Neuroscience

Understanding and exploiting mechanisms of structural change in the brain will lead to improved treatments for diseases such as Alzheimer’s and schizophrenia. The Conway neuroscience research programme consists of 13 research groups, 10 of which are housed in the Institute. Research interests in the group are diverse with particular strengths in neurodegeneration, neurotherapeutics and neuroinflammation.

Research Focus

Cognitive function and psychiatric illness

• novel therapies for Alzheimer’s, depression and autism
• memory-associated synaptic plasticity
• zebrafish models of cone photoreceptor disease
• neurotransmitter function and toxicity
• biomarkers for neurodegenerative and psychiatric illnesses.

Neurodevelopment, neurodegenerative disease and neuroinflammation

• prion protein (PrP) biology, transmission and association with Alzheimer’s disease
• synaptic transmission and plasticity
• composition and regulation of the serotonin transporter complex (SERT)
• Caenorhabditis elegans as model for cilia-related diseases
• molecular genetics amyotrophic lateral sclerosis