Séminaire d’Elise Savier

Jeudi 2 juillet 2026, à 14h, Salle Vinay

Elise Savier, Assistant Professor, Departments of Molecular & Integrative Physiology at the University of Michigan

Interactions between cortical and subcortical brain rgions and their contributions to vision

Abstract: Visual information from the retina targets multiple brain regions, forming two major pathways going through either the dorsal lateral geniculate of the thalamus or the superior colliculus. These streams of visual information are integrated at different stages of the visual pathway and converge onto visual areas of the cortex. The integration of visual information across these parallel streams remains poorly understood and a clear picture of the orchestrated process that is vision is still lacking. Here, I will present recent findings regarding the connectivity and function of interactions between the superior colliculus, thalamus and visual cortices. I will discuss the conservation and divergence of connections and molecular markers between two mammalian species, the mouse and the tree shrew. I will then highlight our future research directions in further characterizing the modulation of visual response in the superior colliculus and how, in turn, the superior colliculus shapes cortical responses.

Elise Savier is an Assistant Professor in the Departments of Molecular & Integrative Physiology at the University of Michigan. Her research combines comparative anatomical approaches and in vivo imaging to reveal the functional blueprint of the early visual system and the conservation of this layout across species. As model system she uses mice and tree shrews which are closely related to primates and have high visual acuity. Her work focuses on the superior colliculus, a major visual center involved in orienting toward conspicuous visual information. During her postdoc, Elise studied the functional organization and modulation of the superior colliculus in mice at the University of Virginia in the laboratory of Dr. Cang. She obtained her PhD at the University of Strasbourg under the supervision of Dr. Reber, during which she investigated molecular signaling involved in the mapping of connections between the retina and the superior colliculus.