PhD in Psychology Mapping Subicular Mnemonic Circuitry

This project will reveal not only how subicular neurons encode space during learning but also how it participates at the systems level in memory formation.

The formation of memory for places and events represents a systems level process that engages multiple brain regions, coordinated by the hippocampus and subiculum. In order to understand how this is achieved, it is necessary to know how networks of cells encode memories.

Based in the O'Neill lab, the successful candidate will use in-vivo multichannel (64-256) electrophysiology to record the activity of subicular neurons in behaving rodents as well as optogenetics to trace where in the brain the recorded cells project to.

The results will have relevance not only for how the healthy brain performs these fundamental cognitive processes but will be crucial for understanding the mechanisms underlying disruptions of memory in disease.

The School of Psychology is one of the largest and most successful in the UK and we are dedicated to providing a dynamic and stimulating learning environment informed by our leading research in psychology and neuroscience.

Our excellent standard of research and teaching has been recognised in every research assessment exercise. Our facilities offer unique opportunities for complementary and collaborative studies across methodologies to address novel research questions.

Our research labs are equipped with the state-of-the-art facilities to address key questions of basic and clinical neuroscience, and our research facilities include one of Europe's most powerful brain scanners, as well as a purpose-built environment for patients and volunteers taking part in medical research and clinical trials.