Assistant Professor, Biological Sciences, Carnegie Mellon University, Adjunct Faculty Member, Department of Neurobiology, University of Pittsburgh Carnegie Mellon University Phone: (412) 268-9806 Fax: (412) 268-8423 Email: jcrowley@andrew.cmu.edu Lab Website: http://www.cmu.edu/bio/contacts/faculty/crowley.shtml

Ph.D. - Duke University

Research Interests

Neuronal function is dependent on the synaptic connections between neurons – thus the forces that govern the growth and structure of dendrites and axons dictate the way that the brain is able to process information, eventually leading to perception, thought and behavior. My research focuses on the formation of circuitry in the visual system, specifically the development of neural processing modules in primary visual cortex. The circuitry of primary visual cortex organizes the visual scene encoded by the retinae into spatially organized “maps” of features: a map of visual space, a map of ocular dominance (eye-specific information), a map of the orientations (angles) of lines, as well as others. The goal of my work is to understand how these circuits are formed and how they process information about the visual scene. The patterning forces underlying the formation of these circuits have been hypothesized to be patterns of gene expression or patterns of neural activity or a combination of these influences. Currently, the roles of these patterning forces and their interaction are a subject of debate within the neurobiology community.

My research employs a combination of physiological and anatomical techniques. Multi-photon imaging enables the examination of the structure and function of living neurons in real time as they develop and change. Optical imaging of intrinsic signal allows the detection of activity patterns of large groups of neurons. Electrical recording of the activity of single neurons enables the high fidelity examination of single processing units. The combination of these approaches facilitates the study of the dynamic interplay between structure and function in the developing brain.

Recent Publications

• Kawasaki H, Crowley JC, Livesey FJ, Katz LC: Molecular organization of the ferret visual thalamus. J Neurosci 24: 9962-9970, 2004.
• Mizrahi A, Crowley JC, Shtoyerman E, Katz LC: High resolution in vivo imaging of hippocampal dendrites and spines. J Neuro 24: 3147-3151, 2004.
• McCoy AN, Crowley JC, Haghighian G, Dean HL, Platt ML: Saccade reward signals in posterior cingulate cortex. Neuron 40: 1031-1040, 2003.
• Katz LC, Crowley JC: Development of cortical circuits: Lessons from ocular dominance columns. Nat Rev Neurosci 3(1): 34-42, 2002.
• Bosking WH, Crowley JC, Fitzpatrick D: Spatial coding of position and orientation in primary visual cortex. Nat Neurosci 5(9): 875-882, 2002.
• Crowley JC, Katz LC: Early development of ocular dominance columns. Science 290: 1321-1324, 2000.
• Crowley JC, Katz LC: Development of ocular dominance columns in the absence of retinal input. Nat Neurosci 2(12): 1125-1130, 1999.