Top Researchers
Top Neuroscience Researchers at University of Surrey for 2026
Research at the University of Surrey continues to span a wide range of questions in Neuroscience, from sleep and circadian rhythms to cognition, brain stimulation, and neurological conditions. Looking across recent work sampled from the last year, a clear picture emerges of a community connecting experimental methods with clinically relevant questions.
Below, you’ll find a snapshot of researchers whose recent publications reflect that breadth, along with the subfields shaping this activity. Together, their work shows how neuroscience at Surrey is engaging both the mechanisms of brain and body function and the practical challenges of understanding them in real-world settings.
Featured Researchers
Derk‐Jan Dijk
Derk‐Jan Dijk’s recent work at the University of Surrey centers on Cognitive Neuroscience, Experimental and Cognitive Psychology, and Endocrine and Autonomic Systems, with publications focused on sleep staging, aging, and sleep regulation.
Activity over the last year: 11 indexed journal articles.
Top publications:
- Evaluation of Dreem headband for sleep staging and EEG spectral analysis in people living with Alzheimer’s disease and older adults (Apr 2025)
- Contactless longitudinal monitoring in the home characterizes aging and Alzheimer's disease–related night‐time behavior and physiology (Oct 2025)
- The complexity and commonness of the two-process model of sleep regulation from a mathematical perspective (Jun 2025)
Matthew O. Parker
Matthew O. Parker’s University of Surrey research spans Cell Biology, Social Psychology, and Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience, including studies on ADHD treatment, zebrafish neurobehavior, and working memory.
Activity over the last year: 9 indexed journal articles.
Top publications:
- Validation of L-type calcium channel blocker amlodipine as a novel ADHD treatment through cross-species analysis, drug-target Mendelian randomization, and clinical evidence from medical records (Feb 2025)
- The Zebrafish Neurobehavioral Catalog—Volume 2 (New Addition) (Aug 2025)
- Behavioral evidence that repetitive responses in a free-movement pattern Y-maze are associated with ageing-related deficit in working memory (Jan 2025)
Inês R. Violante
Inês R. Violante at the University of Surrey is working across Cognitive Neuroscience and Neurology, with recent publications on non-invasive brain stimulation, connectivity changes, and the dynamics of falling asleep.
Activity over the last year: 7 indexed journal articles.
Top publications:
Anne C. Skeldon
Anne C. Skeldon’s University of Surrey output brings together Endocrine and Autonomic Systems, Experimental and Cognitive Psychology, and Cognitive Neuroscience, with a strong emphasis on sleep regulation, light exposure, and circadian timing.
Activity over the last year: 4 indexed journal articles.
Top publications:
- The complexity and commonness of the two-process model of sleep regulation from a mathematical perspective (Jun 2025)
- Seasonal and daily variation in indoor light and temperature are associated with sleep disturbance in dementia (Apr 2025)
- Asymmetric Velocity Response Curves to Light and the Intrinsic Period of the Human Circadian Pacemaker (Aug 2025)
Jennifer Murphy
Jennifer Murphy’s recent University of Surrey publications link Psychiatry and Mental health, Experimental and Cognitive Psychology, and Cognitive Neuroscience, covering alexithymia, autism, sensory sensitivity, and language lateralization in epilepsy.
Activity over the last year: 5 indexed journal articles.
Top publications:
- Alexithymia may explain the genetic relationship between autism and sensory sensitivity (Mar 2025)
- Is an earlier onset of focal epilepsy associated with atypical language lateralization? A systematic review, meta-analysis and new data (Mar 2025)
- Predictors of atypical language lateralization in focal epilepsy: A mega‐analysis of fMRI evidence (May 2025)
Sara Montagnese
Sara Montagnese’s University of Surrey research connects Hepatology, Epidemiology, and Surgery, with recent work on circadian medicine, liver-brain communication, and blood–brain barrier changes in hepatic encephalopathy.
Activity over the last year: 4 indexed journal articles.
Top publications:
- Potential bidirectional communication between the liver and the central circadian clock in MASLD (Apr 2025)
- Altered blood–brain barrier permeability is associated with abnormal distant connectivity and regional homogeneity in covert hepatic encephalopathy—A cross-sectional study (May 2025)
- Stuck in time: The slow march of circadian medicine and how to speed it up (Feb 2025)
Daan R. van der Veen
Daan R. van der Veen’s University of Surrey publications sit at the intersection of Endocrine and Autonomic Systems, Physiology, and Cognitive Neuroscience, addressing blue-enriched light, rhythmic protein variation, and seasonal activity patterns.
Activity over the last year: 4 indexed journal articles.
Top publications:
- The bright and dark side of blue-enriched light on sleep and activity in older adults (Jan 2025)
- Challenges and opportunities for statistical power and biomarker identification arising from rhythmic variation in proteomics (Jan 2025)
- Seasonal plasticity in daily timing of flight activity in Anopheles stephensi is driven by temperature modulation of dawn entrainment (Jan 2025)
Kamalan Jeevaratnam
Kamalan Jeevaratnam’s University of Surrey work spans Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine and Molecular Biology, with recent studies on sodium currents, electromagnetic fields, and stellate ganglia in a Parkinson’s disease model.
Activity over the last year: 3 indexed journal articles.
Top publications:
- Age‐dependent reduction in voltage‐gated inward sodium current and Scn8a gene expression in murine stellate ganglia (Feb 2025)
- Electromagnetic fields modulate neuronal membrane ionic currents through altered cellular calcium homeostasis (Jun 2025)
- Intact microdissection of stellate ganglia in a Parkinson's disease model reveals aggregation of mutant human α‐synuclein in their cell bodies (Feb 2025)
What University of Surrey's Neuroscience Community Is Working On
The most common subfields around the University of Surrey’s recent neuroscience output are Cognitive Neuroscience, Experimental and Cognitive Psychology, and Endocrine and Autonomic Systems, suggesting a community closely engaged with how brain activity, behavior, sleep, and physiological rhythms interact. That focus is reflected in work on sleep staging, circadian timing, light exposure, and connectivity, alongside studies that extend into mental health, neurological disorders, and translational models. Overall, the pattern points to a research environment where fundamental mechanisms and clinically relevant questions are being pursued side by side.- Cognitive Neuroscience - seen across 5 of the featured researchers
- Experimental and Cognitive Psychology - seen across 3 of the featured researchers
- Endocrine and Autonomic Systems - seen across 3 of the featured researchers
- Cell Biology - seen across 1 of the featured researchers
- Social Psychology - seen across 1 of the featured researchers
The recent research highlighted here shows an active neuroscience community at the University of Surrey, with strong links between sleep science, cognition, physiology, and translational questions. If you want to explore more papers, follow emerging themes, or streamline your own manuscript and submission workflow, Resub can help support the research process from discovery to preparation.
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