Chris J. Dallmann
Neuroscientist
Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellow
University of Würzburg, Germany
chris.dallmann at uni-wuerzburg.de
@ChrisJDallmann
Research
I’m a neuroscientist. My goal is to understand how neural circuits control arm and leg movements—a major challenge in neuroscience with implications for treating movement disorders, designing neural prostheses, and robotics. I tackle this challenge in the fruit fly, Drosophila. The unparalleled genetic tools and the compact nervous system of this model organism enable us to develop a detailed, mechanistic understanding of movement control.
In the Ache Lab (University of Würzburg), I study how neural circuits in the fly’s “spinal cord” translate movement instructions from the brain into leg movements during walking. I combine motion capture, optogenetics, and two-photon calcium imaging of neural activity in behaving flies with comprehensive connectivity analyses (connectomics).
In the Tuthill Lab (University of Washington), I used many of the same techniques to study how neural circuits use signals from movement sensors on the legs to control walking.
As a graduate student, I studied how neural circuits use signals from force sensors on the legs to control walking. I took a biomechanics approach and combined motion capture, force measurements, and electromyography in freely walking stick insects—another invertebrate model organism (see also The New York Times ScienceTake).
Positions
Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellow, University of Würzburg, since 2023
Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Washington, 2018–2023
Graduate Researcher, Bielefeld University, 2013–2018
Research Assistant, Bielefeld University, 2012–2013
Visiting Student Researcher, University of California at Berkeley, 2009 and 2012
Research Assistant, University of Applied Sciences Bremen, 2011
Education
PhD in Neuroscience, Bielefeld University, 2018
MSc in Neurobiology and Behavior, Bielefeld University, 2013
BSc in Biomimetics/Bio-Inspired Engineering, University of Applied Sciences Bremen, 2011
Honors and Awards
Marie Sklodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship, European Union, 2023–2025
Research Fellowship, German Research Foundation (DFG), 2020–2022
The Raymond and Beverly Sackler Postdoctoral Scholarship, University of Washington, 2018–2020
Best Talk Award, German Zoological Society Annual Meeting, 2016
German National Scholarship (Deutschlandstipendium), 2013
PROMOS Travel Scholarship, German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), 2012
Publications
See also Google Scholar.
2024
Zill SN, Dallmann CJ, Zyhowski WP, Chaudhry H, Gebehart C, Szczecinski NS. Mechanosensory encoding of forces in walking uphill and downhill: force feedback can stabilize leg movements in stick insects. Journal of Neurophysiology. PDF
2023
Dallmann CJ, Agrawal S, Cook A, Brunton BW, Tuthill JC. Presynaptic inhibition selectively suppresses leg proprioception in behaving Drosophila. bioRxiv. PDF
Dallmann CJ, Dickerson BH, Simpson JH, Wyart C, Jayaram K. Mechanosensory control of locomotion in animals and robots: moving forward. Integrative and Comparative Biology. PDF
2021
Szczecinski NS, Dallmann CJ, Quinn RD, Zill SN. A computational model of insect campaniform sensilla predicts encoding of forces during walking. Bioinspiration and Biomimetics. PDF
Dallmann CJ*, Karashchuk P*, Brunton B, Tuthill JC. A leg to stand on: computational models of proprioception. Current Opinion in Physiology. *Co-first authors. PDF
Zill SN, Dallmann CJ, Szcsecinski NS, Büschges A, Schmitz J. Evaluation of force feedback in walking using joint torques as naturalistic stimuli. Journal of Neurophysiology. PDF
2019
Dürr V, et al. [including Dallmann CJ]. Integrative biomimetics of autonomous hexapedal locomotion. Frontiers in Neurorobotics. PDF
Dallmann CJ, Dürr V, Schmitz J. Motor control of an insect leg during level and incline walking. Journal of Experimental Biology. PDF
Featured in Inside JEB “Stubborn stick insects stick to regular walk when scaling slopes“
Neveln ID, Dallmann CJ, Sponberg S. Using mutual information to analyze adaptations to loading, speed, and terrain. AMAM conference. PDF
2018
Zill SN, Dallmann CJ, Büschges A, Chaudhry S, Schmitz J. Force dynamics and synergist muscle activation in stick insects: the effects of using joint torques as mechanical stimuli. Journal of Neurophysiology. PDF
Dürr V, Theunissen LM, Dallmann CJ, Schmitz J. Motor flexibility in insects: adaptive coordination of limbs in locomotion and near-range exploration. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology. PDF
Dallmann CJ. A biomechanics approach to sensorimotor control of insect walking. Doctoral thesis. Bielefeld University, Germany. PDF
2017
Dallmann CJ, Hoinville T, Dürr V, Schmitz J. A load-based mechanism for inter-leg coordination in insects. Proceedings of the Royal Society B. PDF
2016
Dallmann CJ, Dürr V, Schmitz J. Joint torques in a freely walking insect reveal distinct functions of leg joints in propulsion and posture control. Proceedings of the Royal Society B. PDF
Featured in The New York Times ScienceTake “Stick insect helps scientists study how animals move”
2015
Dallmann CJ, Ernst MO, Moscatelli A. The role of vibration in tactile speed perception. Journal of Neurophysiology. PDF
2014
Mongeau J-M, Demir A, Dallmann CJ, Jayaram K, Cowan NJ, Full RJ. Mechanical processing via passive dynamic properties of the cockroach antenna can facilitate control during rapid running. Journal of Experimental Biology. PDF