Silvia Arber studied biology at the Biozentrum of the University of Basel and completed her doctorate in 1995 at the Friedrich Miescher Institute (FMI) in Basel.
Arber's research investigates the mechanisms involved in the function and assembly of neuronal circuits controlling motor behavior. She has shown that premotor interneuron groups differ from each other in their functionality and distribution in the spinal cord and that this property depends on the timing of their generation during development.[4] Silvia Arber then turned her attention to deciphering the anatomical and functional organization of the brain stem (since 2014). This provided insight into the neuronal networks that transmit instructions for various body movements from the brain to the spinal cord. This work showed that very specific neurons are connected into circuit modules that control different aspects of body movements. For example, the fine motor skills of the arm and hand are regulated by different brainstem networks than walking or posture.[5][6][7]
She serves as a member of the Editorial Board for Cell.[8]
