neuroscience
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Neuroscience is a key research theme within BSMS, spanning developmental, peripheral and central aspects of neural function using a range of methodological approaches. Neuroscience is integrated with undergraduate and postgraduate education within the Medical School and across the Universities of Brighton and Sussex.
Neuroscience research groups include:
- Psychiatry, led by Professor Hugo Critchley
- Embryonic precursor cells, led by Professor Darrell Evans
- Cytokines and inflammation, led by Professor Pietro Ghezzi and Dr Andrew Dilley
- Neuromuscular diseases
- Imaging Physics
Psychiatry
Psychiatry lies within the BSMS Division of Medicine and encompasses Professor Hugo Critchley's research team, alongside honorary academic staff with educational and research interests. Professor Critchley's research, supported by a Wellcome Trust programme grant, examines how brain-body interactions influence emotional behaviour and influence symptom expression in both psychological and physical disorders. Central to this work is the development of simultaneous autonomic monitoring with fMRI neuroimaging and insights gained from clinical patients. Dr Marcus Gray is Lecturer in Neuroimaging and Psychiatry and has focused on cardiovascular interactions with an emphasis on mechanisms underlying emotion- induced arrhythmia and sudden death.
Dr Nick Medford was appointed Senior Lecturer in Psychiatry in March 2008. He has complementary expertise in the neuroimaging of emotional disorders.
NEWS
Wellcome Trust Annual Review Article Prof H Critchley and Dr N Harrison
Dr Sarah Newbury's research as Reader in Cell Biology is in genetic determinants of dedritic branching and neuromuscular function structure.
Dr Harry Witchel’s research as Senior Lecturer in Physiology concerns the psychopharmacological and psychophysiological correlates to cardiac activity and arrhythmogenesis. His research has identified the role played by psychotropic drugs in the development of long QT syndrome, a disorder characterized by syncope and the risk of sudden death. He has elaborated the molecular and biophysical mechanisms for related drug-channel interactions. He also works on the electrocardiographic and physiological correlates of responses to psychological and psychotropic stimuli in psychiatric patients and healthy volunteers.
Neuromuscular diseases
The research group has identified galectin-1, a protein that guides the development of muscle cells, as a potent molecule in the regrowth of nerves following injury. The group has delineated mechanisms by which nerve and muscle interact, showing the critcial role of galectin-1 information of the neuromuscular junction and regeneration after trauma to either the muscle or its nerve. This work is now directed towards investigating muscle-nerve interaction during trauma and disease, through collaborations with Professor Darrell Evans' research groups, involved in the translational development of novel therapeutic interventions optimising tissue and organ transplantation. Dr Andrew Dilley's research into pain, peripheral neuropathy and inflammation, empathise the broader integration of neuroscience research themes across BSMS.
Embryonic precursor cells
Professor Darrell Evans' research focuses on the commitment of embryonic precursor cells during development using skeletal and craniofacial muscle as a model system. The research highlights the mechanisms by which myoblasts interact with extracellular matrix towards spatial alignment to permit differentiation into mature muscle fibres. Related research focuses on mechanisms underlying the differentiation of spatially and temporally related mesenchymal cells into mature muscle or tendon. This work focuses on identification of signals that determine the early development of the muscle-tendon interface and in cell transplantation studies, the plasticity of tissue differentiation.
Imaging physics
The Imaging Physics team at the Clinical Imaging Sciences Centre ( CISC) focus on the application of quantitative imaging techniques, using predominantly magnetic resonance imaging to study the integrity of tissue in the brain and body. Professor Paul Tofts has pioneered the field of quantitative neuroimaging in neurological diseases, including the development of measuring diffuse brain damage through magnetic transfer (MTR) and permeability of the blood-brain barrier. The Imaging Physics research group is an active collaborator in MRI research conducted at CISC.
Cytokines and inflammation in immunopathogenesis.
Professor Pietro Ghezzi's research interest is cytokines and inflammation, and their pharmacological modulation. His research group has been involved in the characterization of regulatory networks between inflammatory cytokines, antiinflammatory cytokines and the neuroendocrine system and the effect of various drugs thereon. This work has been focused, in particular, on the role of cytokines as pathogenic mediators in diseases of the nervous system, such as stroke and multiple sclerosis, and the protective effect of erythropoietin.
He also works on the role of glutathione, protein thiols and protein oxidation in inflammation and immunity. Dr. Manuela Mengozzi's focus is on the interactions between erythropoietin and neurotrophic factors with the immune system in neuroinflammatory diseases.
Dr Andrew Dilley’s research focuses on the physiological interactions that occur between the immune and the nervous systems, and the role that these interactions play in pain production. He uses a range of extracellular electrophysiological techniques, in vivo and in vitro, combined with histological techniques, to study the properties of isolated peripheral axons. This work is particularly relevant to common painful conditions such as repetitive strain injury, complex regional pain syndrome and back pain. In parallel to his laboratory studies he uses medical imaging to look for signs of peripheral nerve inflammation in patients with these conditions.
BSMS neuroscience collaborations
Across Sussex there is a strong clinical interest in neuroscience, including the Regional Neuroscience Unit at Hurstwood Park, as well as the existence of two significant research groups at the University of Sussex, one focusing on basic neurology, the other being the very active Psychology Research Unit.