Matthieu Louis

Matthieu Louis is an Associate Professor at the University of California Santa Barbara, affiliated with the Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology. His research focuses on understanding how odor tracking (chemotaxis) emerges from neural-circuit computations in the Drosophila melanogaster larva, which has fewer than 10,000 neurons organized in a central brain.

• Education: BA/MA in Theoretical Physics (Free University of Brussels), PhD in Systems Biology (University of Cambridge), Postdoctoral training (Rockefeller University, EMBL-CRG Systems Biology Unit).

His interdisciplinary approach combines molecular neurogenetics, bioengineering, and physics-based modeling to unravel the algorithms guiding navigation in odor gradients and the neural implementation of these processes. The lab aims to map and characterize neural circuits converting olfactory information into navigational decisions, with long-term comparative studies across Drosophila species.

Recent publications emphasize sensory processing, neural dynamics, and computational modeling in chemotaxis. Key themes include olfactory perception, decision-making algorithms, sensorimotor integration, and evolutionary neuroethology.

Scientific Awards:

• EMBL Pre-doctoral Fellowship
• NIH Brain Initiative Grant

His lab mentors graduate and undergraduate students, emphasizing computational methods, experimental neuroscience, and collaborative research at the intersection of biology, physics, and engineering.