London, England, United Kingdom
Laboratory Animal Research Officer, Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, University College London.
Produced semi-automated breeding strategy interface aiding colony management and minimising excess breeding Ensured Home Office compliance of 200+ PILh’s performing regulated procedures, established semi-automated competency framework Provided discreet legal and ethical guidance on queries pertaining to ASPA 1986, NC3R’s and ARRIVE guidelines, plus input on local AWERB Responsible for the provision of all controlled and non-controlled drugs on-site Drove research projects refining husbandry, animal welfare and scientific protocols whilst maintaining data quality Taught and presented to multiple stakeholder audiences via seminars and one-to-one Undertook additional courses in computational neuroscience, Python coding, compliance (NTCO, NACWO, and Assessors) Where necessary, undertook animal husbandry, cage cleaning/changing Practical skills acquired: optogenetics; coding; brain clearing; apoptosis/necrosis assay; light sheet & confocal microscopy; SOP writing; animal husbandry *Publications: O’Hara L, Broni-Tabi J, Gordon P, Campbell RAA, Amaniti EM, Galichet C (2026). Comparative study of brain fixation by perfusion or immersion for the quality of neuronal tissue. In preparation for publication Murphy S, Galichet C, Baker J, O'Hara L, L-Tremoleda J and Amaniti E (2026). Tell Your Story: Strengthening Scientific Engagement and Welfare Leadership among Animal Technologists. Wellcome Open Research Weiler S, Vélez-Fort M, O'Hara L, Lenzi SC, Amaniti EM, and Margrie TW (2026). Protocol for minimizing off-target neuronal activation during optical stimulation in vivo. STAR Protocols 2026 Jan 19;7(1):104342. doi: 10.1016/j.xpro.2025.104342 Galichet C, Ghirardello E, O’Mahony T, Coyle C, Murphy S, O’Hara L, Redden J, Keenan R, Lynch A, Stojkovska S, McClenaghan M, Watson J, and Amaniti EA (2025). Building training and competence through collaboration: a case study of a centralised training framework in animal research. Animal Technology and Welfare (August 2025)
Further development of my scientific teaching experience.
Post-doctoral research associate/fellow at the University of Nottingham School of Psychology, collaborating with Dr Silvia Maggi and Professor Tobias Bast on a preclinical rat model of cognitive flexibility. This model examines the role of dopamine D1 receptors in the medial prefrontal cortex in reversal learning; a facet of cognitive flexibility. British Neuroscience Association - Early Career Researcher membership O’Hara L, Renstrom JGW, Grasmeder-Allen R, Taylor C, Loayza J, Bast T, Maggi S (2023). Impairment of reversal learning observed in both naïve and experienced rats following intracerebral infusion of the D1 antagonist SCH-23390 in mPFC (working title). To be presented at British Neuroscience Association, April 2023.
Neuroscience PhD research project supervised by Dr. Madeleine King, Prof. Kevin Fone, and Prof. A Richard Green, funded by Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences PhD Scholarship Award. Thesis title: “Elucidating the neuropharmacological properties of the novel psychoactive substance and synthetic cathinone, mephedrone”, researching the synthetic cathinones acute and lasting effects on behaviour and neurochemistry, through the employment of in vivo and in vitro techniques. O’Hara L, Adam L, Watson DJG, Spicer CH, Bonsu N, Lankester O, Martinez W, Sawicka G, Sritharan A, Chilinski K, Gomes L, Ratnasingham M, Savage B, Green AR, Fone KCF, King MV (2021). Additive effects of mephedrone and caffeine on locomotor activity, temperature, stereotyped behaviour and striatal c-Fos expression in rats are unaffected by 5-HT1A receptor blockade. Published in British Association of Psychopharmacology supplementary. O’Hara L, Akingbade O, Farrow A, Marriott H, Morris PO, Perera MGA, Green AR, Fone KCF, King MV (2019). Co-administration of mephedrone and caffeine enhances stereotyped behaviour in adolescent rats, without long-term changes in cognition or hippocampal microglial activation. British Association of Psychopharmacology 2019; Neuroscience @ Nottingham 2020. Published in British Association of Psychopharmacology supplementary; commendation at Neuroscience @ Nottingham.