Matthew McGinley

Matthew McGinley is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Neuroscience at Baylor College of Medicine, working within the Duncan Neurological Research Institute (Duncan NRI) at Texas Children's Hospital. His laboratory is located in room NRI N.1265.08 in Houston, TX, with contact information including phone number (832-824-3966) and email (matthew.mcginley@bcm.edu).

Dr. McGinley received his BS in Physics and Mathematics from the University of Wisconsin, Madison (2002), followed by an MS in Biomedical Engineering from the same institution (2004). He earned his PhD in Neuroscience from Oregon Health & Science University (2010) and completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Neuroscience at Yale University (2015). He was appointed Assistant Professor at Baylor College of Medicine on August 1, 2016.

His research focuses on how networks of neurons process sensory information to make sense of the world and choose appropriate actions. The McGinley Lab primarily studies neural mechanisms of auditory perceptual decision making behaviors in mice, with particular interest in how brain states influence perception and behavior.

• Neural mechanisms of auditory perception
• Influence of brain state on perception and behavior
• Neural mechanisms of perceptual cuing in decision making
• Pupillometric measures of brain states and decisions
• Neuromodulatory mechanisms of attentional effort
• Improved perceptual learning with peripheral nerve stimulation

Analysis of Dr. McGinley's publications reveals a strong focus on understanding how brain states impact sensory processing and decision making. His work combines electrophysiological techniques with behavioral paradigms to elucidate the neural basis of perception. A recurring theme is the relationship between pupil diameter as an indicator of arousal and cortical processing of sensory information, suggesting that optimal states for behavioral performance are characterized by specific patterns of neural activity.

Dr. McGinley has secured significant research funding, including:

• Neuromodulatory Mechanisms of Listening Effort grant (#R03DC015618) from the National Institute of Deafness and Communication Disorders (2016-2019)
• Targeted Neuroplasticity Training grant from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (2017-2021)
• Cain Foundation Laboratories gift funding

The McGinley Lab utilizes advanced techniques including whole-cell recording, two-photon imaging, optogenetics, multi-channel extracellular recording, pupillometry, and histological methods. Current projects focus on three main areas: (1) Neuromodulatory mechanisms of attentional effort, developing mouse models to understand the neural basis of listening effort; (2) Improved perceptual learning with peripheral nerve stimulation, investigating how vagus nerve stimulation affects auditory cortex; and (3) Brain circuits for navigation in acoustic virtual reality, exploring how animals use auditory spatial cues while moving through environments.