About our Centre

Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences (CDBS) is located at Central Campus (Hugh Robson Building and 1 George Square) and BioQuarter Campus (Chancellor's Building) and its research consists of a broad variety of disciplines and cutting edge techniques.

Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences (CDBS) is an interdisciplinary research centre within the College of Medicine & Veterinary Medicine’s Deanery of Biomedical Sciences.  CDBS, along with other university-wide, often philanthropically funded, themed research centres, make up Edinburgh Neuroscience: the vibrant interdisciplinary research structure that facilitates interaction and collaboration between researchers across groups, centres, schools and colleges.

Members of the Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences carry out research at molecular, cellular, systems and behavioural levels to understand fundamental mechanisms and pathways relevant to brain and body function in health and disease.

CDBS investigators exploit rapid advances in the enabling technologies available from genomics, proteomics, imaging, informatics, and in-vivo analysis to understand the function of gene products at the cell, organ and whole-animal level.

They also exploit the most appropriate model organisms/systems to investigate the delicate balance between high biomedical relevance (for example human, mouse, rat) and high genetic power (such as C. elegans, drosophila and zebrafish).

CDBS Executive Comittee:

Remit

The Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences Executive Committee (EC) will discuss Centre research strategy, career development, best practice in research across the centre, and needed improvements. The EC will meet (approximately) every three months, alternating between Central and BioQuarter campuses.  Meeting dates will be announced in advance to allow Agenda items to be submitted for discussion.  Please find all EC minutes in the Information for Staff pages of the CDBS website.

CDBS Executive CommitteeName:  Position:
Director + Lead for Career DevelopmentProf Tara Spires-Jones Personal Chair of Neurodegeneration
Deputy Director - Lead for Research Opportunities Prof David LyonsPersonal Chair of Neurobiology
Deputy Director - Lead for Career DevelopmentProf Michael CousinChair of Neuronal Cell Biology, Head of Pre-Clinical Research at the Muir Maxwell Epilepsy Centre
Finance Lead Dr Sutherland Maciver Reader in Biomedical Sciences
Equality and Diversity LeadDr Gülşen Sürmeli Senior Research Fellow
Post-graduate Lead Dr Paula Brunton Senior Lecturer (Edinburgh | Zhejiang)
Post-graduate Lead PhD Student
Post-doctoral Lead Dr Sam BookerResearch Fellow
Post-doctoral Lead  Postdoctoral Fellow & Lab Manager
Professional Support Services Lead (technical)Mr James GriffithsCentre Building Manager
Professional Support Services Lead (administration)Ms Beverly Roberts Scientific Administrator DRI
Seminar Lead (Central)Dr Lida Zoupi Chancellors Fellow
Seminar Lead (BioQuarter) Dr Jian GanChancellors Fellow

The IMPACT facility provides both high quality imaging equipment and expertise for biomedical and life sciences.

 

Optically cleared brain

A light-sheet microscopy imaging and 3D analysis facility based at the University of Edinburgh that is open to everyone in the research community.

Functional imaging and automated chemical and genetic in vivo screening of zebrafish.