Mission
The Feuda Lab investigates how neuronal diversity evolves and develops by integrating insights across species and biological scales. We combine phylogenomics, comparative developmental biology, single-cell genomics, and computational approaches to understand how gene regulatory networks (GRNs) shape neuronal identities throughout the animal kingdom.
Our mission is to uncover the fundamental principles by which nervous systems evolve, develop, and diversify.
How We Work
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Studying a wide diversity of organisms. We use both model and non-model systems — including Drosophila, cnidarians, sponges, and mosquitoes — to dissect the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying neuronal development and its evolution.
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Combining experimental and computational approaches. We adopt an interdisciplinary strategy that merges developmental and molecular biology with single-cell genomics and computational modeling.
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Collaborating across disciplines. Our lab collaborates with experts in developmental biology, genomics, neurobiology, and systems biology. These partnerships aim to move from descriptive datasets toward predictive frameworks that capture the dynamics and evolution of neural gene regulatory networks.
Vision for the Future
Our long-term vision is to bridge evolutionary biology with a mechanistic understanding of neurogenesis. We aim to move beyond descriptive neurogenomics — toward an era where neural identities can be designed and reprogrammed based on deep evolutionary principles.
We envision a future in which the development and evolution of neural cell types are understood with predictive precision — enabling us to map, manipulate, and engineer the gene regulatory circuits that define neural identity, function, and diversity.
