Dr Alister Nicol, BSc PhD

My research interests are broadly in the area of cognition, in particular learning and memory, and the role of sleep in such processes? I have addressed this in a variety of animal models, primarily using behavioural and electrophysiological methods. As an electrophysiologist my objectives are to elucidate the mechanisms of communication in the brain, and how this communication underpins brain function.

Previously at the Babraham Institute and The Sub-department of Animal Behaviour, in the University of Cambridge, my present focus in the lab is the development of the sheep as a model in studies of Huntington’s Disease and other neurodegenerative diseases.

Selected references.

Nicol AU, Segonds-Pichon A & Magnusson M (2014) Complex spike patterns in olfactory neuronal networks. Journal of Neuroscience Methods (accepted September 2014) doi: 10.1016/j.jneumeth.2014.09.016.

Nicol AU, Sanchez-Andrade G, Collado P, Segonds-Pichon A & Kendrick KM (2014) Olfactory bulb encoding during learning under anaesthesia. Frontiers in Behavioural Neuroscience, 8 (article 193), doi: 10.3389/fnbeh.2014.00193

Moorman S & Nicol AU (2014) Memory-related brain lateralisation in birds and humans. Neuroscience and Biobehavioural Reviews, doi: 10.3389/fnbeh.2014.00193 .

Kendrick KM, Zhan Y, Fischer H, Nicol AU, Zhang XJ, Feng JF (2011) Learning alters theta amplitude, theta-gamma coupling and neuronal synchronization in inferotemporal cortex. BMC NEUROSCIENCE Volume 12, Article Number: 55, DOI: 10.1186/1471-2202-12-55

Walters E, Segonds-Pichon A, Nicol AU (2008) The correlation determinant in tests for synchronization in neuronal spike data. JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE METHODS 172 ,60-66, DOI: 10.1016/j.jneumeth.2008.04.003 Jackson C, McCabe BJ, Nicol AU, Grout AS, Brown MW, Horn G (2008) Dynamics effects of of a memory trace: Sleep on consolidation. CURRENT BIOLOGY, 18, 393-400, DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2008.01.062 Christen M, Nicol A, Kendrick K, Ott T, Stoop R (2006) Odour encoding in olfactory neuronal networks beyond synchronization. NEUROREPORT, 17, 1499-1502, DOI: 10.1097/01.wnr.0000234750.58065.99 Horn G, Nicol AU, Brown MW (2001) Tracking memory's trace. PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, 98, 5282-5287, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.091094798