{"id":188,"date":"2024-02-16T11:27:07","date_gmt":"2024-02-16T10:27:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/buni.onlinecreation.pro\/?post_type=buni_events&p=188"},"modified":"2024-02-16T11:27:07","modified_gmt":"2024-02-16T10:27:07","slug":"monthly-conference-daniela-vallentin","status":"publish","type":"buni_events","link":"https:\/\/buni.onlinecreation.pro\/en\/events\/monthly-conference-daniela-vallentin\/","title":{"rendered":"Monthly conference – Daniela Vallentin"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Title<\/h3>\n

Neural mechanisms of vocal learning and production in songbirds<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Abstract<\/h3>\n

During conversations we rapidly switch between listening and speaking which often<\/span><\/span><\/span> requires withholding or delaying our speech in order to hear others and avoid overlap.<\/span><\/span><\/span> Th<\/span><\/span>e<\/span><\/span><\/span> ability of<\/span><\/span> vocal turn-taking is exhibited by non-linguistic species as well, however<\/span><\/span><\/span> the neural circuit mechanisms that enable us to regulate the precise timing of our<\/span><\/span><\/span> vocalizations during interactions are<\/span><\/span> largely<\/span><\/span> unknown.<\/span><\/span> We address this issue by<\/span><\/span><\/span> studying<\/span> zebra<\/span> finches<\/span> that<\/span> coordinate<\/span> their<\/span> calls<\/span> during<\/span> vocal<\/span> interactions.<\/span> By<\/span><\/span><\/span> performing intracellular recordings and pharmacological manipulation in the premotor<\/span><\/span><\/span> nucleus HVC we found that inhibition regulates the coordination of social contact calls.<\/span><\/span><\/span> To further study more complex vocal interactions we also study the singing behavior<\/span><\/span><\/span> of nightingales. Male nightingales learn over 100 different songs which are used in<\/span><\/span><\/span> order to attract mates or defend territories. We investigated auditory-induced vocal<\/span><\/span><\/span> plasticity in interacting nightingales and discovered that nightingales rapidly and<\/span><\/span><\/span> accurately<\/span> imitated<\/span> the<\/span> pitch<\/span> of<\/span> pitch-controlled<\/span> whistle<\/span> playbacks.<\/span> This<\/span> finding<\/span><\/span><\/span> highlights their capability of directly transforming an auditory input to a matching vocal<\/span><\/span><\/span> response.<\/span><\/span><\/span>
Songbirds learn their vocalization by listening to and imitating the song of their tutor<\/span><\/span><\/span> during a critical period early in life. Once the bird reaches adulthood this song remains<\/span><\/span><\/span> stable. We discovered that inhibition within the premotor area HVC plays a major role<\/span><\/span><\/span> in closing this critical period by suppressing the influence of the tutor once song<\/span><\/span><\/span> proficiency has been achieved. We then developed a cell-type specific viral strategy<\/span><\/span><\/span> to target inhibitory neurons in adult zebra finches and were able to re-open the critical<\/span><\/span><\/span> period by teaching an adult zebra finch novel song elements. This finding might have<\/span><\/span><\/span> important implications to understand and expand motor skill learning capabilities or <\/span><\/span>improve sensory and motor recovery after injury.
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Key Publications<\/h3>\n

Daniela Vallentin,<\/span> Georg Kosche,<\/span> Dina Lipkind,<\/span> Michael A. Long<\/span> \u2013 Inhibition protects acquired song <\/span>segments during vocal learning in <\/span>zebra finches. Sciencesmag.org. 2016. <\/span><\/p>\n

Jonathan I. Benichov & Daniela Vallentin \u2013 Inhibition within a premotor circuit controls the <\/span>timing of vocal turn-taking in zebra<\/span> fi<\/span>nches. Nature communication. 2020.
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Giacomo Costalunga, Carolina Sa \u0301 nchez Carpena, Susanne Seltmann, Jonathan I. Benichov, Daniela VallentinWild nightingales flexibly match whistle pitch in <\/span>real time. 2023.
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Wanna meet the speaker?<\/h3>\n

You are a PI? Write to “>Julia Goncalves<\/a> who will organize the schedule of the speaker.<\/p>\n

You are a PhD student? You can share some pizza after the talk. An email is sent 10 days before\u2026 don\u2019t miss it!<\/p>\n

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\"\"\"\"PhD seminars are organized by the NBA, Bordeaux Neurocampus, and the Bordeaux Neurocampus Graduate Program.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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