To understand the brain and nervous system, we need to know how mechanisms are mediated at the molecular, subcellular, cellular, and network levels. In neurons, we need to be able to observe protein dynamics within the tiny compartment of the synapse, as they occur in the context of neuronal activity and synaptic signaling.

The University of Bergen (UiB) node is a cellular and molecular neuroscience unit with Clive Bramham and Espen Hartveit in the Department of Biomedicine as local coordinators. NORBRAIN UiB provides three complementary platforms for nanoscale optical interrogation of neuronal and synaptic function. The platforms enable: 1) super-resolution-based localization and tracking of protein movement in cell culture preparations2) structural and functional imaging of single neurons and networks in intact neural tissue, in combination with neurotransmitter uncaging to study structural and functional plasticity and dendritic integration, and 3) imaging of protein-protein interactions in intact tissue such as rodent brain slices.