Peirson
Research groups
Websites
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Kavli Institute for Nanoscience Discovery
Research centre
Collaborators
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Vladyslav Vyazovskiy
Professor of Sleep Physiology
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Russell Foster
Head of the Nuffield Laboratory of Ophthalmology and the Sleep and Circadian Neuroscience Institute
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Mark Hankins
Professor of Visual Neuroscience
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David Bannerman
Professor of Behavioural Neuroscience
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Aarti Jagannath
Associate Professor
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Zameel Cader
Director of the Oxford Headache Centre and Director of StemBANCC
Stuart Peirson
BSc, PhD
Professor of Circadian Neuroscience
Circadian Neuroscience
Research Summary
My research focuses on how light regulates physiology and behaviour, with a particular interest in how our modern artificial light environment may disrupt these processes. The retina contains photoreceptors that mediate the tasks of vision as well the regulation of circadian rhythms, sleep and alertness. The central aim of my work is to understand how light information is transmitted from photoreceptor to brain to drive these responses. Research in my lab depends upon molecular biology and genomics, as well as optogenetics and chemogenetics. We also study behavioural responses including circadian rhythms, sleep and cognitive function. Photobiology, statistics and bioinformatics critically underpin our work.
Sources of Funding
Biography
I am Professor of Circadian Neuroscience and Group Leader in the fundamental neuroscience theme of the Sleep and Circadian Neuroscience Institution (SCNi). After completing my PhD in Neuroscience at the Institute of Ophthalmology UCL I moved to Imperial College to work as a postdoc. During this time I also acted as technical supervisor for the quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) facility at Charing Cross Hospital. During my subsequent work, I contributed to the identification of the melanopsin pRGC system in humans as well as the characterisation of melanopsin signalling pathways. I was appointed as a Lecturer at Imperial College in 2005 before moving to the University of Oxford in 2006. My work has continued to focus upon characterising the signalling pathways mediating the effects of light on physiology and behaviour, with the aim of identifying novel targets for the regulation of circadian rhythms and sleep.
Key publications
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Constant Light Desynchronizes Olfactory versus Object and Visuospatial Recognition Memory Performance
Tam SKE. et al, (2017), The Journal of Neuroscience, 37, 3555 - 3567
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Melanopsin Regulates Both Sleep-Promoting and Arousal-Promoting Responses to Light
Pilorz V. et al, (2016), PLOS Biology, 14, e1002482 - e1002482
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Isoforms of Melanopsin Mediate Different Behavioral Responses to Light
Jagannath A. et al, (2015), Current Biology, 25, 2430 - 2434
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The CRTC1-SIK1 Pathway Regulates Entrainment of the Circadian Clock
Jagannath A. et al, (2013), Cell, 154, 1100 - 1111
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Nonuniform Distribution and Spectral Tuning of Photosensitive Retinal Ganglion Cells of the Mouse Retina
Hughes S. et al, (2013), Current Biology, 23, 1696 - 1701
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Meta-analysis of transcriptomic datasets identifies genes enriched in the mammalian circadian pacemaker
Brown LA. et al, (2017), Nucleic Acids Research, 45, 9860 - 9873
Recent publications
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Methods to estimate body temperature and energy expenditure dynamics in fed and fasted laboratory mice: effects of sleep deprivation and light exposure
van der Vinne V. et al, (2024), Journal of Comparative Physiology B, 194, 369 - 381
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Recommendations for measuring and standardizing light for laboratory mammals to improve welfare and reproducibility in animal research.
Lucas RJ. et al, (2024), PLoS Biol, 22
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Continuous home cage monitoring of activity and sleep in mice during repeated paroxetine treatment and discontinuation.
Collins HM. et al, (2023), Psychopharmacology (Berl), 240, 2403 - 2418
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Deficient synaptic neurotransmission results in a persistent sleep-like cortical activity across vigilance states in mice
Guillaumin MCC. et al, (2023)
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Re-examining extreme sleep duration in bats: implications for sleep phylogeny, ecology and function.
Harding CD. et al, (2022), Sleep
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A Systematic comparison of optogenetic approaches to visual restoration
HANKINS M. et al, (2022), Molecular Therapy - Methods and Clinical Development
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The hypothalamic link between arousal and sleep homeostasis in mice
Yamagata T. et al, (2021), Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118
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Light regulated SIK1 remodels the synaptic phosphoproteome to induce sleep
Taylor L. et al, (2021)
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Dim light in the evening causes coordinated realignment of circadian rhythms, sleep, and short-term memory
Tam SKE. et al, (2021), Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118
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Zfhx3 modulates retinal sensitivity and circadian responses to light.
Hughes S. et al, (2021), FASEB J, 35
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