The Kasthuri lab is pioneering new techniques for large volume reconstructions of the fine structure of the nervous system. These developments include: large volume automated electron microscopy, synchrotron source X-ray microscopy to map the cellular composition of entire brains; improving sample preparation for serial electron microscopy in order to increase the efficiency of automated algorithmic tracing of these datasets; and combining electron microscopy with current techniques for interrogating the proteome and the genome.  These tools will be applied in the service of answering the question: how do brains learn as they grow up?  The lab focuses on the synaptic and cellular development of brains as a basis ultimately for understanding the cellular underpinnings of pathologies such as addiction and mental illness.