Cambridge-India Partnership

Neuroscience

Some of the most exciting science emerges from Cambridge's inter-disciplinary approach - the bringing together of specialists to cross-fertilise ideas. This is particularly true in neuroscience which draws on a wide range of disciplines - from anthropology through to zoology. In 2007 more than 500 Cambridge researchers from 30 different departments and centres formed Cambridge Neuroscience, a forum set up to unravel the complexities of the brain.

Long-term benefits to society of the Cambridge Neuroscience initiative include the translation of research findings from basic science to enhanced clinical care, and thus better health and quality of life for millions of people.

Professor Michael Bate
Department of Zoology

Professor Bate's research is concerned with the way in which the machinery underlying coordinated movement is assembled during embryonic development. On the one hand this involves an analysis of the way in which muscles are assembled, specified and patterned and on the other an investigation of the way in which motor circuits are generated and begin to function. His work with the fruitfly Drosophila melanogaster brings a combination of genetic, molecular and cellular techniques to bear on these fundamental issues of neuromuscular development.

India links: collaboration with groups at Tata Institute for Fundamental Research, Bombay and National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore.
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Professor David Menon
Department of Medicine

Professor Menon has been the Chair of Anaesthesia in the Department of Medicine, School of Clinical Medicine since September 2000. The thrust of his research has been to use PET and MRI to identify heterogeneity in the pathophysiology of acute brain injury (in collaborations within the Wolfson Brain Imaging Centre and the Neurosciences Critical Care Unit). These studies have also lead to significant methodological developments in the analysis of imaging data sets from severely injured brains, and helped to establish conceptual guidelines for quantifying the ischaemic burden in injured brain.

India links: department has clinical fellows/registrars from medical schools in India; hosts Indian PhD students.
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In this section

Drug Discovery and Biochemistry

Neuroscience

Stem Cells and Genetics