Over the summer and half-term break, the MRC Brain Network Dynamics Unit once again hosted school pupils enrolled on an innovative work-experience placement scheme that was organised in partnership with the charity in2scienceUK.

The placement scheme was tailored for pupils from local state-funded schools to support their progress into university degrees and careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). During their time in the Unit, the pupils worked alongside Unit researchers and were given personalised mentoring to gain a wide variety of practical experiences, from electrical engineering to electron microscopy. The pupils also learned more about key concepts and challenges in neuroscience and medical research. In parallel to Unit-based activities, the pupils received guidance on university applications, wider information about STEM careers, and training in transferable skills from in2scienceUK. The pupils recorded their experiences and progress in blogs, images, and videos.

Unit researcher Dr Polytimi Frangou commented “I really enjoyed spending time with my student mentee and discussing what a researcher's life is like. I was so impressed by her questions and how quickly she picked up on everything we showed her. I would be keen to be a host again in the future, as I can appreciate what the experience means for students - what I wouldn’t have given to have had that opportunity at her age!”

Visiting pupil Nabila Salex commented “Observing neuroscientists and all the amazing staff at the MRC BNDU was an exciting experience. I participated in experiments, including preparing mouse brain sections on a slide and looking at them with a fluorescence microscope. Thanks to the amazing mentor who organised my work, my time at the Unit was jam-packed with engaging activities, and I looked forward to coming in every day. As a bonus, the placement experience helped me stand out in my personal statement, which led to an offer from a leading university. I would definitely recommend everyone to sign up for the programme!”

Based on the feedback from visiting pupils and Unit researchers alike, the placements were clearly great successes. We wish all the pupils the best for their future STEM careers.

Our congratulations go to Unit D.Phil. student Robert Toth for successfully defending his doctoral thesis, entitled “Translational pipelines for closed-loop neuromodulation”, in his viva voce examination on 24th October 2023.

Roberts’s viva examiners were Professor Nick Ramsey (University of Utrecht, Netherlands) and Professor Hayriye Cagnan (University of Oxford).

Robert was supervised by Professor Andrew Sharott and Professor Tim Denison at the Unit.

We are delighted to announce that Dr Ashwini Oswal is today taking up his new role as Group Leader at the Unit.

Ashwini is well known to Unit members, having already collaborated with several groups over the last 5 years on research defining the neuronal network effects of Deep Brain Stimulation used to treat Parkinson’s and other movement disorders. Ashwini was recently awarded an MRC Clinician Scientist Fellowship, which he will use to make the transition to independent investigator and lead his own research team. The focus of Ashwini's new research programme funded by the Medical Research Council is to provide an understanding of how time-resolved activity within brain networks can contribute to the cognitive and motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. The new insights gained will be used to inform improved brain stimulation approaches for therapy.

Unit Interim Director Professor Peter Magill commented: “We are thrilled that Ash has chosen to start his independent research programme at the Unit. Ash’s research vision is exceptionally well aligned with our discovery and translational science portfolios and, as a clinically-active healthcare professional, he brings distinctive expertise in neurology to the Unit. We look forward to working in close collaboration with Ash during his Fellowship.”

Many congratulations to Unit Group Leader Huiling Tan on being awarded the title of Professor of Human Electrophysiology and Neuromodulation by the University of Oxford.

Titles of Full Professor are conferred annually in recognition of an individual’s significant influence on their field of study, as well as their track records in teaching and academic citizenship.

Unit Interim Director Professor Peter Magill commented “I am delighted that Huiling’s many achievements have been recognised by the University in this way. Huiling’s studies of the neuronal dynamics underlying purposeful movement, and her development and use of brain-computer interfaces, are pioneering and have major implications for improving clinical therapies for brain disorders. Together with other colleagues at the Unit, I offer warmest congratulations to Huiling on receiving this well-deserved accolade.”

We are pleased to welcome Mr Ben Edwards to the Unit as a Research Assistant and Lab Manager in the Magill Group.

Ben graduated from Oxford Brookes University with a B.Sc. (Hons.) in Biochemistry in 2002. He then joined the MRC Functional Genomics Unit as a Research Assistant working on invertebrate models of Spinal Muscular Atrophy. Ben then moved to the lab of Professor Dame Kay Davies in Oxford as a Research Assistant/Lab Manager, where he remained for the next 19 years, working on a number of projects including those using mouse models of ataxia, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and schizophrenia. Ben’s research experience includes behavioural studies, molecular biology, epifluorescence and confocal microscopy. Ben was also part of a team that used in vitro screening and in vivo preclinical studies to investigate utrophin modulation therapies in Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

Here in the Unit, Ben will provides specialised research support to a number of projects in the Magill Group.

Our congratulations go to Unit D.Phil. student Ioana Grigoras for successfully defending her doctoral thesis, entitled “Investigating the role of inhibition in human motor learning”, in her viva voce examination on 5th August 2022.

Ioana’s viva examiners were Professor Ulf Ziemann (University of Tübingen, Germany) and Professor Matthew Rushworth (University of Oxford). The viva took place remotely via digital conferencing.

Ioana was supervised by Professor Charlotte Stagg (MRC BNDU) and Professor Catherine Harmer (Department of Psychiatry).

Congratulations to Unit student Charlotte Collingwood and Unit Administrator Dr Vivienne Collins on co-winning the Director’s Award for Public Engagement for 2022.

The Award recognises and celebrates the exemplary contributions of individuals or a small collective to the Unit’s extensive Outreach programme. The Award is given annually (this being the seventh occasion), on the basis of nominations made by Unit members.

Charlotte and Vivienne received their Awards from Unit Interim Director Professor Peter Magill at a special ceremony held at the Unit’s biannual Science Day.

Professor Magill commented “It gives us all great pleasure to reward Charlotte and Viv in this way. Charlotte has shown great enthusiasm and personal initiative in public engagement in her first year as a D.Phil. student here. Charlotte has formed new partnerships with outreach initiatives, and her podcasting skills are to be admired! Viv has played key roles in devising and delivering the Unit’s public engagement activities over the last 7 years, and the success of these activities stem from Viv’s dedication, planning and logistics skills. Viv’s colleagues clearly value her organisational brilliance and the outstanding support that she gives them.”

The Unit held its fourteenth Science Day on Friday 24th June 2022. Unpublished work and future research projects were at the centre of discussion, and Unit members and visitors eagerly took the opportunity to provide the informal constructive feedback that is essential for fostering collaborative working and team science.

There were 9 short research talks and 19 poster presentations, most of which were given by the Unit’s early-career scientists. Attendees were also treated to a Keynote Lecture from Dr Marc Aurel Busche of the UK Dementia Research Institute, in which he gave a discerning account of the impact of amyloid protein on neuronal circuit function.

Unit Interim Director Professor Peter Magill commented: “It was a great pleasure to hold our first in-person Science Day since late 2019. Unit members were energised by the chance to meet and exchange ideas under the same roof, and it was exciting to see how the work of the Unit’s students and postdoctoral staff is revealing important new insights into brain function and dysfunction.”

Many congratulations to Unit scientist Dr Helen Barron on being awarded a UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship.

UKRI Future Leaders Fellowships support talented early-career researchers to deliver ambitious and innovative programmes of research over several years. Helen will take up her Fellowship in June 2022, and will establish and lead her own research team across the MRC Brain Network Dynamics Unit and the Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, both of which are hosted by the Nuffield Department for Clinical Neurosciences.

Over the last few years, Helen has worked as a Postdoctoral Neuroscientist in Professor David Dupret’s Group in the Unit, where she has used a cross-species approach to uncover cell- and circuit-level mechanisms of memory in the brain. The goal of Helen’s new research programme funded by UKRI is to establish the specialized biological mechanisms that gate and control selective memory recall and explain why disturbances in memory gating may underpin core symptoms in neuropsychiatric disease.

Unit Interim Director Professor Peter Magill commented: “We are thrilled for Helen. She is an outstanding researcher, and a valued colleague and collaborator. Helen’s research vision brilliantly complements the Unit’s discovery and translational science portfolios, and we look forward to working with Helen during her Fellowship. Helen’s success provides another ringing endorsement of the Unit’s commitment to excellence in the research training and career development of its membership.”

We are delighted to announce that Unit Group Leader Associate Professor Hayriye Cagnan has been selected to join this year’s SUSTAIN programme organised by The Academy of Medical Sciences.

SUSTAIN is a year-long programme offering interactive skills training and career development sessions, tailored mentoring and the chance to network with research leaders, all with a view to enabling female researchers to thrive in their independent research careers.

Hayriye commented, “I am thrilled to be part of this programme and to learn from previous generations who navigated similar challenges.”