Dissecting the Synaptic Basis of Neural Computation
in Health and Disease
Rutgers University
Department of Neuroscience and Cell Biology – Rutgers Addiction Research Center
Our Mission
The primary mission of the Wright Lab is to understand how our brains are able to learn from experience and how this ultimately shapes our behavior in both health and disease. We are particularly interested in determining how synaptic function, integration, and plasticity underlie the computational properties of individual neurons and how they shape how information is encoded within large-scale neural circuits. We also seek to understand how synaptic function becomes dysregulated in psychiatric disorders, with a particular focus on addiction.
Research Interests
Synapses
How does the integration of different synaptic inputs dictate neural encoding and how does experience reshape this process?
Circuits
How does the regulation of synaptic function contribute to the complex computations performed by neural circuits?
Disease
How does synaptic dysfunction arise in psychiatric disorder and how does this lead to maladaptive behavior?
Highlight Publications
Distinct synaptic plasticity rules operate across dendritic compartments in vivo during learning. (2025) Wright, W.J.†, Hedrick, N.G., & Komiyama, T.† Science 388; 322-328. Read the paper
Local plasticity underlies the reorganization of cortical circuit dynamics during motor learning. (2026) Wright, W.J.†, Chen, E.C., Zhou, B., Wang, J., Liu, Z., Morales, B., & Komiyama, T.† Current Biology,36;1-12. Read the paper
Silent synapses dictate cocaine memory destabilization and reconsolidation. (2020) Wright, W.J.*, Graziane, N.M.*, Neumann, P.A., Hamilton, P.J., Cates, H.M., Fuerst, L., Spenceley, A., Mackinnon-Booth, N., Iyer, K., Huang, Y.H., Shaham, Y., Schlüter, O.M., Nestler, E.J., & Dong, Y.† Nature Neuroscience, 23(1); 32-46. Read the paper
Join Our Team
We are always looking for motivated and talented individuals to come and join our team. If you are interested in joining the lab please check out the Join page and get in touch.