Our current focus is on the pursuit and refinement of technologies to probe early neuronal interactions in the normal and dysfunctional neonatal brain.

Dr. Simon Butt completed his undergraduate studies in Biological Sciences at the University of Oxford in 1996 before embarking on a PhD studying serotonergic modulation of an identified insect motorneuron in the lab of Dr. Bob Pitman (Gatty Marine lab., University of St. Andrews).

The ability to investigate neuronal activity in an identified invertebrate neuron proved the inspiration for his subsequent research career, namely the pursuit of better tools to resolve how specific neuronal subtypes contribute to mammalian neural networks. He joined the lab. of Prof. Ole Kiehn (Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm) in 2001, working on a number of studies that examined the role of identified interneuron populations in the mammalian hindlimb locomotor network. Towards the end of this period this involved a number of collaborations with labs studying the role of transcription factors and other genetic determinants in the formation of the embryonic spinal cord. Persuaded by the power of developmental genetics to track and interrogate the function of interneurons in complex neuronal system, Dr. Butt embarked on a further post-doc (HFSPO Long-term Fellow) with Prof. Gord Fishell at NYU Medical Center; this time working on the genetic basis of cortical interneuron diversity.

In 2007 Dr. Butt returned to the UK to to take up an appointment as a Lecturer in Molecular Neuroscience at Imperial College London. Three years later his group relocated to the University of Oxford, and he is currently an Associate Professor in Neuroscience (DPAG) and Tutorial Fellow at Keble College.