Pingkalai Senthilan - Research Interest
My research focuses on how animals perceive light
and convert it into biological signals. Specialized photoreceptors such
as rhodopsins and cryptochromes mediate both image-forming and
non-image-forming processes, including the control of circadian rhythms
and other light-dependent behaviors.
In my research group, we study these systems in
Drosophila melanogaster and other species, with a particular focus on
other Drosophila species. We are interested in the functioning of
photoreceptors, their sensitivity to environmental conditions such as
temperature and internal factors such as age and sex, along with their
evolutionary adaptation to different living conditions.
We combine molecular biological, genetic, and
histological methods with neurobiological and behavioral analyses as
well as bioinformatics to gain a comprehensive understanding of
light-dependent systems.