Sam A. Booker

Personal profile

SIDB ESAT Fellow, University of Edinburgh (2021-present)

Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Edinburgh, UK (2014-2021)

Postdoctoral Researcher, Charite Universitätmedizin, Berlin, Germany (2011-2014)

Research Themes:

Synapses, Circuits and Behaviour

Injury and Repair

Research

My research group is determining the role of neurotransmitter signalling in local brain circuits through development. In particular, we are interested in how diverse forms of GABAergic neurons integrate within circuits during early life, and how sensory experience or genetic alterations (such as in neurodevelopmental disorders) lead to divergent developmental trajectories and network function. To achieve this we are using a combination of rodent and cell culture models, alongside living human brain tissue. 

Methodologically we use a combination of intracellular and population-level electrophysiological recordings combined with anatomical methods and behavioural assays to determine the structure-function relationship of synapses, neurons, and neuronal networks in the developing brain and in models of neurodevelopmental disorder (e.g. Fragile X Syndrome and SYNGAP haploinsufficiency).

Funding

• Medical Research Council - New Investigator Research Grant (2024 – 2027)
• Medical Research Scotland - PhD Studentship (2023 – 2027)
• SIDB ESAT Fellowship (2021 – 2026)
• SIDB Project Grant (Co-I; PI: Cathy Abbott; 2025-2026) 

Team members:

• Max Wilson (Postdoctoral Researcher)
• Noah Stypidou (Postdoctoral Researcher – with Wood Lab)
• Ania Sumera (Winefride & Booth Smith PhD Student)
• Britt Van Der Gevel (SIDB PhD Student)
• Jamie Elliott (Medical Research Scotland PhD Student – with Durrant Lab)
• Max Knops (SIDB PhD Student)
• Maria Corbi Poveda (MSc Student – with Louros Lab)
• Ridvan Kucuk (MSc student – with Wood Lab)

Collaborations

• Prof. Paul Brennan, University of Edinburgh, UK
• Dr. Claire Durrant, University of Edinburgh, UK
• Prof. Emma Wood, University of Edinburgh, UK
• Prof. John Mason & Dr Calvin Chan, University of Edinburgh, UK
• Prof. Peter C Kind, University of Edinburgh, UK
• Prof. Cathy Abbott, University of Edinburgh, UK
• Prof Akos Kulik, University of Freiburg, Germany
• Prof. Imre Vida (Charite Universitatmedizin, Berlin, Germany)

Relevant publications

1. O’Keeffe, M.^$, Booker, SA^$, Walsh, D.^$, Li, M., Henley, C., Simões de Oliveira, L., ... & Hardingham, G. E. (2025). Typical development of synaptic and neuronal properties can proceed without microglia in the cortex and thalamus. Nature Neuroscience, 1-12.
2. Watson TC & Booker SA (2024) Somatostatin interneurons recruit pre-and postsynaptic GABAB receptors in the adult mouse dentate gyrus
3. Degro CE, Vida I, & Booker SA (2024). Postsynaptic GABA_B‐receptor mediated currents in diverse dentate gyrus interneuron types. Hippocampus.
4. Mehrotra, D., Levenstein, D., Duszkiewicz, A. J., Carrasco, S. S., Booker, SA., Kwiatkowska, A., & Peyrache, A. (2024). Hyperpolarization-activated currents drive neuronal activation sequences in sleep. Current Biology.
5. Asiminas A, Booker SA, Dando OR, Kozic Z, Arkell D, Inkpen FH, Sumera A, Akyel I, Kind PC, Wood ER (2022) Experience-dependent changes in hippocampal spatial activity and hippocampal circuit function are disrupted in a rat model of Fragile X Syndrome. Molecular Autism. 13 (1), 1-29
6. Degro CE, Bolduan F, Vida I & Booker, SA (2022). Interneuron diversity in the rat dentate gyrus: An unbiased in vitro classification. Hippocampus. 32 (4), 310-331
7. Booker SA, Sumera A, Kind PC, Wyllie DJ. Contribution of NMDA Receptors to Synaptic Function in Rat Hippocampal Interneurons. Eneuro. 2021 Jul;8(4).
8. Zoupi L, Booker SA, Eigel D, Werner C, Kind PC, Spires-Jones T, Newland B, and Williams AC; (2021) Demyelination induces selective vulnerability of inhibitory networks in multiple sclerosis. Acta neuropathologica, 141(3), pp.415-429.
9. Booker SA^$, Simões de Oliveira L^$, Anstey N, Kozic Z, Dando OR, Jackson AD, Baxter PS, Isom LL, Sherman DL, Hardingham GE, Brophy PJ, Wyllie DJA, Kind PC (2020) Input-output relationship of CA1 pyramidal neurons reveals compensatory mechanisms in a mouse model of Fragile X Syndrome. Cell Reports, 32(6), p.107988. doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2020.107988. PMID: 32783927
10. Booker, SA, Domanski, AP, Dando, OR, Jackson, AD, Isaac, JT, Hardingham, GE, Wyllie DJA, Kind, PC (2019). Altered dendritic spine function and integration in a mouse model of Fragile X Syndrome. Nature Communications, 10(1), 1-14. doi: 10.1038/s41467-019-11891-6. PMID: 31645626

Information for students:

Willingness to discuss research projects with undergraduate and postgraduate students: YES - please click here