How nervous systems diversified over millions of years of evolution to adapt to changing environments remains one of the biggest mysteries in biology. We approach this question by studying the brains of non-mammalian vertebrates using molecular, developmental, and circuit neuroscience methods.

In this talk, I will share recent insights from our work the Iberian newt Pleurodeles waltl, a salamander species ideally suited to explore how brains adapt to changing conditions across timescales ranging from weeks to millennia.

Using an evo-devo approach, we compared neural development in salamanders and mammals. The salamander cerebral cortex is small, simple, and lacks multiple layers. Nevertheless, we found striking similarities in early cortical development between salamanders and mammals, suggesting that cellular diversity evolves through changes in the later stages of neural development.

On shorter timescales, we discovered that Pleurodeles remodel their body, brain, and behavior as they transition from an aquatic to a terrestrial habitat. This species thus offers a new model to study environmental-dependent plasticity and to identify how vertebrates adapt convergently to the distinct sensory-motor demands of life in water versus on land.