Jan M. Ache
PhD Student
Room number: W1 - 109
Phone: +49 (0)521 - 106 5530
e-mail:
- I am broadly interested in perception and motor control.
The frame of my current project at the department of Biological
Cybernetics permits combining these research areas, as I analyze
the activity of descending interneurons conveying mechanosensory
information from the antennae to thoracic motor networks.
During my master's project in Tom Matheson's Lab at the Universit
of Leicester, I analyzed the passive properties of an insect limb joint,
which define the spike to movement transfer of a motor neuron. My bachelor's
thesis was on basal mechanoreception in an insect antenna.
I thus worked both on the input and output stage of insect nervous systems.
My PhD project ties in nicely with my former projects, as I am now investigating
how information is processed, i.e. what happens between the mechanoreception
and the generation of a spike in a motor neuron.
- I analyze the activity of Descending Interneurons conveying mechanosensory
information from the antennae, which are used as tactile sensors to scan the
environment during walking, to thoracic motor networks. To do so, I am using
a broad range of electrophysiological methods. At the moment I combine intra-
and extracellular recordings to monitor the activity of Descending Interneurons in
the prothoracic ganglion. The neurons I am recording from are located downstream from
the brain but upstream from the motor networks. At a later stage, I will be using multi-electrode-arrays
to gather information on population coding of the same neurons. Finally, I will aim at modeling the
neural networks of the antennal mechanosensory system of the stick insect.
Important questions are:
How is mechanosensory information processed?
Which sub-modalities of mechanosensory stimuli are conveyed to thoracic motor networks?
The story so far is that diverse information on antennal movement reaches thoracic
motor networks. The descending interneurons code for antennal position and antennal
movement (velocity, acceleration, direction). Most interneurons are subject to excitatory
input upon antennal movement, others are inhibited during movements of the antenna.
| since 2010 |
PhD-Student in the dep. of Biological Cybernetics at the University of Bielefeld.
Phd-Thesis: Processing of antennal mechanosensory information in the stick insect. |
| since 2010 |
Member of the CITEC-Graduate School (Cognitive Interaction Technology Center of Excellence). |
| 2010 |
Master of Science in Neuroscience (overall grade 1.0).
Master's Thesis: From spike to movement-biomechanics and passive forces in an insect joint. University of Leicester, UK. |
| 2010 |
Stipend of the Heinrich Hertz-Foundation |
| 2008 - 2010 |
Graduate Studies, M.Sc. at the University of Cologne. |
| 2008 |
Bachelor of Science in Biology (ECTS grade A).
Bachelor's Thesis: Basal mechanoperception and muscular reflexes in the Stick Insect Antenna. University of Cologne |
| 2005 - 2008 |
Undergraduate Studies, B.Sc. at the University of Cologne. |
Ache, JM, and Matheson, T.
Passive resting state and history of antagonist muscle activity shape active extensions in a locust limb. (in preparation)
Ache, JM, Nielsen, TA, Büschges, A, and Matheson, T (2011).
Passive biomechanical properties and spike-movement transfer in an insect limb joint. Proc. Göttingen Neurobiol. Conf. (poster/abstract)
Dürr, V, Ache, JM, and Krause, AF (2009).
Effects of active head movement on near-range tactile sensing and far-range vision. Proc. Göttingen Neurobiol. Conf. (poster/abstract)
