||
| Charvet, C.J., and Striedter, G.F. (2008) Spatiotemporal clustering of cell death in the avian forebrain’s proliferative zone. International Journal of Developmental Biology, 52: 345-352. | ||
| Striedter, G.F., and Northcutt, R.G. (2006) Head size constrains forebrain development and evolution in ray-finned fishes. Evolution & Development 8:215-222. | ||
| Striedter, G.F. (2006) Multiple book review of "Principles of brain evolution", including a Precis and the Author’s Response. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 29: 1-36. | ||
| Hile, A.G., Burley, N.T., Coopersmith, C.B., Foster, V.S., and Striedter, G.F. (2005) Effects of male vocal learning on female behavior in the budgerigar, Melopsittacus undulatus. Ethology 111: 901-923. | ||
| Striedter, G.F. (2005) Principles of brain evolution. Sunderland, MA, Sinauer Associates. | ||
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Professional Societies |
Society for Neuroscience J. B. Johnston Club of Comparative Neurobiologists |
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| Graduate Programs |
Neurobiology and Behavior Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program Comparative Physiology |
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| Research Center | Center for Neurobiology of Learning and Memory | |
| Link to this profile | http://www.faculty.uci.edu/profile.cfm?faculty_id=3006 | |
| Last updated | 03/23/2009 | |