Catherine Dulac
@dulaclab.bsky.social
Identifying the neural basis of innate social behaviors using molecular and genetic tools @Harvard @HHMINEWS
Pinned
Catherine Dulac
@dulaclab.bsky.social
· Dec 9
www.biorxiv.org
I am thrilled to share our latest work led by @zurisullivan.bsky.social in collaboration with @moffittlab.bsky.social ! We find that the brain encodes distinct, pathogen-specific sickness states across behavior, physiology, neural activity, and gene expression 1/6
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Reposted by Catherine Dulac
Excited to share @rbrianroome.bsky.social ‘s beautiful paper on development of the dorsal horn of the mouse spinal cord @science.org
This is how the anatomical organization and cell types that process pain, touch, body position and more are laid down.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
This is how the anatomical organization and cell types that process pain, touch, body position and more are laid down.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Ontogeny of the spinal cord dorsal horn
The dorsal horn of the mammalian spinal cord is organized into laminae where each layer is populated by different neuron types, has distinctive circuit connections, and plays specialized roles in beha...
www.science.org
January 8, 2026 at 7:59 PM
Excited to share @rbrianroome.bsky.social ‘s beautiful paper on development of the dorsal horn of the mouse spinal cord @science.org
This is how the anatomical organization and cell types that process pain, touch, body position and more are laid down.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
This is how the anatomical organization and cell types that process pain, touch, body position and more are laid down.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Reposted by Catherine Dulac
Thrilled to start my lab at the @whiteheadinstitute.bsky.social @mit.edu and to join such a special community of creative and inspiring colleagues. The Sullivan Lab asks (1) how and (2) why infections make us sick, bridging immunology and neuroscience to understand host defense at the organism scale
“I want everyone in my lab to be exposed to many ways of thinking about biology,” says Whitehead Institute’s newest Member, immunologist Zuri Sullivan. “Creative science often comes from making connections across systems, and Whitehead is uniquely well-suited for that.”
shorturl.at/EFsmh
shorturl.at/EFsmh
January 6, 2026 at 2:08 PM
Thrilled to start my lab at the @whiteheadinstitute.bsky.social @mit.edu and to join such a special community of creative and inspiring colleagues. The Sullivan Lab asks (1) how and (2) why infections make us sick, bridging immunology and neuroscience to understand host defense at the organism scale
Ascona meetings on neural circuits are amazing conferences in a beautiful setting in Switzerland spanning all scales from genetics and micro-circuit cracking to high level cognition. Check asconacircuits.org for the 2026 program and register soon, as it typically reaches capacity very quickly 🧠🧪
January 5, 2026 at 12:23 PM
Ascona meetings on neural circuits are amazing conferences in a beautiful setting in Switzerland spanning all scales from genetics and micro-circuit cracking to high level cognition. Check asconacircuits.org for the 2026 program and register soon, as it typically reaches capacity very quickly 🧠🧪
Just finished my first book of the year: a sober, courageous, yet emotional, eye-opening and haunting narrative by an Ukrainian writer, father and staunch pacifist who enlisted the day his country was invaded. A must read for anyone concerned by current world affairs...
January 3, 2026 at 6:05 PM
Just finished my first book of the year: a sober, courageous, yet emotional, eye-opening and haunting narrative by an Ukrainian writer, father and staunch pacifist who enlisted the day his country was invaded. A must read for anyone concerned by current world affairs...
I need one too!...
January 2, 2026 at 1:50 AM
I need one too!...
Reposted by Catherine Dulac
Way back in 1999, Kenji Doya sketched a big picture theory of the brain:
1️⃣The cerebellum is specialized for supervised learning
2️⃣The basal ganglia are for reinforcement learning
3️⃣The cerebral cortex is for unsupervised learning
How does this hold up in 2026? www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
1️⃣The cerebellum is specialized for supervised learning
2️⃣The basal ganglia are for reinforcement learning
3️⃣The cerebral cortex is for unsupervised learning
How does this hold up in 2026? www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
January 1, 2026 at 3:36 PM
Way back in 1999, Kenji Doya sketched a big picture theory of the brain:
1️⃣The cerebellum is specialized for supervised learning
2️⃣The basal ganglia are for reinforcement learning
3️⃣The cerebral cortex is for unsupervised learning
How does this hold up in 2026? www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
1️⃣The cerebellum is specialized for supervised learning
2️⃣The basal ganglia are for reinforcement learning
3️⃣The cerebral cortex is for unsupervised learning
How does this hold up in 2026? www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Reposted by Catherine Dulac
Smarter Microscopes, Faster Maps: Lichtman Lab’s “SmartEM” Brings AI to Connectomics 🧠 🧪🧬 #AcademicSky #higherEd
www.mcb.harvard.edu/department/n... @yaronmr.bsky.social @harvard.edu @harvardbrainsci.bsky.social @natmethods.nature.com @rachellegaudet.bsky.social @thermofishersci.bsky.social
www.mcb.harvard.edu/department/n... @yaronmr.bsky.social @harvard.edu @harvardbrainsci.bsky.social @natmethods.nature.com @rachellegaudet.bsky.social @thermofishersci.bsky.social
Smarter Microscopes, Faster Maps: Lichtman Lab’s “SmartEM” Brings AI to Connectomics - Harvard University - Department of Molecular & Cellular Biology
A new paper in Nature Methods (PDF) from the labs of MCB’s Jeff Lichtman and Aravinthan Samuel, of the department of physics and Center for Brain Science, introduces […]
www.mcb.harvard.edu
December 31, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Smarter Microscopes, Faster Maps: Lichtman Lab’s “SmartEM” Brings AI to Connectomics 🧠 🧪🧬 #AcademicSky #higherEd
www.mcb.harvard.edu/department/n... @yaronmr.bsky.social @harvard.edu @harvardbrainsci.bsky.social @natmethods.nature.com @rachellegaudet.bsky.social @thermofishersci.bsky.social
www.mcb.harvard.edu/department/n... @yaronmr.bsky.social @harvard.edu @harvardbrainsci.bsky.social @natmethods.nature.com @rachellegaudet.bsky.social @thermofishersci.bsky.social
Reposted by Catherine Dulac
Harvard College Senior Fajr Khan Named 2025 Pakistan Rhodes Scholar #AcademicSky #higherEd
www.mcb.harvard.edu/department/n... @naoshigeuchida.bsky.social @rachellegaudet.bsky.social @harvard.edu @ox.ac.uk
www.mcb.harvard.edu/department/n... @naoshigeuchida.bsky.social @rachellegaudet.bsky.social @harvard.edu @ox.ac.uk
Harvard College Senior Fajr Khan Named 2025 Pakistan Rhodes Scholar - Harvard University - Department of Molecular & Cellular Biology
Harvard College senior Fajr Khan, a neuroscience concentrator whose work spans maternal mental health, child psychology, and the biological foundations of psychiatric illness, has been selected as a [...
www.mcb.harvard.edu
December 22, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Harvard College Senior Fajr Khan Named 2025 Pakistan Rhodes Scholar #AcademicSky #higherEd
www.mcb.harvard.edu/department/n... @naoshigeuchida.bsky.social @rachellegaudet.bsky.social @harvard.edu @ox.ac.uk
www.mcb.harvard.edu/department/n... @naoshigeuchida.bsky.social @rachellegaudet.bsky.social @harvard.edu @ox.ac.uk
I would say, depends: if you are only marginally expert in that field, decline, as other, more available and equally/more expert reviewers can take over. If you are a close expert, let the editor know of your time constraints and do it if they allow extra time. Holiday season is hell for reviews....
December 18, 2025 at 3:58 PM
I would say, depends: if you are only marginally expert in that field, decline, as other, more available and equally/more expert reviewers can take over. If you are a close expert, let the editor know of your time constraints and do it if they allow extra time. Holiday season is hell for reviews....
Reposted by Catherine Dulac
Want to track the dynamics of estrogen in the brain across long periods of time? New paper as part of very fun collab with team UCLA Ed Van Veen and Steph Correa! We use a specialized optical reporter and show that this is possible and actually very easy! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
www.biorxiv.org
December 16, 2025 at 8:52 PM
Want to track the dynamics of estrogen in the brain across long periods of time? New paper as part of very fun collab with team UCLA Ed Van Veen and Steph Correa! We use a specialized optical reporter and show that this is possible and actually very easy! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Reposted by Catherine Dulac
Nancy Kleckner Recognized for Pioneering Work in Chromosome Dynamics 🧪🧬 #AcademicSky #higherEd
www.mcb.harvard.edu/department/n... @rachellegaudet.bsky.social
www.mcb.harvard.edu/department/n... @rachellegaudet.bsky.social
Nancy Kleckner Recognized for Pioneering Work in Chromosome Dynamics - Harvard University - Department of Molecular & Cellular Biology
Nancy Kleckner, the Herchel Smith Professor of Molecular Biology, has been awarded the 2025 Charles E. Helmstetter Prize Lifetime Achievement Award (PDF) in recognition of her groundbreaking research ...
www.mcb.harvard.edu
December 15, 2025 at 10:02 PM
Nancy Kleckner Recognized for Pioneering Work in Chromosome Dynamics 🧪🧬 #AcademicSky #higherEd
www.mcb.harvard.edu/department/n... @rachellegaudet.bsky.social
www.mcb.harvard.edu/department/n... @rachellegaudet.bsky.social
Finally, in the MPOA Gal+ Calcr+ hub of parenting, androgens shift the balance: increasing AR activity suppresses retrieval, while removing AR reduces aggression to pups and boosts care. Together: a hormone-to-cell type-to enhancer-to-behavior blueprint for state- and sex-specific parenting 🧠🧬 6/6
December 13, 2025 at 2:15 PM
Finally, in the MPOA Gal+ Calcr+ hub of parenting, androgens shift the balance: increasing AR activity suppresses retrieval, while removing AR reduces aggression to pups and boosts care. Together: a hormone-to-cell type-to enhancer-to-behavior blueprint for state- and sex-specific parenting 🧠🧬 6/6
This maternal trigger doesn’t act alone—it recruits the core parenting hub (MPOA Gal+ Calcr+ neurons). Activating AvPe Brs3+ Vglut2+ neurons drives Fos expression in this hub, showing how a mother-tuned input can power a shared parenting circuit. 5/6
December 13, 2025 at 2:11 PM
This maternal trigger doesn’t act alone—it recruits the core parenting hub (MPOA Gal+ Calcr+ neurons). Activating AvPe Brs3+ Vglut2+ neurons drives Fos expression in this hub, showing how a mother-tuned input can power a shared parenting circuit. 5/6
And we show this is how it works: oxytocin strongly excites these neurons in maternal brains, and deleting Oxtr or prolactin receptor in AvPe Vglut2+ neurons delays pup retrieval. Hormones aren’t just “on/off”—they change what the circuit responds to. 4/6
December 13, 2025 at 2:10 PM
And we show this is how it works: oxytocin strongly excites these neurons in maternal brains, and deleting Oxtr or prolactin receptor in AvPe Vglut2+ neurons delays pup retrieval. Hormones aren’t just “on/off”—they change what the circuit responds to. 4/6
What makes these neurons “maternal”? Single-nucleus RNA-seq + ATAC-seq reveal a Prolactin → STAT5b program that remodels regulatory DNA and switches on oxytocin receptor (Oxtr) expression specifically in mothers. 3/6
December 13, 2025 at 2:08 PM
What makes these neurons “maternal”? Single-nucleus RNA-seq + ATAC-seq reveal a Prolactin → STAT5b program that remodels regulatory DNA and switches on oxytocin receptor (Oxtr) expression specifically in mothers. 3/6
First, we characterize a trigger node that is specific to mothers: excitatory AvPe neurons expressing Brs3 light up when moms first meet pups. Artificially activating them in virgin females boosts key maternal behaviors—like pushing the circuit over the threshold into care. 2/6
December 13, 2025 at 2:07 PM
First, we characterize a trigger node that is specific to mothers: excitatory AvPe neurons expressing Brs3 light up when moms first meet pups. Artificially activating them in virgin females boosts key maternal behaviors—like pushing the circuit over the threshold into care. 2/6
New paper alert!!...🤩 Led by @blogeman.bsky.social, we identify how cell type-specific hormonal responses in the hypothalamus tunes parenting behavior in males and females 🐭🧠🍼. Highlights in thread 👇 1/6
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Cell Type-Specific Hormonal Signaling Configures Hypothalamic Circuits for Parenting
Parenting behavior emerges from hormonally sensitive circuits, but how distinct circuit components are affected by, and contribute to, sex and state dependent changes in infant caregiving remains uncl...
www.biorxiv.org
December 13, 2025 at 2:03 PM
New paper alert!!...🤩 Led by @blogeman.bsky.social, we identify how cell type-specific hormonal responses in the hypothalamus tunes parenting behavior in males and females 🐭🧠🍼. Highlights in thread 👇 1/6
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Amazing story and amazing cover too!
December 12, 2025 at 12:57 AM
Amazing story and amazing cover too!
Congrats to @nbellono.bsky.social, Naomi and Wendy!.... such an amazing story 👏🎉🧪🧬
December 11, 2025 at 9:47 PM
Congrats to @nbellono.bsky.social, Naomi and Wendy!.... such an amazing story 👏🎉🧪🧬
Reposted by Catherine Dulac
Ancient Plants Used Infrared Radiation to Attract Their Pollinators #research 🧠 🧪🧬 #AcademicSky #higherEd
www.mcb.harvard.edu/department/n... @nbellono.bsky.social @rachellegaudet.bsky.social @harvardoeb.bsky.social @science.org
www.mcb.harvard.edu/department/n... @nbellono.bsky.social @rachellegaudet.bsky.social @harvardoeb.bsky.social @science.org
Ancient Plants Used Infrared Radiation to Attract Their Pollinators - Harvard University - Department of Molecular & Cellular Biology
Long before flowers painted the planet in brilliant colors, some of Earth’s earliest plants were glowing—not with pigment, but with heat. A new study from the lab of […]
www.mcb.harvard.edu
December 11, 2025 at 7:21 PM
Ancient Plants Used Infrared Radiation to Attract Their Pollinators #research 🧠 🧪🧬 #AcademicSky #higherEd
www.mcb.harvard.edu/department/n... @nbellono.bsky.social @rachellegaudet.bsky.social @harvardoeb.bsky.social @science.org
www.mcb.harvard.edu/department/n... @nbellono.bsky.social @rachellegaudet.bsky.social @harvardoeb.bsky.social @science.org
Reposted by Catherine Dulac
We’re excited to share the full dataset and analysis pipeline with the community. 6/6
December 9, 2025 at 12:15 PM
We’re excited to share the full dataset and analysis pipeline with the community. 6/6
Together, these data show that the brain, like the immune system, generates modular, pathogen-specific responses, not a single generic “sickness” program. 5/6
December 9, 2025 at 12:14 PM
Together, these data show that the brain, like the immune system, generates modular, pathogen-specific responses, not a single generic “sickness” program. 5/6
A 940-gene MERFISH atlas by @moffittlab.bsky.social revealed cell-type-specific immune responses in POA and PVN neurons and glia, including condition-specific interferon-stimulated genes, chemokines, and neuropeptides. 4/6
December 9, 2025 at 12:13 PM
A 940-gene MERFISH atlas by @moffittlab.bsky.social revealed cell-type-specific immune responses in POA and PVN neurons and glia, including condition-specific interferon-stimulated genes, chemokines, and neuropeptides. 4/6
Whole-brain FOS imaging showed that each challenge produces a distinct neural activity pattern. Machine learning could classify sickness states using only these brain-wide signatures. 3/6
December 9, 2025 at 12:11 PM
Whole-brain FOS imaging showed that each challenge produces a distinct neural activity pattern. Machine learning could classify sickness states using only these brain-wide signatures. 3/6