Earth & Space
Bradley Colquitt wins McKnight Foundation award to continue neuroscience research
The Colquitt Lab studies neural circuits in songbirds to understand how complex behavior emerges and evolves
A cross-section of a Bengalese finch's brain taken from the side showing patterns of gene expression, with colors representing different types of neurons.
Credit: Bradley Colquitt
Bradley Colquitt, assistant professor of molecular, cell, and developmental biology at the University of California, Santa Cruz, will receive a total of $225,000 over the next three years from the McKnight Endowment Fund for Neuroscience to advance his lab’s ongoing research into the development and evolution of behavioral complexity through the study of neural circuits in birds.
The McKnight Foundation has announced that Colquitt is one of 10 neuroscientists to receive a 2026 McKnight Scholar Award, which are granted to young scientists in the early stages of establishing their own independent labs and research careers, and who have demonstrated a commitment to neuroscience.
Colquitt’s project, “Birdsong Takes Flight: neural evolution and the emergence of complex motor control,” will study songbirds, whose complex vocalizations are produced by dedicated brain circuits that share striking similarities with the human brain’s speech and manual control areas. These animals offer a powerful model system for deciphering how our brain develops and evolves to support advanced motor skills.
The Colquitt Lab at UC Santa Cruz combines cellular-resolution molecular assays, comparative genomics, and genetic manipulations in avian species to identify how evolved differences in gene regulation establish the specialized properties of birdsong-control neurons. This research will help define the neural mechanisms underlying complex motor skills and provide insight into the biological causes of developmental motor disorders.
Since the award was introduced in 1977, this prestigious early-career award has funded 301 innovative investigators and spurred hundreds of breakthrough discoveries. Next year, the endowment will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the scholar program, one of the oldest initiatives started by the McKnight Foundation.