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hayleymountford.bsky.social
@hayleymountford.bsky.social
58 followers 110 following 11 posts
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Reposted
profsimonfisher.bsky.social
Only a few weeks left to apply for our 4-year PhD position, using human brain organoids & multi-omic methods to study genes implicated in speech disorders. Application deadline 5 Jan 2026. Fellowship is embedded in the International Max Planck Research School. More info: www.mpi.nl/imprs-phd-fe...
Photograph of the outside of the Max Planck Institute (Nijmegen, the Netherlands) and the trees of the forest around it.
December 8, 2025 at 3:02 PM
Reposted
uk.theconversation.com
Most (72%) people with dyspraxia report high anxiety about falling – yet they’re not even mentioned in fall prevention guidelines.
People with dyspraxia are at high risk of falling – and it’s too often overlooked
Most (72%) people with dyspraxia report high anxiety about falling – yet they’re not even mentioned in fall prevention guidelines.
tcnv.link
December 3, 2025 at 7:59 AM
Reposted
profsimonfisher.bsky.social
Advances in genomics are giving exciting new perspectives on biology of speech, language & reading. My latest peer-reviewed paper is a tutorial, guiding readers from different backgrounds through the history of the field, current state-of-the-art, & where we’re heading. A taster in this thread.🧪
1/n
Genomic Investigations of Spoken and Written Language Abilities: A Guide to Advances in Approaches, Technologies, and Discovery
Purpose: The aim of this tutorial is to show how the rise of molecular technologies and analytical methods in human genetics yields exciting new ...
pubs.asha.org
November 17, 2025 at 5:54 PM
Reposted
silparacchini.bsky.social
#PhD opportunity: Join us in St Andrews to study brain health and healthy aging with data driven approaches in collaboration with brainsciences.scot as part of the EASTBIO DTP
www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
November 16, 2025 at 10:27 AM
hayleymountford.bsky.social
📣 Adults with #dyspraxia / developmental coordination disorder (DCD) 📣

Impact for DCD is running an international online survey exploring the experiences of adults with DCD/ dyspraxia.

Who can participate?
- Adults aged 18+
- Have, or likely have DCD/ Dyspraxia
redcap.link/impactfordcd...
Colourful flyer showing a graphic with hands reaching upwards. The flyer says: Adults with Developmental Coordination Disorder/ Dyspraxia. We need your voice! Take part in an international online survey exploring the experiences of adults with DCD/ dyspraxia.
November 13, 2025 at 12:51 PM
Reposted
sldnetwork.bsky.social
Anyone know anyone who'd be willing? Always good to have contacts for future requirements, too.
dyscalculianetwork.bsky.social Dyscalculia Network @dyscalculianetwork.bsky.social · Oct 29
Dyscalculia Press Request
Requirements -
Child with a dyscalculia diagnosis
Child and parent both willing to talk to the press
Based in Scotland
Willing to talk about experiences in Scottish education system

Comment below if you can help

#Dyscalculia #mathsdifficulties #dyscalculiaawareness
October 30, 2025 at 11:23 AM
Reposted
annawilliamslab.bsky.social
We have an exciting PhD position available in the Williams lab related to cerebral small vessel disease and funded through our Racing Against Dementia project - if you are interested then do apply here: regenerative-medicine.ed.ac.uk/postgraduate...
www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
PhD opportunities | Centre for Regenerative Medicine | Centre of Regenerative Medicine
Information about available funded PhD Positions
regenerative-medicine.ed.ac.uk
October 27, 2025 at 9:28 PM
Reposted
drelsje.bsky.social
🧩Learning to talk & read isn’t just about effort or teaching—it’s shaped by biology, experience & context

🧠Our new review links genetics, neuroscience, psychology & education to show why some children find language or reading easier.

📖 doi.org/10.31234/osf...

🖼️genes→brain→cognition→behaviour 🧵👇
Figure 2 in the review: Levels of analysis from genes and brain systems to cognition and behaviour. The child both influences and is influenced by parents through genetically shaped interactions, and by the wider school and social environment. Figure design by Neil Usher. Figure from this review paper: https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/w23yz_v1
October 6, 2025 at 10:03 AM
Reposted
profsimonfisher.bsky.social
Twenty-four years ago today, our paper “A forkhead-domain gene is mutated in a severe speech and language disorder” was published: www.nature.com/articles/350....
A personal thread about the ups & downs of the journey we took to get to that point....1/n
🗣️🧬🧪
Image shows the first two printed pages of the paper “A forkhead-domain gene is mutated in a severe speech and language disorder” by Cecilia Lai and colleagues, published in Nature in 2001 (volume 413, pages 519-523). The abstract reads as follows: Individuals affected with developmental disorders of speech and language have substantial difficulty acquiring expressive and/or receptive language in the absence of any profound sensory or neurological impairment and despite adequate intelligence and opportunity. Although studies of twins consistently indicate that a significant genetic component is involved, most families segregating speech and language deficits show complex patterns of inheritance, and a gene that predisposes individuals to such disorders has not been identified. We have studied a unique three-generation pedigree, KE, in which a severe speech and language disorder is transmitted as an autosomal-dominant monogenic trait. Our previous work mapped the locus responsible, SPCH1, to a 5.6-cM interval of region 7q31 on chromosome 7. We also identified an unrelated individual, CS, in whom speech and language impairment is associated with a chromosomal translocation involving the SPCH1 interval. Here we show that the gene FOXP2, which encodes a putative transcription factor containing a polyglutamine tract and a forkhead DNA-binding domain, is directly disrupted by the translocation breakpoint in CS. In addition, we identify a point mutation in affected members of the KE family that alters an invariant amino-acid residue in the forkhead domain. Our findings suggest that FOXP2 is involved in the developmental process that culminates in speech and language.
October 4, 2025 at 1:34 PM
Reposted
profsimonfisher.bsky.social
New paper alert! Systematic epidemiological analyses of up to 39,000 people illuminate biological/clinical links between impaired musical rhythm abilities & disorders affecting speech-language development. International collaboration led by @drsrishtin.bsky.social, out in @natcomms.nature.com. 👇🧪
Musical rhythm abilities and risk for developmental speech-language problems and disorders: epidemiological and polygenic associations - Nature Communications
Impaired musical rhythm abilities and developmental speech-language related disorders are biologically and clinically intertwined. Here, the authors explore the correlation between the two traits, finding evidence of epidemiological associations and genetic overlap.
www.nature.com
September 25, 2025 at 6:18 PM
Reposted
saraheharris99.bsky.social
Calling for your paper for the upcoming collection
Brain metabolomics in dementia and neurological disease
I’m honoured to be serving as the collection’s Guest Editor
and eager to read your submission. #CallForPapers @natureportfolio.nature.com Learn more about the
collection: go.nature.com/41S5bI3
Brain metabolomics in dementia and neurological disease
This Collection invites original research using metabolomic platforms to explore the mechanisms of dementia and neurological disease or aid in its diagnosis ...
go.nature.com
September 10, 2025 at 9:51 AM
Reposted
edinunineuro.bsky.social
📢 Job Alert: Postdoctoral Research Associate in Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience. Full details: edin.ac/3Ibm1uQ

Deadline for applications: Friday 19 September 2025
September 8, 2025 at 10:58 AM
hayleymountford.bsky.social
Naming a child or pet? Uninspired by traditional names? Consider Aethelstan as an absolute Anglo-Saxon classic. Ruling England before it was cool.
cam.ac.uk University of Cambridge @cam.ac.uk · Sep 2
Who was the first king of England? 👑

@davidwoodman45.bsky.social thinks more people should know that Æthelstan created England in 927AD – should his story be on the school curriculum?

David makes the case in his groundbreaking new biography 👉 https://bit.ly/45Jcww4
An open ancient manuscript showing a depiction of the portrait of Æthelstan in CCCC MS 183, a 10th-century manuscript in the Parker Library at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. A text overlay beneath the manuscript reads: "Who was England's first king?"
September 2, 2025 at 10:34 AM
hayleymountford.bsky.social
Awareness of developmental coordination disorder/ #dyspraxia is still far too low.
This article by Emily Meachon and Amy De Roubaix reviews past efforts to raise awareness and highlights strategies that might actually make a difference moving forward:
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
The Unseen Struggle: Mapping and Addressing the Awareness Gap Surrounding Developmental Coordination Disorder - Current Developmental Disorders Reports
Purpose of Review Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD/Dyspraxia) is a frequently overlooked and misunderstood neurodevelopmental disorder. Numerous studies have sought to index the rates of aware...
link.springer.com
August 29, 2025 at 1:32 PM
Reposted
drmluciano.bsky.social
Delighted to see work led by Hayley Mountford @hayleymountford.bsky.social published today. rdcu.be/eA8G0 We used MTAG to increase gene discovery for dyslexia: 36 new regions; ~30 new genes from gene-based tests; several sig biological pathways @profsimonfisher.bsky.social @schoolofppls.bsky.social
Multivariate genome-wide association analysis of dyslexia and quantitative reading skill improves gene discovery
Translational Psychiatry - Multivariate genome-wide association analysis of dyslexia and quantitative reading skill improves gene discovery
rdcu.be
August 18, 2025 at 5:47 AM
Reposted
drdamienfair.bsky.social
I still get chills

Meet Mike
*30+ years severe depression
*first hospitalized @ 13y
*20 meds
*3 rounds of ECT
*2 near-fatal suicide attempts

Mike felt joy for the first time in decades after we turned on his new brain pacemaker or PACE

see videos, read paper, follow thread
doi.org/10.31234/osf...
August 10, 2025 at 6:23 PM
Reposted
sldnetwork.bsky.social
Here's a snapshot of what SLDN/members have done and delivered since launch. Click for an overview of the events, papers, connections and contributions. We're also keen to hear how we could add value to the activities, projects or ideas of others in the coming year or so.
An infographic showing the impacts and activities of the Specific Learning Difficulties Network to date, since launch 2 years ago.
August 7, 2025 at 2:30 PM
Reposted
drmluciano.bsky.social
Here's what frailty looks like when we consider genetic relations at the symptom level. Some important insights from this new research for anyone interested in ageing!
August 6, 2025 at 11:04 PM
Reposted
onehealthgenomics.bsky.social
New Publication:

Epigenetic clocks and DNA methylation biomarkers of brain health and disease

@uoe-igc.bsky.social @edinunilbc.bsky.social

doi.org/10.1038/s415...
Epigenetic clocks and DNA methylation biomarkers of brain health and disease - Nature Reviews Neurology
This Review considers how DNA methylation-based biomarkers can be used to monitor brain ageing and stratify neurological disease risk. The authors focus on epigenetic clocks, which can be applied acro...
doi.org
July 14, 2025 at 10:40 AM
Reposted
tamsinford.bsky.social
I am proud to have led and contributes to the experts in evidence advisory group- alot of hard work went into this www.england.nhs.uk/2025/06/nhs-...
NHS England » NHS England responds to ADHD Taskforce interim report
An independent taskforce set up to tackle challenges in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) care has published its interim report and recommendations today (Friday 20 June 2025). The repor...
www.england.nhs.uk
June 20, 2025 at 1:19 PM
Reposted
oddthisday.bsky.social
As it’s 20 June, we might celebrate any number of marvellous events today. Firstly, there’s the 451st anniversary of the birth of Wilhelm Kettler, Duke of Courland and Semigallia, and owner and wearer of these still unsurpassed trousers
Wilhelm Kettler, painted by Joachim Zivert (probably), wearing 16th century dress, including buckled shoes, hose, a cape, a large collar, a striped gold and silver doublet, puffed sleeves, a red cape trimmed in gold thread, and a huge pair of knee-length breeches, also in silver/gold stripes, and looking so bulbous as to be inflated
June 20, 2025 at 7:51 AM
Reposted
schoolofppls.bsky.social
How does your socioeconomic background shape brain health in later life? A groundbreaking study led by @edinburgh-uni.bsky.social with links socioeconomic status to changes in brain white matter – a known risk factor for dementia and cognitive decline. Read more: edin.ac/3TkFV8C (1/3)
Socioeconomic status linked with brain health
A person’s level of social and economic status can shape their brain heath in later life, a study suggests.
www.ed.ac.uk
June 11, 2025 at 10:38 AM
Reposted
edinunineuro.bsky.social
Researchers have found that differences in socioeconomic status are a likely causal risk factor in the accumulation of white matter hyperintensities, a condition which could affect thinking skills, dementia risk, and brain function in later life.
Read the full paper: edin.ac/43UuLw6 👇
🧠🧠🧠
Deciphering the influence of socioeconomic status on brain structure: insights from Mendelian randomization - Molecular Psychiatry
Molecular Psychiatry - Deciphering the influence of socioeconomic status on brain structure: insights from Mendelian randomization
edin.ac
June 10, 2025 at 12:33 PM
Reposted
drmluciano.bsky.social
New paper out which captures the lived experience of Specific Learning Difficulties. UK focussed but likely to have commonalities across countries: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/... #dyslexia #dyscalculia #dysgraphia @sldnetwork.bsky.social
Sage Journals: Discover world-class research
Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.
journals.sagepub.com
June 2, 2025 at 8:14 AM
hayleymountford.bsky.social
📣Job klaxon📣 Fixed term lecturer (Grade 8) teaching focussed position in Psychology @schoolofppls.bsky.social It's a great place to work

elxw.fa.em3.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/Candid...
Lecturer
The School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences is seeking to appoint a teaching focused lecturer in Psychology on a full time, fixed term contract until 31st of August 2026.
elxw.fa.em3.oraclecloud.com
May 29, 2025 at 1:47 PM