Haesler Lab
Novelty, exploration and curiosity
Sebastian Haesler, PhD
Assistant Professor, KU Leuven
Group leader, NERF and VIB
Member of the Leuven Brain Institute
We study the neural circuits underlying exploration and curiosity
When humans or animals detect novel stimuli in their environment, they respond with distinct orienting and exploratory behaviors. We study the brain mechanisms that modulate these behaviours and we develop new experimental methods to improve our abilities to measure and manipulate neurons in the brain.
Our scientific questions
When humans or animals detect novel stimuli in their environment, they respond with distinct orienting and exploratory behaviors. The long-term goal of the Haesler lab is to identify the neural circuits underlying novelty, exploration and curiosity.
Team
Meet the people that make up the Haesler lab
Key publications
Sarah Libbrecht,
Luis Hoffman,
Marleen Welkenhuysen,
Chris Van den Haute,
Veerle Baekelandt,
Dries Braeken,
Sebastian Haesler,
Proximal and distal modulation of neural activity by spatially confined optogenetic activation with an integrated high-density probe, Journal of Neurophysiology, 120(1) 149-161, 2018
Kadir Mutlu,
Rabell JE,
Pamela Martin del Olmo,
Sebastian Haesler,
IR thermography-based monitoring of respiration phase without image segmentation, J Neurosci Methods 301, 2018
José Esquivelzeta Rabell,
Kadir Mutlu,
João Noutel,
Pamela Martin del Olmo,
Sebastian Haesler,
Spontaneous, rapid odor source localization requires interhemispheric communication, Current Biology, 27(10), 1542-1548, 2017
