Objective

The course is focused on experimental and theoretical methods to study how the brain operates at the level of neuronal circuits. We cover various optical and electrophysiological concepts and techniques used currently in systems neuroscience from the basics to advanced topics on both theoretical and experimental grounds. TENSS also provides important insights into modern machine learning techniques and artificial intelligence, with application to advanced neuroscience data analysis.

The course is designed to be a highly interactive, hands-on experience, reflecting the atmosphere of CSHL, Woods Hole or Champalimaud courses. Typically, each course day will contain an extended lab session and several theoretical lectures. Hard work will be combined with a few trips through the beautiful Transylvanian countryside. The course is addressed to a graduate student/postdoc audience.

Program coming soon.
  See last year's program for more details.


Invited lecturers (tentative)

    Juan Burrone – King's College London, UK
    Ashesh Dhawale – Centre for Neuroscience, IISc Bangalore, India
    Adriana Nagy–Dăbâcan – Transylvanian Institute of Neuroscience, Cluj–Napoca, Romania
    Michael Dickinson – California Institute of Technology, USA
    Elena Dreosti – University College London, UK
    Florian Engert – Harvard University, USA
    Nadine Gogolla – Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, Germany
    Priyanka Gupta – Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, NY, USA
    Sonja Hofer – Sainsbury Wellcome Centre, UCL, UK
    Ana Maria Ichim – Transylvanian Institute of Neuroscience, Cluj–Napoca, Romania
    Mitra Javadzadeh – Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, NY, USA
    Benjamin Judkewitz – Einstein Center for Neuroscience, Germany
    Na Ji – UC Berkeley, USA
    Georg Keller – Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Basel, Switzerland
    Liqun Luo – Stanford University, USA
    Emilie Mace – Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, Germany
    Hannah Monyer – University of Heidelberg, Germany
    Tom Mrsic–Flögel – Sainsbury Wellcome Centre, UCL, UK
    Venkateesh Murthy – Harvard University, USA
    Bence Ölveczky – Harvard University, USA
    Michael Orger – Champalimaud Institute for the Unknown, Portugal
    Cindy Poo – Allen Institute, USA
    Yiota Poirazi – IMBB–FORTH, Greece
    Ruben Portugues – Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, Germany
    Tobias Rose – Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, Germany
    Pavithraa Seenivasan – HHMI, Janelia Research Campus, USA
    Wolf Singer – Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, Germany
    Nao Uchida – Harvard University, USA
    Daniela Vallentin – Max–Planck–Institute for Ornithology, Germany
    Jakob Voigts – HHMI, Janelia Research Campus, USA
    Mitsuko Watabe–Uchida – Harvard University, USA
    Chris Xu – Cornell University, USA
    Petr Znamenskiy – Francis Crick Institute, UK
    Weijian Zong – Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience, Norway


Organizing Committee & TAs

    Florin Albeanu – Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, NY, USA
    Raul C. Mureşan – Transylvanian Institute of Neuroscience, Cluj–Napoca, Romania

    Harald Bârzan – Transylvanian Institute of Neuroscience, Cluj–Napoca, Romania
    Antonin Blot – Francis Crick Institute, London, UK
    Alejandro Cámera – Institute of Physiology, Molecular Biology and Neuroscience, Buenos Aires, Argentina
    Rob Campbell – Sainsbury Wellcome Centre, London, UK
    Federico Carnevale – DeepMind Technologies, London, UK
    Andrei Ciuparu – Transylvanian Institute of Neuroscience, Cluj–Napoca, Romania
    Elena Dreosti – University College London, UK
    Medorian Gheorghiu – Transylvanian Institute of Neuroscience, Cluj–Napoca, Romania
    Priyanka Gupta – Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, NY, USA
    Tomáš Hromádka – Slovak Academy of Sciences, Slovakia
    Ana Maria Ichim – Transylvanian Institute of Neuroscience, Cluj–Napoca, Romania
    Mitra Javadzadeh – Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, NY, USA
    Mateusz Kostecki – Nencki Institute for Experimental Biology, Warsaw, Poland
    Jaap van Krugten – Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Basel, Switzerland
    Goncalo Lopes – Neurogears, UK
    Leonardo Lupori – Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Basel, Switzerland
    Mathias Mahn – Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Basel, Switzerland
    Fred Marbach – Francis Crick Institute, London, UK
    Vasile V. Moca – Transylvanian Institute of Neuroscience, Cluj–Napoca, Romania
    Adriana Nagy–Dăbâcan – Transylvanian Institute of Neuroscience, Cluj–Napoca, Romania
    Sriram Naranayan – National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore, India
    Jon Newman – Open Ephys and Georgia Institute of Technology, USA
    Cosmina Pavel – Transylvanian Institute of Neuroscience, Cluj–Napoca, Romania
    Gabriel Pavel – Transylvanian Institute of Neuroscience, Cluj–Napoca, Romania
    Bruno Pichler – INSS (Independent NeuroScience Services), UK
    Ignacio (Nacho) Sanguinetti – University of Pennsylvania, USA
    Pavithraa Seenivasan – HHMI, Janelia Research Campus, USA
    Anqi Zhang – Harvard University, USA


Support

    Attila Kelemen – Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania


Topics

  • Basic Optics – Diffraction and Resolution. Illumination Techniques. Numerical Aperture.
  • Optical bench exercises – Lenses, optical systems, illumination methods, basic microscopy techniques. How to custom build different kinds of microscopes.
  • Noise measurements and photo-sensors – Shot noise, optical detectors, amplifiers, NI-DAQ, CCD cameras, photodiodes, photo multiplier tubes (PMTs).
  • Light and fluorescence microscopy – Fluorescence, FRAP, photo-activation, photo-conversion. Point spread function measurements, basic image analysis (deconvolution, denoising, PCA).
  • Fluorescence probes – GFP, GFP based chromophores, organic calcium dyes, genetically encoded calcium dyes, pHluorins, voltage sensitive dyes.
  • Intrinsic Optical Imaging – Visual, auditory & barrel cortex; olfactory bulb. Students will build a custom wide field fluorescence and intrinsic optical imaging rig.
  • Scanning microscopy – Confocal and two-photon microscopy. Lasers. Students will build a two-photon microscope and write custom scanning and acquisition software in MATLAB and NI DAQmx. The ScanImage API.
  • Viral approaches to label, monitor and alter neuronal circuits.
  • Optogenetics – Light activated ion channels and pumps. Patterned photo-stimulation techniques.
  • Benchtop electronics and basic electrophysiology – Impedence and Dipoles. Amplifiers. Extracellular and intracellular recordings. LFP; single unit, multi-unit extracellular recordings, tetrodes, electrode arrays; patch clamp.
  • Awake head fixed and freely moving optical and electrophysiological recording strategies in rodents – Microdrives. Fiber optic based systems. Open source systems. Open Ephys.
  • Techniques for electrophysiological data analysis.
  • Monitoring animal behavior – Open Source tools for acquisition and analysis of video data. Intro to Bonsai and Arduino. Training Strategies. Closed loop systems.
  • Neuronal functional connectivity and neuronal connectomics – Serial electron-microscopy and trans-synaptic labeling methods.
  • Synchrony and oscillations.
  • Cortical attention, sparse neuronal codes.
  • Decision making, uncertainty, neuro-modulatory systems.
  • Machine learning and artificial intelligence.
  • Governance and ethics.
  • Laboratory animal science.

© TENSS 2026