| Research
My research interest is the diversity of brains in aquatic vertebrates and their functional organization. This includes investigations on central pathways and information processing in special senses like electroreception and mechanosensory lateral line as well as comparative studies on ecological diversity and adaptations.
With a newly developted computer program we study how physical constraints drive evolution of locmotor strategies. The optimal balance between energy gain by feeding and energy loss by swimming leads to different locomotor strategies in animals depending of physical constraints. A computer program evolves agents under different condition and correctly predicts swimming behavior of animals ranging from zooplankton (daphnia) to larger fish (paddlefish).
Another focus is the functional role of the fish telencephalon. The telencephalon is the most variable brain part in vertebrates and has changed during the evolution of vertebrates dramatically.
Current Projects
| The paddlefish electrosensory system |
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The role of the electrosensory system in orientation and locomotion in the paddlefish. |
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Central pathways and information processing in the electrosensory system of the paddlefish |
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Motor control during feeding in the paddlefish |
| Evolution of locomotion and behavior |
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Computer simulation of evolutional mechanisms of locomotion |
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How physical constraints drive evolution of different foraging strategies |
| Telencephalon |
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Evolution of the telencephalon in vertebrates |
| Brain morphology and evolution |
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Comparative analysis of brain areas in fishes |
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Correlation of brain morphology and ecological specializations |
Most recent publications
Papers in preparation:
Hofmann MH, Wilkens LA. Projections of the mesencephalic tectum in the paddlefish.
Hofmann MH, Wilkens LA. Connections of the telencephalon in the paddlefish.
Papers submitted:
Dees N, Bahar S, Hofmann MH. Living with different Reynolds numbers: Physical constraints drive evolution of different foraging strategies in water fleas and paddlefish. Proc Roy Soc B.
Metzen M, Chambwa M, Wilkens, LA, Hofmann MH. Descending projections to the brain stem and spinal cord in the paddlefish Polyodon spathula. Brain Behav Evol.
Pothmann L, Wilkens LA, Hofmann MH. Two types of electrosensory units in the dorsal octavolateral nucleus of the paddlefish. J Comp Physiol
Papers in press:
Hofmann MH, Chagnaud BP, Wilkens LA. An edge detection filter improves spatial resolution in the electrosensory system of the paddlefish. J Neurophysiol.
Paper published in 2009:
Pothmann L, Wilkens LA, Hofmann MH. (2009) Parallel pathways for electrosensory information from the dorsal octavolateral nucleus to the midbrain in the paddlefish. Brain Res. doi:10.1016/j.brainres.2009.02.007
Paper published in 2008:
Hofmann MH, Northcutt RG. (2008) Organization of major telencephalic pathways in the thornback ray Platyrhinoidis triseriata. Brain Behav Evol.72:307-325. doi:10.1159/000192466
Chagnaud BP, Wilkens LA, Hofmann MH. (2008) Receptive field organization of electrosensory neurons in the paddlefish (Polyodon spathula). J Physiol (Paris) doi:10.1016/j.jphysparis.2008.10.006.
Chagnaud BP, Brücker C, Bleckmann H, Hofmann MH (2008) Measuring flow velocity and flow direction by spatial and temporal analysis of flow fluctuations. J Neuroscience 28:4479-4487.doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.4959-07.2008
Hofmann MH, Jung N, Chagnaud BP, Preissner M, Siebenaller U, Wilkens LA. (2008) Response properties of electrosensory units in the midbrain tectum of the paddlefish (Polyodon spathula). J Exp Biol. 211:773-779.doi:10.1242/jeb.009795
Chagnaud BP, Bleckmann H, Hofmann MH (2008) Lateral line nerve fibers are not sensitive to gross flow direction. Zoology 111:204-217.doi:10.1016/j.zool.2007.07.009
Hofmann MH, Wilkens LA. (2008) Magnetoreception. In: Senses on the Threshold, Function and Evolution of the Sense Organs in Secondarily Aquatic Vertebrates. J.G.M. Thewissen and Sirpa Nummela, (eds.). University of California Press.
Wilkens LA, Hofmann MH. (2008) Electroreception. In: Senses on the Threshold, Function and Evolution of the Sense Organs in Secondarily Aquatic Vertebrates. J.G.M. Thewissen and Sirpa Nummela, (eds.). University of California Press.
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