Contact information
Research groups
Research groups
Sumathi Sekaran
Senior Research Scientist
- Deputy Course Director, Oxford Online Programme in Sleep Medicine
- Fellow by Special Election in Biomedical Sciences, St Catherine's College
After completing my PhD at Imperial College London in 2001, I entered the emerging research field of the melanopsin-expressing ganglion cell photoreceptors. These light sensitive retinal cells provide input to the circadian clock, located in the brain. The circadian clock sets the body's daily rhythms in alertness, metabolism, sleep and many other processes. I was subsequently appointed lecturer in Visual Neuroscience at Imperial College London in 2005 and soon after moved to the University of Oxford to take the position of Senior Research Scientist.
Currently I lead the Oxford Online Programme in Sleep Medicine. This part time online postgraduate course, which leads to a PGDip or MSc in Sleep Medicine, started in October 2016. This position has resulted in several educational leadership roles championing digital education and promoting inclusive educational practices.
I am also Fellow in Biomedical Sciences at St Catherine’s College where I teach biomedical and pre-clinical medicine undergraduate students.
Key publications
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Reversal of end-stage retinal degeneration and restoration of visual function by photoreceptor transplantation
Journal article
Singh MS. et al, (2013), Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 110, 1101 - 1106
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Diurnal and Circadian Regulation of Connexin 36 Transcript and Protein in the Mammalian Retina
Journal article
Katti C. et al, (2013), Investigative Opthalmology & Visual Science, 54, 821 - 821
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Calcium Imaging Reveals a Network of Intrinsically Light-Sensitive Inner-Retinal Neurons
Journal article
Sekaran S. et al, (2003), Current Biology, 13, 1290 - 1298
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Melanopsin-Dependent Photoreception Provides Earliest Light Detection in the Mammalian Retina
Journal article
Sekaran S. et al, (2005), Current Biology, 15, 1099 - 1107
Recent publications
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A Quantitative Chloride Channel Conductance Assay for Efficacy Testing of AAV.BEST1
Journal article
Wood SR. et al, (2019), Human Gene Therapy Methods, 30, 44 - 52
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Non-Image-Forming Light Driven Functions Are Preserved in a Mouse Model of Autosomal Dominant Optic Atrophy
Journal article
Perganta G. et al, (2013), PLoS ONE, 8, e56350 - e56350
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Diurnal and Circadian Regulation of Connexin 36 Transcript and Protein in the Mammalian Retina
Journal article
Katti C. et al, (2013), Investigative Opthalmology & Visual Science, 54, 821 - 821
-
Reversal of end-stage retinal degeneration and restoration of visual function by photoreceptor transplantation
Journal article
Singh MS. et al, (2013), Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 110, 1101 - 1106
-
Differential Expression of Melanopsin Isoforms Opn4L and Opn4S during Postnatal Development of the Mouse Retina
Journal article
Hughes S. et al, (2012), PLoS ONE, 7, e34531 - e34531