Sirin Liebscher

Walking is a fundamental, yet surprisingly complex behavior many animal species rely on. The initiation, direction, and speed of walking must be finely orchestrated for an animal to negotiate rich and dynamic environments. This requires continuous adjustments based on external sensory cues, internal demands and the organisms own behavioral state. Despite their importance, the neuronal pathways enabling animals to adjust their walking behavior to varying contexts are not fully understood. Sirin performs electrophysiological recordings of individual neurons in-vivo to study how circuits in the Drosophila brain control adaptive walking.

Sirin’s academic journey began at the University of Münster, where she earned a BSc in Biosciences. Her undergraduate research in Ralf Stanewsky’s lab focused on circadian rhythms in Drosophila. Subsequently, she moved to Leipzig for postgraduate studies, obtaining a MSc in Neurobiology and Behavior. For her Master’s thesis with Andreas Thum, Sirin focused on anaesthesia-resistant memory in Drosophila larvae.