Gonny Smit
As a Marketing Communication Specialist, I get to read, write, and learn a lot about behavioral neuroscience. I spend my days creating anything from videos and blog posts to website and leaflet content. Outside of the office, I love spending time with my horse, working out, and traveling.
Motivation and eating: deep brain imaging in freely moving mice
Craving a snack, the joy of eating it. The part of our brain that regulates this is the lateral hypothalamus. An interesting targer for addiction and eating disorder research.
How autistic fruit flies behave
The number of children diagnosed with developmental disorders has increased exponentially in the past 20 yearschemicals such as BPA have been under investigation lately.
How to measure the social behavior of Fragile X mice
The treatment of Fragile X syndrome is limited to the symptoms. One of the factors currently holding back drug development is the difficulty of finding a reliable behavioral test for neurobiological studies.
Side effects of L-DOPA investigated in parkinsonian rats
These studies specifically investigate the long-term effects of L-DOPA or levopoda, a common clinical treatment for Parkinson's disease, with which many patients struggle.
Parkinson’s & gait impairment: comparing rats and humans
Gait impairment is one of the most prominent symptoms of Parkinson's disease. For good research you need good models and good tests.
How males and females are different: can this explain autism?
Women and Venus, men and Mars, right? In mice, the establishment of social hierarchies is sex-dependent.
How young zebrafish cope with stress
Stress is a natural thing, and how we cope with it differs from person to person. In research, we use the term coping style, something that emerges early on in life for zebrafish.
Walking the ladder: testing the cellular source of motor functioning in mice
The cerebellum, our “little brain”, is all about motor control; more specifically, it’s about coordination, precision, and timing.
How wild cavies and domesticated guinea pigs differ
Domestication has a considerable effect on the behavior of animals. The dramatic change in their environment and provision of food alter the need for behaviors such as exploration. But what exactly is the difference?
How an internal clock gene can alter innate behaviors in mice
Some might argue that laboratory mice are not the same as wild mice, yet they remain capable of performing the innate, routine behaviors necessary to survive in natural environments, such as courtship and nest-building,