Eleonora Bano

Program: Neurosciences

Current advisor: Adam Kepecs, PhD

Undergraduate university: University of Padua, 2016

Enrollment year: 2021

Research summary
Dopamine’s contribution to perceptual decision making

Perception balances sensory input with prior expectations. For accuracy, the brain must refine these expectations when predictions fail to match reality. My research aims to uncover how the brain updates sensory expectations from ongoing experiences to shape perception. To investigate this, I monitor dopamine levels in the striatum using genetic and optical tools while mice perform an auditory detection task where sensory expectations are manipulated using a latent statistical structure.
I seek to understand how dopamine in the striatum serves as a sensory surprise signal, encoding prediction errors that guide adaptive responses to unexpected events. This signaling spans a range of contexts, from reactions to salient threats to adjustments for routine sensory changes, illustrating dopamine’s role in helping the brain dynamically adapt perception and behavior to an ever-changing environment.

Graduate publications