Robert C. Froemke, PhD

We study how biological systems adapt and learn to improve behavior. We use a range of techniques, including in vivo whole-cell recording, two-photon microscopy, whole-brain circuit mapping, long-term behavioral monitoring, and gene profiling, to ask three main questions, mostly in the auditory cortex of rodents.


We study reproduction and childcare from conception to post-weaning interactions. We examine circuits and molecular cues (for example, hypothalamic hormones such as oxytocin) throughout the brain and body that are important for neuroplasticity and other changes essential for maternal care of infants, including how other animals might learn or develop alloparenting skills.

Synaptic inhibition must be calibrated with excitation and adjusted after periods of synaptic plasticity to allow neural circuits to develop, adapt, learn, and regulate overall excitability. We examine how neuromodulators (such as acetylcholine, noradrenaline, dopamine, and oxytocin) affect excitatory and inhibitory cells and synapses to enable plasticity and improve perception.


Cochlear implants are remarkable neuroprosthetic devices that provide hearing in cases of profound deafness. We are examining the neural mechanisms of adaptation that enable cochlear implant signals to be learned and understood and aim to accelerate this process. Possible approaches include closed-loop feedback and/or activation of central modulatory and plasticity mechanisms.