Wellcome Success

We are delighted to congratulate two researchers based at Queen Square, Dr Paul Bays (

ion.ucl.ac.uk/departments/repair">IoN Department of Brain Repair and Rehabilitation) and Dr Fiona McNab (Wellcome Department of Imaging Neuroscience), on being awarded Wellcome Trust Career Development Fellowships.

The Wellcome Career Development Fellowship scheme provides an opportunity for postdoctoral scientists from across the remits of the Wellcome Trust's funding streams to become independent research scientists and undertake high-quality research.

Described by the Director of the Institute, Professor Alan Thompson as "the icing on the cake", Dr Bays has also been awarded the highly prestigious Wellcome-Beit Prize Fellowship, in recognition of the exceptional quality of his Fellowship application. This award provides additional recognition for just four outstanding biomedical researchers who have been awarded other Wellcome Trust fellowship funding across all fields.

Professor Jon Driver said, "UCL is very fortunate to be able to attract leading young scientists of the exceptional calibre of Paul Bays and Fiona McNab".

Dr Bays will conduct research on attention, working memory and action in the normal and damaged brain, building on his recent studies published in Science and in the Journal of Neuroscience.

Dr McNab has an exciting plan for studying the impact of ageing, dopaminergic modulation, and scientifically-informed cognitive  training on working memory. Her work promises not only to shed light on the brain basis of cognitive function, but also to identify new ways to mitigate against cognitive decline in the elderly.

Professor Masud Husain, Head of the Department of Brain Repair and Rehabilitation  commented "It's fantastic to see such talented individuals being supported in applying basic neuroscience to clinically important questions."