Contact information
+44 (0)1865 611456
Team members
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Julien Fars
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
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Abigail Wyllie
Research Assistant
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Rebecca Willis
Research Assistant
Research groups
Oxford Collaborators
Dr Beata Godlewska , Dept. Psychiatry
External Collaborators
Dennis Levi, University of California, Berkeley
Jun-Yun Zhang, Peking University
Websites
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KOALA Child amblyopia study
We are inviting contributors to help us improve our research
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Adult amblyopia study
We are actively recruiting participants with amblyopia.
Generously funded by
Betina Ip
DPhil
Royal Society Dorothy Hodgkin Research Fellow
- Principal Investigator
- Hugh Price Fellow, Jesus College
Research Description
Our reality exists in three-dimensions, and binocular vision enables us to interact with the world with precision. The goal of my research is to better understand the neural basis of binocular vision, from acquisition to perception.
My research focuses on two core questions:
(1) What are the neural mechanisms supporting binocular vision, in particular stereoscopic depth perception?
(2) What signals regulate the acquisition of binocular vision through experience?
To answer these questions, my group specializes in combining behavioural psychophysics with non-invasive imaging of brain function, in particular measures of neurochemistry using novel magnetic resonance spectroscopy techniques. These signals give us rich information about the state of the brain during vision and learning.
There are strong reasons for why this research is relevant: impaired binocular vision due to amblyopia, also known as ‘lazy eye’, is the most common visual problem in children. It can lead to a lifetime of impaired vision. If we can understand how the brain combines images from two eyes, then we can use this knowledge to help people with visual problems see better.
Biosketch
Betina graduated from University College London with an MSc in Neuroscience. She then obtained a DPhil degree at Oxford, during which she focused on attentional modulations on binocular vision using non-invasive MR imaging. During her postdoctoral training, she made contributions to understanding how functional paradigms and neurochemistry via MR Spectroscopy measurements can be exploited to study visual perception. In 2020, Betina was awarded a Royal Society Dorothy Hodgkin Research Fellowship to establish her own research programme at the Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging. Her research focuses on investigating plasticity in the human binocular visual system in health and disease.
Student opportunities
2nd year Medicine / Biomedical Sciences student at Oxford are encouraged drop Betina a line to ask about possible FHS dissertation projects in the lab. Graduate level lab rotation students are also welcome.
Previous students
Kathleen Tracey, FHS student 2021/22, Wadham College
Colleges
Key publications
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Investigating the neurochemistry of the human visual system using magnetic resonance spectroscopy
Journal article
IP IB. and BRIDGE H., (2021), Brain Structure and Function
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Comparison of Neurochemical and BOLD Signal Contrast Response Functions in the Human Visual Cortex
Journal article
Ip IB. et al, (2019), The Journal of Neuroscience, 39, 7968 - 7975
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Combined fMRI-MRS acquires simultaneous glutamate and BOLD-fMRI signals in the human brain
Journal article
Ip IB. et al, (2017), NeuroImage, 155, 113 - 119
Recent publications
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MRI stereoscope: a miniature stereoscope for human neuroimaging
Journal article
Ip IB. et al, (2022), eneuro, ENEURO.0382 - 21.2021
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Mapping the visual world to the human brain.
Journal article
Ip B. and Bridge H., (2021), Elife, 10
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Memory recall involves a transient break in excitatory-inhibitory balance
Journal article
Koolschijn RS. et al, (2021), eLife, 10
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GABAergic inhibition in the human visual cortex relates to eye dominance.
Journal article
Ip IB. et al, (2021), Sci Rep, 11
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Investigating the neurochemistry of the human visual system using magnetic resonance spectroscopy
Journal article
IP IB. and BRIDGE H., (2021), Brain Structure and Function
Learning to see in 3D with two eyes: the role of experience, plasticity and neurochemistry
- bio20200059.pdf
- PDF document 1.3 MB
An article on learning and binocular vision for anyone interested in biology and the brain.