https://www.schoppiklab.com/gallery daily 0.75 2019-01-18 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1508111602705-IYSLIBX040QATLW9HESX/MAX_colored-1.png Pretty fish & shiny tools - Spinal backfill Neurons that project to the spinal cord, color-coded by depth. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1508111602705-IYSLIBX040QATLW9HESX/MAX_colored-1.png Pretty fish & shiny tools - Spinal backfill Neurons that project to the spinal cord, color-coded by depth. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1398175930043-SEX5BYYF36OXMBC3XHU3/Psam+VNs.png Pretty fish & shiny tools - The vestibular nucleus neurons and their projections A fluorescent image from a transgenic line of zebrafish (pSam-gal4;UAS-Brainbow-V) that labels a subset of individual neurons in the hindbrain and their projections. Neurons are visible as small spots of different color, with matching thin lines corresponding to their projections. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1398261149118-0N226KQPTR4IIYDIP72O/SAG+neurons.png Pretty fish & shiny tools - The stato-acoustic ganglion A fluorescent image from a transgenic line of zebrafish (pSam-gal4;UAS-Brainbow-V) that labels a subset of individual neurons at the level of the stato-acoustic and trigeminal ganglia. Neurons are visible as small spots of different color, with matching thin lines corresponding to their projections. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1398263380893-WFB49RBC63AS2XWT6CT0/Motor+Neurons.png Pretty fish & shiny tools - Cranial motor neurons A fluorescent image from a transgenic line of zebrafish (islet-GFP) that labels the cranial motoneurons. Depth is color-coded, with white/yellow being closest to the top of the fish. The oculomotor and trochlear nuclei that control torsional eye movements are visible as clusters of yellow neurons. Their associated axons that comprise the cranial nerves can be traced all the way to the eyes in the upper and lower-left corners of the image. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1398651753937-THZUK3FOXHLO4ROWOXK5/Hair+cells+%26+Afferents.png Pretty fish & shiny tools - Utricular hair cells and afferents An image taken from the inner ear of a double transgenic fish, with the hair cells labelled in green and the afferent neurons in the stato-acoustic ganglion labelled in red. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1398175918250-RDOAWHWOARL5RCX092W8/Eye+muscles.png Pretty fish & shiny tools - The eyes and associated muscles A fluorescent image of the head of a transgenic line (unpublished) of zebrafish. Autofluorescence in the eyes is most prominent as two ovals, while six eye muscles (in the same configuration as humans!) can be traced from their attachment points on each eye. The image is color-coded by depth. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1398265730729-8YIABW4DHH6YVNB8QUKO/DSCF0809.jpg Pretty fish & shiny tools - Balance apparatus, motor The motor rotates the platform to generate tilt sensations. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1398265741731-PF3M3F9H78I9SLQBB2BX/DSCF0811.jpg Pretty fish & shiny tools - Cuvette holder, objective and IR LED array Custom-machined transparent acrylic cuvette holder mounted on a goinometer. 5x microscope objective with surrounding LED array visible on the left. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1398265752040-54LCD62D5CSKG7FTBV0F/DSCF0812.jpg Pretty fish & shiny tools - Camera on a 2-axis manipulator The camera that captures images of the fish eye as it rotates is mounted on a platform that can translate in X and Y to ensure the eye is in focus. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1398265760341-GM2GXYFU5MSR76708RKW/DSCF0813.jpg Pretty fish & shiny tools - Apparatus for viewing freely moving fish A simple apparatus for capturing videos of fish moving freely. An LED array sits behind a diffuser screen, while a cuvette (empty of fish) rests on a manipulator to bring it into focus with the camera. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1398265768918-HDEAABZ9N5A28BS5NU6E/DSCF0814.jpg Pretty fish & shiny tools - LED array Custom 8x12 array of 940nm IR LEDs. Handy. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1398265777455-6CO3I64T02XSMGOARK2J/DSCF0815.jpg Pretty fish & shiny tools - Lasers! Well, one laser in this image. A fiber coupled, 473nm laser that permits straightforward activation of neurons in fish brains. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1450990124614-EG8PH0JBDTVKQRGDCYEX/image-asset.jpeg Pretty fish & shiny tools - Whiteboard musings, 12/15 Working through the models underlying our work, and the experiments we'll use to test them. https://www.schoppiklab.com/pubs-data daily 0.75 2017-06-18 https://www.schoppiklab.com/pubs-data/2014/9/27/list-of-papers monthly 0.5 2017-06-19 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1417235685845-G5EZ4D3QPSISB9W09IX6/fishVOR Schoppik Lab Pubs & Data - Our repository of data and code https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1411873399649-TI8NPYJO1UQFSJCVXMMB/image-asset.jpeg Schoppik Lab Pubs & Data - Our repository of data and code The illustration above schematizes what goes on in a monkey’s brain as it tracks a moving object. It is an original watercolor done by Katherine Nagel, and was chosen as the cover of the journal when the paper was published. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1411875489737-T1F4AAL2E23OGE60OTFH/image-asset.jpeg Schoppik Lab Pubs & Data - Our repository of data and code The illustration above uses monkeys to schematize two possible ways that populations of neurons might work together: either a large number of coordinated neurons, rowing together, or a small number in a rowboat, each doing its own thing. It is an original watercolor by Katherine Nagel. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1486411457870-QEITUCNHA8D07MM5UHZM/init.png Schoppik Lab Pubs & Data - Our repository of data and code https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1480010634726-99Z75HH84ARCT2BBVGAV/image-asset.png Schoppik Lab Pubs & Data - Our repository of data and code https://www.schoppiklab.com/pubs-data/2017/6/18/gaze-stabilizing-central-vestibular-neurons-project-asymmetrically-to-extraocular-motoneuron-pools monthly 0.5 2017-06-19 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1497831940138-WK4VVJQY7EOAPXZUK6HS/image-asset.png Schoppik Lab Pubs & Data - Gaze-stabilizing central vestibular neurons project asymmetrically to extraocular motoneuron pools a) A single neuron that projects to extraocular motoneurons that move the eyes downward. Image is a top-down view of a larval zebrafish; magenta labels a single neuron. Green clumps of circles are motoneurons in the cranial nuclei. b) Side view of the same neuron; Magenta arrow points to neurons that move the eyes downward, blue to neurons that move the eyes upward, and white points to the prominent projection to eyes-down motoneurons. https://www.schoppiklab.com/pubs-data/2017/2/6/control-of-movement-initiation-underlies-the-development-of-balance monthly 0.5 2017-02-06 https://www.schoppiklab.com/pubs-data/2016/11/24/extraocular-motoneuron-pools-develop-along-a-dorsoventral-axis-in-zebrafish-danio-rerio-1 monthly 0.5 2016-11-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1480010420936-R9N21BV6F98EOSR8N412/image-asset.png Schoppik Lab Pubs & Data - Extraocular motoneuron pools develop along a dorsoventral axis in zebrafish, Danio rerio Both spatial and temporal cues determine the fate of immature neurons. A major challenge at the interface of developmental and systems neuroscience is to relate this spatiotemporal trajectory of maturation to circuit-level functional organization. This study examined the development of two extraocular motor nuclei (nIII and nIV), structures in which a motoneuron's identity, or choice of muscle partner, defines its behavioral role.   Published in the Journal of Comparative Neurology, 2016. https://www.schoppiklab.com/pubs-data/2014/11/28/the-tangential-nucleus-controls-a-gravito-inertial-vestibulo-ocular-reflex monthly 0.5 2014-11-29 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1417237603641-3Y2EH3H9XUBG1DSHBORL/Screen+Shot+2014-11-28+at+11.34.29+PM.png Schoppik Lab Pubs & Data - The Tangential Nucleus Controls A Gravito-inertial Vestibulo-ocular Reflex Despite their small size, baby zebrafish are capable of an impressive variety of fascinating behaviors. We measured their ability to stabilize their gaze following body rotations -- a vital and conserved reflex -- and identified the neurons responsible. Published in Current Biology, July 24, 2012 https://www.schoppiklab.com/pubs-data/neuron08 monthly 0.5 2014-11-02 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1411871959719-NBRZ7H8496N0MXJIFV5L/coversub.jpg Schoppik Lab Pubs & Data - Cortical Mechanisms of Smooth Eye Movements Revealed by Dynamic Covariations of Neural and Behavioral Responses As we move through the world, millions of neurons in our brain continuously process sensory information and coordinate our movements. Here, we describe a collection of neurons in the brain that work together to allow us to accurately track moving objects. The illustration above uses monkeys to schematize two possible ways that populations of neurons might work together: either a large number of coordinated neurons, rowing together, or a small number in a rowboat, each doing its own thing. It is an original watercolor by Katherine Nagel. Published in Neuron, April 24, 2008 https://www.schoppiklab.com/pubs-data/jneuro06 monthly 0.5 2014-11-02 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1411869335966-AO26VZ3IZT2D5PXBI44T/image-asset.png Schoppik Lab Pubs & Data - Saccades Exert Control of Motion Processing for Smooth Pursuit Eye Movements To accurately track objects moving in the visual world, we utilize an internal prediction of the way the object moves to help us stabilize the object on our retina. In this paper, we probed the limits of the internal prediction, and revealed striking similarities between the way we track moving objects and the way we pay attention to the things that interest us. The illustration above schematizes what goes on in a monkey’s brain as it tracks a moving object. It is an original watercolor done by Katherine Nagel, and was chosen as the cover of the journal when the paper was published. Published in the Journal of Neuroscience, July 19, 2006 https://www.schoppiklab.com/index daily 1.0 2024-12-30 https://www.schoppiklab.com/people daily 0.75 2025-12-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/038321fb-0cbf-4ed1-ada1-115677f0f54c/Screenshot+2023-06-27+at+6.46.46+PM.png Schoppik lab members, present & past - Franziska Auer, PhD Doctoral work with Tim Czopka at the Technical University in Munich, received a DFG from the German Research Foundation, now funded by a K99/R00 award from NIDCD. Doing bleeding-edge work on how myelin development shapes balance. @franziau.bsky.social Publications https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/d3a246e4-8794-44e8-bbc1-eda82cb93486/DSC02618.jpeg Schoppik lab members, present & past - Tenure Copernicus Schnagel Tenny would like you to know that despite being a Very Good Pup nobody in the Schoppik Lab has ever fed him a treat so if perhaps you had one on you maybe you would do the right thing? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/c207a535-5d9f-43f3-8fb2-6ff72701d954/IMG_7574.jpg Schoppik lab members, present & past - Emily Gershowitz Emily joins us from Staci Bilbo’s lab at Duke and is working to understand genes that cause strabismus, a common developmental disorder of vision. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/756143c3-d0b1-4683-8e83-8f4beee9e4de/Christina-May-3.jpg.webp Schoppik lab members, present & past - Christina May, PhD Doctoral work with Monica Dus at U Mich, Christina is working in both the Schoppik and Nagel labs to understand gravitaxis in flies. Yes, flies! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1565983377533-UXKHVQY4S6DFH3P5M5K0/david-e-schoppik-hero-crop.jpg Schoppik lab members, present & past https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/5643667e-d5dd-4320-960f-ae0054971f8e/sampic.jpg Schoppik lab members, present & past - Samantha Davis, AuD Sam did her undergraduate degree at Ohio University where she studied the effects of delayed auditory feedback on speech production. More recently, she earned a clinical Doctorate of Audiology (AuD) at the University of Washington where she used zebrafish to look at toxic effects of antimalarial drugs. @samanthandavis.bsky.social https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/dae63676-c5fd-4b1b-8085-db269c4a7476/Screenshot+2023-06-27+at+6.42.29+PM.png Schoppik lab members, present & past - Yunlu Zhu, PhD Doctoral work with Sarah Kucenas at UVA, funded by his Leon Levy Fellowship, and then by the Rainwater Tau Leadership Fellowship. Studying navigation and postural control in health and disease AND STARTING HIS OWN LAB AT UMICH IN 2026! Publications https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/cfea24fa-5222-4b87-877c-3220b4108115/naoroz.jpg Schoppik lab members, present & past - Naoroz Mahmood A double major in Biology and Philosophy, Naoroz joins us from CCNY. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/5d7f4e56-6839-451a-81d8-9bdfa4fa0807/fb_slack.jpg Schoppik lab members, present & past - Celine Bellegarda Celine earned her undergraduate degree from UC Berkeley, during which she studied the physiology of proteins involved in neurodegeneration at UCSF. She then spent a year investigating a dynamic sensory system in the zebrafish spinal cord that guides movement and development at the Paris Brain Institute. @cbellegarda.bsky.social https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/73a34c32-754c-41d1-a551-9baedd922511/Screenshot+2024-12-30+at+10.29.57%E2%80%AFPM.png Schoppik lab members, present & past - Louise Schenberg, PhD Louise trained in Paris, France where she focused on visuo-vestibular integration and established the importance of specific vestibular hair cells for gaze stabilization (2023). During her first post-doctoral position, she investigated vestibular functional thresholds and studied the vestibulo-thalamic pathway by setting up a new neuronal tracing approach to target small brainstem nuclei. https://www.schoppiklab.com/location daily 0.75 2025-06-20 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1398265850082-N6HJ3F3OBXZ6N46BSGVJ/notgradstudenthousing Find the Schoppik Lab Not representative of graduate student housing. https://www.schoppiklab.com/aims daily 0.75 2024-12-31 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/658ef3bb-310b-4e34-b273-25bae0aa5a83/Screenshot+2024-12-31+at+2.50.51%E2%80%AFPM.png Our Mission - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1398262782320-W015WBNANB4L52N7S8JD/fish Our Mission A four day old larval zebrafish, viewed from above. It’s got large eyes (black ovals), ears (clear, with two black spots in each), and pectoral fins. The big black circle in the middle is the swim bladder, an air-filled organ that helps fish balance. Note how this baby fish is almost completely transparent. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1398262922007-V98EGON2PECKU23Z9TKT/DSCF0817.jpg Our Mission Custom electronics to control and monitor a motor, accelerometer, lights, and more. https://www.schoppiklab.com/publications daily 0.75 2026-01-13 https://www.schoppiklab.com/new-products daily 0.75 2014-09-28 https://www.schoppiklab.com/new-products/the-first-paper monthly 0.5 2024-12-31 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5355ec0de4b02760ee889a8f/1411872833327-NR4SSEX7UF5NVNT4WC93/schoppik-jneurosci-cover-large.jpg New Products - The first paper