Morgan Lab

Josh Morgan, PhD, Assistant Professor, Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences

Dr. Morgan’s profile

Research

The goal of our lab is to identify the structural and developmental principles that turn agglomerations of cells into image processing circuitry.  At the core of our approach is circuit scale 3D electron microscopy (EM), an imaging technology that can reveal the precise pattern of synaptic connections within a network of neurons.  Our work focuses on: 1) The Retina, where stereotyped structure/function relationships are ideal for relating patterns of synaptic connectivity to specific visual computations and 2) The LGN, a circuit that is immediately downstream to the retina and structurally analogous to the retina, but whose circuit structure is heavily dependent on developmental patterns of synaptic activity.

Morgan Lab Website

Publications

View all of Josh Morgan’s NCBI publications on PubMed»

  1. Morgan, JL., Berger D.B., Wetzel A.W., Lichtman J.W. (2016) The fuzzy logic of network connectivity in mouse visual thalamus. Cell. 165: 192-206. PMID: 27015312
  2. Kasthuri N, Hayworth KJ, Berger DR, Schalek RL, Conchello JA, Knowles-Barley S, Lee D, Vázquez-Reina A, Kaynig V, Jones TR, Roberts M, Morgan JL, Tapia JC, Seung HS, Roncal WG, Vogelstein JT, Burns R, Sussman DL, Priebe CE, Pfister H, Lichtman JW., (2015) Saturated reconstruction of a volume of neocortex. Cell 162: 648-61. PMID 26232230
  3. Morgan JL*, Hayworth KJ*, Schalek R, Berger DR, Hildebrand DG, Lichtman JW. (2014) Imaging ATUM ultrathin section libraries with WaferMapper: a multi-scale approach to EM reconstruction of neural circuits. Front Neural Circuits. 8:68. PMID: 25018701
  4. Morgan JL, Lichtman JL., (2013) Why not connectomics? Nature Methods 10: 494-500. PMID: 23722208
  5. Schwartz GW, Okawa H, Dunn FA, Morgan JL, Kerschensteiner D, Wong RO, Rieke F., (2012) The spatial structure of a nonlinear receptive field. Nat. Neurosci. 15: 1572-80. PMID: 23001060
  6. Morgan J.L., Soto F., Wong R.O.L., Kerschensteiner D., (2011) Development of cell type-specific connectivity patterns of converging excitatory axons in the retina. Neuron 71: 1014-21. PMID: 21943599
  7. Williams PR, Morgan JL, Kerschensteiner D, Wong ROL, (2010) Live imaging of developing retinal circuits. In: Sharpe J., Wong R., Yuste R., Imaging in Developmental Biology: A Laboratory Manual, (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press). ISBN-13: 978-0879699406
  8. Morgan JL, Kerschensteiner D, (2010) Balistic labeling of developing retinaln. In: Sharpe J., Wong R., Yuste R., Imaging in Developmental Biology: A Laboratory Manual, (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press) pp. 177-199. ISBN-13: 978-0879699406
  9. Kerschensteiner D., Morgan J.L., Parker E.D., Lewis R.M., Wong R.O.L  (2009) Neurotransmission selectively regulates synapse formation in parallel circuits in vivo.  Nature 460: 1016-20. PMID: 19693082
  10. Huckfeldt R.M, Schubert T.*, Morgan J.L.*, Godinho L. Di Cristo G, Huang J.Z. and Wong R.O.L  (2008) Transient neuronal processes regulate spatial distribution of a class of retinal interneuron Nature Neuroscience 12, 35-43. PMID: 19060895
  11. Morgan JL, Schubert T, Wong RO. (2008) Developmental patterning of glutamatergic synapses onto retinal ganglion cells. Neural Develop, 3:8 (Highlighted by J. Bio.). PMID: 18366789 
  12. Morgan JL, Wong RO. (2008) Ballistic labeling with fluorescent dyes and indicators.  Curr Protoc Neurosci. Chapter 2: Unit 2.11. PMID: 18428674
  13. Morgan JL, Dhingra A, Vardi N, Wong RO. (2006) Axons and dendrites originate from neuroepithelial-like processes of retinal bipolar cells. Nat. Neurosci. 9: 85-92 (Highlighted by Faculty 1000). PMID: 16341211
  14. Mumm JS, Godinho L, Morgan JL, Oakley DM, Schroeter EH, Wong RO. (2005) Laminar circuit formation in the vertebrate retina.  Prog. Brain Res. 147: 155-69. PMID: 15581704
  15. Lohmann C, Mumm J, Morgan J, Godinho L, Schroeter E, Stacy R, Wong WT, Oakley D, Wong ROL. (2005) Live Imaging of the developing retina. In: Yuste R, Konnerth A, editors. Imaging In Neuroscience and Development 171-184. ISBN-13: 9780879696924
  16. Morgan J, Huckfeldt R, Wong ROL. (2005) Imaging techniques in retinal research. Experimental Eye Research 80: 297-306. PMID: 15721612
  17. Lohmann C, Demas J, Morgan JL, Wong ROL, (2005) A Practical Guide to: Calcium Imaging of the Retina. In: Yuste R, Konnerth A, editors. Imaging In Neuroscience and Development Cold 283-288. ISBN-13: 9780879696924
  18. Morgan J, Wong R. (2004) Single dendrite seeks stable relationship. Nat Neurosci. 7: 205-6.
  19. Martin VV, Beirlein M, Morgan JL, Rothe A, Gee KR. (2004) Novel fluo-4 analogs for fluorescent calcium measurements. Cell Calcium.  36: 509-14. PMID: 15581704