NEIL VICKERS
Neil Vickers
email: vickers@biology.utah.edu		 Associate Professor of Biology

The Vickers Lab home page
Brain and Behavior

B.Sc. 1987, Imperial College, London; Ph.D. 1992, University of California, Riverside; Postdoctoral Research Associate 1993-1994, Iowa State University; Postdoctoral Research Associate 1995-1998, University of Arizona.

RESEARCH:

Neuroethology of olfaction

Dr. Vickers is interested in understanding the neural underpinnings of behaviors mediated by olfaction. The basis for our neuroethological approach is to combine wind-tunnel and field studies of pheromone-mediated flight behavior with intracellular neurophysiological investigations of the olfactory system in several related species of moth. Moths are a useful model system in which to study olfaction because: 1. odors elicit stereotypical behaviors; 2. much is known about the individual odorants and blends that attract or repel moths; 3. moths have an accessible olfactory system that lends itself to neurophysiological investigation. These studies are leading to new insights into both the sensory processing of odor information by the brain and the evolution of olfactory communication. The species that we use are important agricultural pests raising the possibility that new understandings arising from our research will also lead to more effective and environmentally rational means of pest control.

Selected Publications

Vickers, N. J. (2006) Inheritance of olfactory preferences. I. Pheromone-mediated behavioral responses of Heliothis subflexa xHeliothis virescens hybrid males. Brain, Behavior and Evolution, 68:63-74.

Vickers, N. J. (2006) Inheritance of olfactory preferences. III. Processing of pheromonal signals in the antennal lobe of Heliothis subflexa x Heliothis virescens hybrid males. Brain, Behavior and Evolution, 68:90-108.

Vickers, N. J., Poole, K., and Linn, Jr., C. E. (2005) Plasticity in central olfactory processing and pheromone blend discrimination following inter-species antennal imaginal disc transplantation. Journal of Comparative Neurology, 491:141-156.

Vickers, N. J., Poole, K., and Linn Jr., C. E. (2003) Consequences of interspecies antennal imaginal disc transplantation on organization of olfactory glomeruli and pheromone blend discrimination. Journal of Comparative Neurology, 466:377-388.

Vickers, N. J., and Christensen, T. A. (2003) Functional divergence of spatially conserved olfactory glomeruli in two related moth species. Chemical Senses, 28:325-338.

Vickers, N. J. (2002) Defining a synthetic pheromone blend attractive to male Heliothis subflexa under wind tunnel conditions. Journal of Chemical Ecology, 28:1267-1279.

Vickers, N. J., Christensen, T. A., Baker, T. C., and Hildebrand, J. G. (2001) Odour-plume dynamics influence the brain's olfactory code. Nature, 410:466-470.

Vickers, N. J. (2000) Mechanisms of animal navigation in odor plumes. Biological Bulletin, 198:203-212. (Review)

Vickers, N. J., Christensen, T. A., and Hildebrand, J. G. (1998) Combinatorial odor discrimination in the brain: attractive and antagonist odor blends are represented in distinct combinations of uniquely identifiable glomeruli. Journal of Comparative Neurology, 400:35-57.

Vickers, N. J., and Baker, T. C. (1994) Reiterative responses to single strands of odor promote sustained upwind flight and odor source location by moths. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, 91:5756-5760.

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