February 3
@
12:00 PM
–
1:00 PM
Bridging Molecular and Functional Understandings of Cells with Artificial Intelligence
Yichun He
PhD Candidate, Harvard University
School of Engineering and Applied Sciences
The Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard
Abstract:
The mammalian brain exhibits complex functions and behaviors, driven by diverse cell types distributed throughout its tissue. However, understanding the heterogeneity of cell types and neuronal functions across the entire brain remains a significant challenge. In this talk, I will present the development of one of the first spatial cell atlases of the entire mouse brain, providing a comprehensive map of molecularly defined cell types and tissue regions. Specifically, I will discuss the challenges of large-scale cell segmentation in situ and introduce my approach for scalable and accurate cell segmentation. Next, I will explore single-neuron dynamics using in vivo electrophysiology by developing a deep learning model for spike sorting over time, highlighting how this approach enables the decoding of neural population dynamics during motor task learning. Finally, I will outline my roadmap for bridging molecular and functional understandings of cells across modalities and conditions, with the ultimate goal of uncovering fundamental brain mechanisms and informing targeted therapeutics for neurological diseases.
Print PDF