Emerging models in the evolution of neural systems and circuits

Brains are among the most complex systems constructed by biological evolution. Understanding the principles of their design as versatile and efficient computational devices, reconstructing the paths through which the enormous diversity of animal nervous systems has emerged and uncovering how the evolution of brains impacts animal behaviour are ultimate goals of research into biological intelligence. Recent years have witnessed spectacular advances in our ability to uncover these fundamental evolutionary processes and principles. The question, however, of how selection and genetic drift, key innovations and ecological niches shape the design of neural systems has remained notoriously hard to address. The Bernstein Conference satellite workshop “Emerging models in the evolution of neural systems and circuits” will provide a stage to critically assess key challenges and discuss novel approaches to dissect the evolutionary transformation of behaviour, cognition and neural circuit function. Lightfoot, Fichtel and Huber, and Martelli will present study designs that bridge the gap between adaptive behaviour in natural habitats and neural circuit laboratory studies. They offer research approaches, spanning the whole range of nervous system complexity in bilateria, from nematodes to primates, that promise to directly link Darwinian fitness to the evolutionary modification of circuits and behaviour. Sachse, Vogel and Engelken will present novel models, ranging from new model species to in-vitro and computational models, designed to address key questions in neural circuit evolution. As a whole, the symposium is set up to provide an inspiring and comprehensive landscape for discussing opportunities and challenges for decisive progress at the frontier of evolutionary biology and computational neuroscience.