The mission of CBN (Centre for Behaviour and Neurosciences) is to understand the mechanisms of organisation of behaviour at all levels of integration, and within the relevant ecological context. Not just in humans, but virtually in all taxa, individuals of the same species and the same sex differ consistently in behaviour and physiology. This variation is a result of natural selection. In addition, it is a source for subsequent evolution, and it also provides us with unique opportunities to help understand causal mechanisms of the underlying fundamental biological principles, related disturbances and disorders included. This puts individual variation in behaviour and its plasticity at the heart of CBNs research. The research program is focussed on six sources for individual variation: development; learning and memory; aging; food and metabolism; biological rhythms; stress. A characteristic feature of our work is that we try to integrate research on mechanisms with evolutionary function. As a consequence the investigations are not exclusively performed with standard laboratory animals and specific genetic modifications, but the study species range from unicellular organisms to man, depending on the research questions at hand. The field of the behavioural and neurosciences belongs to the ‘Topsector’ Life Sciences and has tight connections to the biomedical sciences, ecology, psychology, chemistry, and mathematics. We aim for answering questions on animal welfare and human wellbeing, in particular in relationship to Healthy Aging, a top priority area in our university. Based on these research ambitions, CBN has a large share in the bachelor education, both in the field of behaviour and neurosciences, as well as in the field of medical sciences. CBN also contributes extensively in various master education tracks, especially the specific Research Master education of the research school on Behavioural and Cognitive Neurosciences, BCN, and its related PhD education.
| Last modified: | October 13, 2011 09:48 |
