Dr. Huxlin's laboratory works in two major research areas - adult cortical plasticity after brain damage and physiological optics.

Adult cortical plasticity: we currently study the neuronal changes that are key to the recovery of visual functions after brain damage in adulthood. Psychophysical techniques are first used to measure and retrain visual performance in an awake-behaving animal model following permanent damage to the visual cortex. Anatomical, histological and molecular studies in each animal then allow us to correlate neuronal changes with the degree and type of visual recovery. Findings from our animal research has recently allowed us to begin work on developing therapeutic strategies to promote visual recovery following brain damage in adult humans.

Advanced physiological optics: this project studies the biological causes of increased lower and higher optical aberrations in the eye following laser refractive surgery. Using the awake-behaving animal model mentioned above, a set of custom-designed optical tools such as a Shack-Hartman wavefront sensor and high-resolution corneal OCT, and molecular techniques, we are able to reliably measure and correlate optical aberrations, corneal structure and corneal biology in each subject. This is essential if we are to gain the knowledge necessary to design laser ablation algorithms and post-operative treatments that prevent or correct optical aberrations after laser refractive surgery, and improve long-term visual outcomes in humans.

Huxlin, K.R . (2005) " Neurochemical changes underlying motion perception plasticity after visual cortex lesions" . In "Reprogramming The Cerebral Cortex: Plasticity Following Central And Peripheral Lesions" . S.G. Lomber and J. J. Eggermont (Eds). Oxford University Press.

Huxlin K.R ., Yoon G., Nagy L., Porter J. and Williams D.R. (2004) Monochromatic ocular wavefront aberrations in the awake-behaving cat. Vision Research 44: 2159 - 2169.

Huxlin K.R . and Pasternak T. (2004) Training-induced recovery of motion perception after extrastriate cortical damage in the adult cat. Cerebral Cortex 14: 81 - 90.

Huxlin K.R . and Pasternak T. (2001) Long-term neurochemical changes after visual cortical lesions in the adult cat.  Journal of Comparative Neurology 429: 221 - 241.

Huxlin K.R ., Saunders R., Marchionini D., Pham H-A. and Merigan W.H. (2000) Perceptual deficits after lesions of inferotemporal cortex in macaques.  Cerebral Cortex 10: 671 - 683.

Huxlin K.R . and Merigan W.H. (1998) Deficits in complex visual perception following unilateral temporal lobectomy.  Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience 10: 395 - 407.

Wang C., Dreher B., Huxlin K.R . and Burke W. (1997) Excitatory convergence of Y and non-Y information channels on single neurons in the PMLS area, a motion area of cat visual cortex.  European Journal of Neuroscience 9: 921 - 933.

Huxlin K.R . and Goodchild A.K. (1997) Retinal ganglion cells in the albino rat: revised morphological classification.  Journal of Comparative Neurology 385: 309 - 323.

Bennett M.R. and Huxlin K.R. (1996) Neuronal cell death in the mammalian nervous system: the calmortin hypothesis [review].  General Pharmacology 27: 407 - 419. 

Huxlin K.R . and Bennett M.R. (1995) NADPH-diaphorase expression in the mammalian retina after axotomy - a supportive role for nitric oxide?  European Journal of Neuroscience 7: 2226 - 2239.

Huxlin K.R. (1995) NADPH-diaphorase expression in neurons and glia of the normal adult rat retina.  Brain Research 692: 195 - 206.

Huxlin K.R. , Dreher Z., Schulz M. and Dreher B. (1995) Glial reactivity in the retina of adult rats.  Glia 15: 105 - 118.

Huxlin K.R ., Dreher B., Schulz M., Sefton A. and Bennett M.R. (1995) Effect of collicular proteoglycan on the survival of adult rat retinal ganglion cells following axotomy.  European Journal of Neuroscience 7: 96 - 107.

Huxlin K.R ., Carr R., Schulz M., Sefton A. and Bennett M.R. (1995) Trophic effect of collicular proteoglycan on neonatal rat retinal ganglion cells in situ.  Developmental Brain Research 84: 77 - 88.