The lab aims to understand how neural circuits generate and regulate innate behaviors, spatial navigation, memory and emotional states.  To do so, we bridge the gap between traditional lab-based testing and real-world complexity by combining standard behavioral assays with studies of free-roaming mice in large, naturalistic environments. 

Much of our work focuses on the septohippocampal system, a network involved in learning, memory and emotional regulation. Using cutting-edge techniques like multi-region neural recordings, cell-type specific manipulations, and miniature imaging in freely behaving mice, we study how animals form, retrieve, and sometimes overgeneralize spatial and emotional memories. We systematically incorporate sex as a biological variable in all aspects of this work. 

By uncovering how neural circuits assign meaning to places and experiences, we aim to uncover new pathways for understanding - an ultimately treating -  anxiety and related disorders. 

For more info, check my staff page on the University of Groningen website:

https://www.rug.nl/staff/s.c.w.van.der.veldt/research