Scott Cruikshank

Scott Cruikshank
Assistant Professor

Associate Scientist (C), Comprehensive Neuroscience Center , General Clinical Research Center
Associate Scientist (C), Civitan International Research Center , Academic Joint Departments
Assistant Professor (P), Neurobiology , Academic Joint Departments

Overview

Synaptic and cellular organization and processing in the neocortex and thalamus, with an emphasis on sensory systems

Selected Publications

Academic Article

Year	Title	Altmetric
2020	Publisher Correction: Two dynamically distinct circuits drive inhibition in the sensory thalamus (Nature, (2020), 583, 7818, (813-818), 10.1038/s41586-020-2512-5). Nature. 585:E13. 2020
2020	Two dynamically distinct circuits drive inhibition in the sensory thalamus. Nature. 583:813-818. 2020
2017	Infrabarrels Are Layer 6 Circuit Modules in the Barrel Cortex that Link Long-Range Inputs and Outputs. Cell Reports. 21:3065-3078. 2017
2015	A Corticothalamic Switch: Controlling the Thalamus with Dynamic Synapses. Neuron. 86:768-782. 2015
2012	Thalamic control of layer 1 circuits in prefrontal cortex 2012
2010	Electrical and chemical synapses between relay neurons in developing thalamus 2010
2010	Pathway-Specific Feedforward Circuits between Thalamus and Neocortex Revealed by Selective Optical Stimulation of Axons. Neuron. 65:230-245. 2010
2009	Stability of electrical coupling despite massive developmental changes of intrinsic neuronal physiology 2009
2008	Neuroscience: State-sanctioned synchrony. Nature. 454:839-840. 2008
2007	Bypassing interneurons: Inhibition in neocortex. Nature Neuroscience. 10:808-810. 2007
2007	Synaptic basis for intense thalamocortical activation of feedforward inhibitory cells in neocortex. Nature Neuroscience. 10:462-468. 2007
2005	Connexon connexions in the thalamocortical system. Progress in Brain Research. 149:41-57. 2005
2005	Abrupt maturation of a spike-synchronizing mechanism in neocortex 2005
2004	Potent block of Cx36 and Cx50 gap junction channels by mefloquine 2004
2002	Auditory thalamocortical synaptic transmission in vitro. Journal of Neurophysiology. 87:361-384. 2002
2001	Parvalbumin and calbindin are differentially distributed within primary and secondary subregions of the mouse auditory forebrain. Neuroscience. 105:553-569. 2001
2001	In vivo Hebbian and basal forebrain stimulation treatment in morphologically identified auditory cortical cells. Brain Research. 891:78-93. 2001
2000	Differential modulation of auditory thalamocortical and intracortical synaptic transmission by cholinergic agonist. Brain Research. 880:51-64. 2000
1999	Thalamocortical inputs trigger a propagating envelope of gamma-band activity in auditory cortex in vitro. Experimental Brain Research. 126:160-174. 1999
1996	Evidence for the Hebbian hypothesis in experience-dependent physiological plasticity of neocortex: A critical review. Brain Research Reviews. 22:191-228. 1996
1996	Receptive-field plasticity in the adult auditory cortex induced by Hebbian covariance 1996
1992	Stimulation at a Site of Auditory-Somatosensory Convergence in the Medial Geniculate Nucleus Is an Effective Unconditioned Stimulus for Fear Conditioning. Behavioral Neuroscience. 106:471-483. 1992

Research Overview

Dr. Cruikshank studies synaptic and sensory processing in neural circuits of the neocortex and thalamus. Clarifying how these structures bidirectionally control one another will be an important part of understanding mammalian information processing. His work involves neurophysiology in intact animals and in vitro, pharmacology, anatomy, behavior and optogenetics. He often combines whole-cell recordings from genetically-identified neurons with optical control. An overarching goal is to identify basic principles of cortical-thalamic processing, including interactions with brain state.

Principal Investigator On

Neocortical Control of the Thalamus awarded by Brown University

Teaching Overview

Prior to arriving at UAB in 2020, Dr. Cruikshank was a non-tenure track professor at Brown University, where he participated in courses in neuroscience and one-on-one advising of students within research laboratories. The course work included lectures on neural systems to medical students (auditory and trigeminal systems) and on cellular and synaptic topics to neuroscience graduate students and undergraduates (including gap junctions and synaptic inhibition). He also taught at the Woods Hole MBL instructing Brown University graduate students in intensive practical courses in neuroscience techniques, running the in vitro neurophysiology and optogenetics section. Finally he has mentored numerous undergraduate and graduate students in research laboratories, including co-advising two recent Ph.D. recipients (degrees awarded in 2015 and 2019).