Group Leader

Prof. Dr. Emilie Macé

I pioneered functional Ultrasound imaging as a method to capture the whole brain in action. At the Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence I started my lab as a junior group leader. In 2023 I became a professor at UMG, where I strengthen collaborations with clinicians and other research groups.

emilie.mace@med.uni-goettingen.de

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Team Assistant

Vanessa Klabunde

As a team assistant, I take on a variety of tasks ranging from coordinating appointments and meetings to managing documents. I support the research group leadership as well as the entire team in all organizational and administrative matters.

vanessa.klabunde@med.uni-goettingen.de

Postdoctoral Researcher

Dr. Dominique Siegenthaler

I study the visual system in the context of vision restoration and object recognition with functional ultrasound imaging and electrophysiology.

dominique.siegenthaler@bi.mpg.de

Postdoctoral Researcher

Dr. Gianina Ungurean

In progress.

gianina.ungurean@med.uni-goettingen.de

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PhD Student

Paulina Wanken

I studied Biology at the University of Salzburg in Austria, where I worked in Thomas Weiger’s Neuroscience lab doing patch-clamp recordings. I then went on to do my Master’s in Human Biology at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark, joining Ole Kiehn’s lab to investigate neurons that control the direction of locomotion in mice. In 2020, I joined Emilie’s lab to pursue a PhD. Here, I currently use functional ultrasound imaging and optogenetics to identify brain regions that predict transitions in behavior.

paulina.wanken@med.uni-goettingen.de

PhD Student

Jose Maria Martinez de Paz

I’m interested about how internal states affect brain activity. My research focuses on the brain-wide effects of arousal state transitions, for which I combine functional ultrasound imaging with behavioural tests and data analysis. Other interests of mine include neuromodulation, psychopathologies and social behaviour. Outside the lab, I enjoy cooking, reading and exploring.

josemaria.martinezdepaz@bi.mpg.de​

PhD Student

Selina Majaj

I study brain-wide networks involved in visual learning using functional ultrasound imaging (fUSI). By recording whole-brain activity, my aim is to identify and characterize the recruitment of specific brain regions forming functional networks that process visual associations and facilitate learning.

selina.majaj@bi.mpg.de

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PhD Student

Johanna Luise Mayer

I have a B. Sc. in Biology and a M. Sc. in Biomedical Neuroscience. Previously, I worked for almost 4 years at the Max Planck Institute for BI, where i helped to explore valence-coding neurons in the BLA. For my PhD, I aim to combine my knowledge about the auditory and visual system to study the sensory dimensions of the social brain in mice with functional ultrasound. In my free time, I like to work out, read and listen to all kinds of music.

johanna.mayer@med.uni-goettingen.de

Clinical Scientist

Laura Wüstefeld

In the hospital, we observe that patients with heart failure have impaired mental capacity, and that neurologically ill patients often suffer from heart disease. It is known that heart and brain are closely connected. Therefore it is not surprising that heart failure can be associated with diseases of the brain. The mechanistic underpinnings of this however are less understood. Thus, our goal is to explore the connection between diseases of the heart and the brain.

laura.wuestefeld@med.uni-goettingen.de

PhD Student

Tsun-Kai Chang

Incoming.

tsunkai.chang@med.uni-goettingen.de

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Research Assistant

Shreshth Shekhar

Incoming.

shreshth.shekhar@stud.uni-goettingen.de

Master Student

Beatriz Apgaua

Incoming.

beatriz.apgaua@stud.uni-goettingen.de