Animal Behavior

The next medical breakthrough for humans could come from studying fruit flies, nematodes or zebra fish.

Biologists at the University of Houston are studying the links between genetics and animal behavior, foundational research that will spur future advances in understanding the complex human nervous system.

Investigators at UH's Institute for the Biology of Behavior, led by assistant biology professor Gregg Roman, research animal behaviors such as memory formation, exploration and foraging and courtship.

Because underlying functional principles of simple nervous systems also are present in higher organisms, scientists can improve our understanding of mental health conditions in humans by studying genetic model systems such as fruit flies and nematodes.

For example, Roman's finding that melatonin, a hormone and popular supplement used as a sleep aid and antioxidant, inhibits memory formation in zebra fish. With further research, Roman found ways to retain the hormone's benefits while mitigating negative effects on memory and cognitive function.

Roman is among a dozen faculty members from the Department of Biology and Biochemistry engaged in such research. Most have published in top-tier journals and work in federally funded laboratories. They have combined their expertise to form a group that studies the Biology of Behavior using cross-disciplinary approaches, making UH among leaders in the integrative study of animal behavior. Go to their webpage to learn more about the Biology of Behavior Group.

Within the department, molecular geneticists work together with ethologists and neuroscientists to understand the function of nervous systems. This collaborative approach helps scientists understand behavior from the subtlest sensory inputs at the molecular level to the big-picture analysis of how that behavior functions in nature within and among species.