Kristen Severi

Assistant Professor, Biological Sciences
About Me
I am a biologist by training who has always been interested in animal behavior and the neural circuits which execute motor actions. I am interested in investigating how fish swim using in vivo activity monitoring such as calcium imaging and electrophysiology in the intact animal, to watch motor circuits function in real time.
Education
Ph.D.; Northeastern University; Biology; 2012
B.S.; Dickinson College; Biology (Honors); 2004
Website
http://kristenseveri.wixsite.com/severilab
2026 Fall Courses
BIOL 315 - PRINCIPLES OF NEUROBIOLOGY
BIOL 725 - INDEPENDENT STUDY I
BIOL 726 - INDEPENDENT STUDY II
BIOL 790E - DOCTORAL DISSERTATION
BIOL 700B - MASTER'S PROJECT
BIOL 701C - MASTER'S THESIS
BIOL 790C - DOCTORAL DISSERTN & RESRCH
BIOL 792B - PRE-DOCTORAL RESEARCH
BIOL 790B - DOCT DISSERTATION & RESRCH
BIOL 790D - DOCT DISSERTATION & RESRCH
BIOL 792C - PRE-DOCTORAL RESEARCH
BIOL 491 - SENIOR PROJECT
BIOL 790A - DOCT DISSERTATION & RESRCH
Teaching Interests
Neurobiology
Past Courses
BIOL 315: PRINCIPLES OF NEUROBIOLOGY
BIOL 320: DISCOVERING BIOL RESEARCH
BIOL 495: HONORS SEMINAR IN BIOLOGY
Research Interests
Larval zebrafish swim to move around their environment, find food, and escape from predators. We are interested in the neural circuits in the brain and spinal cord which control that locomotion. Larval zebrafish can be genetically manipulated so we can mark certain neurons with colors or calcium activity monitors, and view them through their transparent bodies, while they perform motor actions. Using these techniques, we try to understand what specific circuits are essential for performing different motor actions, and how those circuits are wired together.
Journal Article
Shakila Behzadi, Jacquelin Ho, Zainab Tanvir, Gal Haspel, Limor Freifeld, Kristen E. Severi. 2024. "Expansion microscopy reveals neural circuit organization in genetic animal models." Neurophotonics, vol. 12, no. 01, pp. 1-17.
Haider Zaki, Enkeleida Lushi, Kristen E. Severi. 2021. "Larval Zebrafish Exhibit Collective Circulation in Confined Spaces." Frontiers in Physics, vol. 9.
Kevin W. Christie, Kristen E. Severi. 2021. "Motor behavior: A feedforward circuit for zebrafish escape." Current Biology, vol. 31, no. 15, pp. R965-R967.
Gal Haspel, Kristen E. Severi, Lisa J. Fauci, Netta Cohen, Eric D. Tytell, Jennifer R. Morgan. 2021. "Resilience of neural networks for locomotion." The Journal of Physiology, vol. 599, no. 16, pp. 3825-3840.
Zainab Tanvir, Daihana Rivera, Kristen E. Severi, Gal Haspel, Daphne Soares. 2021. "Evolutionary and homeostatic changes in morphology of visual dendrites of Mauthner cells in <scp> <i>Astyanax</i> </scp> blind cavefish." Journal of Comparative Neurology, vol. 529, no. 8, pp. 1779-1786.
Gal Haspel, Kristen E. Severi, L J Fauci, N Cohen, E D Tytell, J R Morgan. 2021. "Resilience of neural networks for locomotion.." The Journal of physiology.