Research output per year
Research output per year
Prof. Dr.
I am a neurogeneticist studying the mechanistic underpinnings of social behaviour, with the goal of understanding how genetic and environmental factors interact to shape how the brain regulates social interactions. In the earlier part of my career, I joined the labs of Jeff Hall (USA) and Stephen Goodwin (UK) to take a molecular and cellular approach to this question by investigating genetic programs that control the sexually dimorphic development of the nervous system. This was done in the model organism Drosophila melanogaster, the fruit fly, where males and females exhibit different social behaviours, which stem in part from the sex-specific expression of a few critical genes during development. After investigating this genetic component, I joined the lab of Joel Levine (Canada) and became interested in how the experience of interacting with others affects an individual’s physiology and behaviour. Investigating this question made me aware of the profound and pervasive effect of the social environment on individuals. This realization led me to develop an interest in the evolutionary mechanisms underlying social behaviours. As an experimental biologist, I experienced that these theories offer a strong foundation to define hypotheses that can guide innovative experiments. Integrating these theories with experimentation is the basis of much of the research done since I established my lab at the university of Groningen. Another important aspect of my research is that I am convinced that a key step in understanding the mechanistic and evolutionary aspects of social behaviors lies in investigating simple organisms. We developed quantitative paradigms to demonstrate sociability in Drosophila melanogaster -a species with a tractable genetics and advanced tools to manipulate the cellular substrate of behaviour- with the goal of extrapolating these mechanisms to other species.
My current research focuses on three questions:
For this, I collaborate with theoretical biologists, neurobiologists, psychologists and behavioural ecologists. These interactions have given me an appreciation for multidisciplinary, but also made me realize the time and efforts it demands. I became increasingly interested and involved in promoting multidisciplinary in education and became programme director of the Behavioural and Cognitive Neuroscience master (BCN) from 2017 to 2022. This educational programme connects five faculties under a common interest in understanding behaviour and cognition. It exposed me to the methods and objectives of different fields that address a common problem. I also took a role in the Dutch behavioral biology society until 2021 and sit on the Board of the Dobberke foundation for comparative psychology since 2021.
Board member, Dobberke Foundation for Comparative Psychology
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review
Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter › Academic › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to conference › Poster › Academic
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review
01/09/2021 → 01/09/2023
Project: Research
Billeter, J., Kas, M. & Lamers, S.
01/08/2020 → 01/08/2024
Project: Research
Havekes, R., Billeter, J. & Sarma, A.
01/08/2020 → 01/08/2024
Project: Research
Billeter, J., Wertheim, B. & Doubovetzky, N.
01/05/2019 → 01/05/2023
Project: Research
Jean-Christophe Billeter (Member)
Activity: Membership › Academic
Jean-Christophe Billeter (Invited speaker)
Activity: Talk and presentation › Academic presentation › Academic
Jean-Christophe Billeter (Invited speaker)
Activity: Talk and presentation › Academic presentation › Academic
Jean-Christophe Billeter (Invited speaker)
Activity: Talk and presentation › Academic presentation › Academic
Nicolas Doubovetzky (Speaker), Sanne Bal (Contributor) & Jean-Christophe Billeter (Contributor)
Activity: Talk and presentation › Academic presentation › Academic
Soto Padilla, A. (Creator), Ruijsink, R. (Creator), Span, M. M. (Creator), van Rijn, H. (Creator) & Billeter, J. (Creator), University of Groningen, 21-Nov-2018
DOI: 10411/C0XRZC, https://doi.org/10.34894%2Fenmqya
Dataset
Soto Padilla, A. (Creator), Ruijsink, R. (Creator), Sibon, O. (Creator), van Rijn, H. (Creator) & Billeter, J. (Creator), University of Groningen, 10-Nov-2017
DOI: 10411/6CYOM9
Dataset
Laturney, M. (Contributor), van Eijk, R. (Contributor) & Billeter, J. (Contributor), University of Groningen, 4-Sept-2018
DOI: 10.34894/6ozoon
Dataset
Soto Padilla, A. (Contributor), Ruijsink, R. (Contributor), Sibon, O. (Contributor), van Rijn, H. (Contributor) & Billeter, J. (Contributor), DataverseNL, 17-Apr-2018
DOI: 10.34894/wlor2e
Dataset
Laturney, M. E. (Creator), van Eijk, R. (Creator) & Billeter, J. (Creator), University of Groningen, 2018
DOI: 10411/PCSFHG, https://doi.org/10.34894%2F6ozoon
Dataset
14/03/2023
1 item of Media coverage
Press/Media: Expert Comment › Popular
Jean-Christophe Billeter, Philip Kohlmeier & Jenke Gorter
29/06/2021
6 items of Media coverage
Press/Media: Research › Academic
Billeter, Jean-Christophe (Recipient), 2022
Prize › Academic
Billeter, Jean-Christophe (Recipient), 27-Nov-2015
Prize: Other distinction › Professional