Claudia Clopath

Claudia Clopath is a Professor of Computational Neuroscience at the Department of Bioengineering, Faculty of Engineering, Imperial College London. Her research focuses on understanding learning and memory mechanisms using computational and mathematical models. The Computational Neuroscience Laboratory, led by Prof. Clopath, collaborates closely with experimental groups to study synaptic plasticity, neural coding, and network dynamics. Key areas of interest include neuromodulation's role in learning, prediction-error circuits, and the interplay between hippocampal and cortical systems in memory consolidation.

Her work bridges theoretical neuroscience and experimental findings, addressing questions such as how neural circuits encode and adapt to sensory experiences, form engrams, and enable adaptive motor control. Recent projects explore dopamine's role as a teaching signal, the structural basis of synaptic plasticity (e.g., filopodia and spines), and neural mechanisms underlying uncertainty estimation and predictive processing.

Clopath's lab employs spiking neural network models, biophysical simulations, and data-driven approaches to dissect neural circuit functionality. Major contributions include models of supervised learning in spiking networks, inhibitory plasticity's role in network balance, and voltage-based synaptic plasticity mechanisms. Collaborations span neurobiology, AI, and neuromorphic engineering, advancing interdisciplinary insights into brain computation.