The group aims to clarify how the retina transforms visual input and resulting retinal computation into eye movement, a behavioral control signal.

When light falls in the mammalian eye, the incoming photons are sensed by photoreceptors in the outer retina and transduced into electric activity of neurons. Neurons process the electrically encoded information and pass it on to neurons in the inner retina, subcortical brain regions and, in some cases, the cortex. Each of these steps adds a layer of complexity to the resulting computation. Ultimately, the light-induced activity reaches muscles and causes behavior.

The circuit in the retina that computes direction selectivity is one of the best-studied neural circuits in the mammalian brain. To gain a better understanding of how the brain uses the acquired information to control behavior, the group studies visual behaviors for eye movement control. The group studies the oculomotor feedback loop and the optokinetic reflex, to enhance our understanding of computations within the retina, bridge the gap to the subcortical projection targets one synapse further downstream, and put the computations in a behavioral context.