Southampton professor opens new science facilities at Peter Symonds College
Professor Lindy Holden-Dye has performed the opening ceremony for a suite of new science laboratories at a Hampshire sixth form college.
The Principal of Peter Symonds College Stephen Carville invited Southampton’s Professor of Neuroscience in recognition of the University’s partnership with A level Biology students. The young scientists have been carrying out their own practical independent research projects supported by Lindy and colleagues funded in part by a Wellcome Trust project ‘Authentic Biology’ and the BBSRC (Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council) School Regional Champions scheme.
“I am a firm believer that students can’t learn science just from text books, they have to get into the lab and get their hands on some real experiments. This brings the science to life,” says Lindy. “In this way, students have the chance to experience the highs and lows of scientific discovery to learn what science really means. In the process they pick up many important skills, analytical, organisational, problem solving, fortitude, team working. Most importantly they learn that science is a creative subject, it requires imagination and vision.”
Science is a popular choice for students at Peter Symonds. Head of Biology Mike Richards comments “Over the last 12 years, the number of students taking Biology subjects increased fourfold so we have invested in new facilities. In 2013, we entered more than 1,000 biology students for A or AS level and 73 per cent of them achieved at least a grade B.”
Related Staff Member
Professor Lindy Holden-Dye BSc, MSc, PhD, FRSB, FBPhS
Professor Lindy Holden-Dye holds a personal Chair in Neuroscience within Biological Sciences at the University of Southampton. Her interests focus on fundamental processes of neuronal communication and she has established research expertise in invertebrate preparations. Through this interest she has contributed to research relevant to a number of important areas of neuroscience that inform understanding of mental health. Her expertise in invertebrate neuroscience, and in particular nematode neural systems and the model genetic organism Caenorhabditis elegans positions her well to participate in drug discovery and mode of action programmes for novel antiparasitics. For the last two decades she has collaborated with industry to improve prospects for parasitic nematode control. Her research group identified the molecular target for the resistance breaking anthelmintic emodepside showing it acts through a calcium-activated K+ channel SLO-1 to bring about neuromuscular paralysis in nematode worms. This discovery has paved the way for the pursuit of new approaches to the treatment of human filarial disease. The experimental approaches deployed in her research group encompass genetics through to whole animal physiology and incorporate novel methods for tracking animal behaviour and signal processing.
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