Bristol Neuroscience (BN), which is supported by the Elizabeth Blackwell Institute for Health Research, recognises the contribution of Early Career Researchers to the field by running a biennial competition named in honour of William Grey Walter who conducted basic and applied neurophysiological research at the Burden Neurological Institute in Bristol. He is best known for constructing some of the first electronic autonomous robots, Machina Speculatrix, whose reflexes, when combined with their environment, demonstrated life-like behaviour.
The cash prize is awarded to an existing or recently graduated (within two years) University of Bristol PhD student who is first or joint author of a journal paper based on a research project which they conceptualised and developed independently, and which has had discernible impact (input into the translational pipeline, media coverage, subsequent funding success to further the research, etc.).
BN is delighted to announce that this year's Grey Walter prize was awarded to Jake Ahern, who will be obtaining his PhD from the University's School of Physiology, Pharmacology and Neuroscience in 2025. His project was completed under the supervision of Profs Hugh Piggins (School of Physiology, Pharmacology and Neuroscience) and Alan Champneys (School of Engineering Mathematics and Technology). Jake is currently a Research Fellow at the Centre for Systems Modelling and Quantitative Biomedicine at the University of Birmingham.
Paper: Ahern J et al. (2023). A New Phase Model of the Spatiotemporal Relationships Between Three Circadian Oscillators in the Brainstem, Scientific Reports.
Jake said, "The novelty of this work lies in its combination of biological experimentation and mathematical modelling to address previously unresolved questions about how brainstem circadian oscillators interact. My model, developed from scratch, revealed that the three oscillators operate near a synchronization threshold and that this system is governed by dynamic couplings between them. This interdisciplinary approach, bridging neuroscience and mathematics, is an innovative step forward in understanding brain rhythms and their physiological roles. By simulating decaying coupling parameters, I further enhanced the model’s predictive power and showed how parameters in ex vivo biological experiments change over the course of an experiment —this was a unique contribution in the field of circadian biology.
The Piggins group’s ongoing research and funding success highlight the importance of my work. The model and insights I developed have shaped current studies of circadian dynamics in the brainstem and could enable more targeted experiments in future research, potentially reducing the number of animals used and conserving research resources. By providing a framework to predict oscillator interactions, my model helps guide experimental efforts more efficiently. Furthermore, its flexibility allows it to be adapted to study circadian networks in other tissues, making it a valuable tool for chronobiology research. This project has also laid the groundwork for future investigations into circadian oscillators, which are set to become a forefront of chronobiology research, with potential impacts on metabolic diseases and sleep disorders."
Jake received £150 cash prize.