Dr Mohammed Hankir

Department of Physiology, Anatomy & Genetics Le Gros Clark Building  South Parks Road Oxford, OX1 3QX Email: mohammed.hankir@dpag.ox.ac.uk

Current Research and Interests

Investigating the structure and function of the intact CNS in vivo is of paramount importance in neuroscience. Electrophysiological and histological techniques remain the gold standard however advancements in MRI technologies are continuously bridging the gap. Manganese enhanced MRI (MEMRI) is a form of MRI that has applications in assessing neuronal activity and connectivity in preclinical models. I am interested in further developing our understanding of the molecular and cellular basis of changes in the MEMRI signal. I have previously characterised the roles of ionotropic glutamate receptor subtypes in modulating MEMRI signal in the hypothalamus. I have also shown through the use of MEMRI that two structurally and functionally similar peptide hormones released from the gut elicit differing profiles of neuronal activity in the hypothalamus to regulate whole body energy homeostasis. I am currently using another MRI technique called diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) that allows the assessment of neuronal connectivity based on the diffusion properties of water in white matter tracts. I intend to compare DWI, MEMRI and histological techniques in assessing the connectivity of various visual and parietal regions of the cerebral cortex thought to be involved in a perceptual decision making task. 

Background

I studied a BSc in neuroscience at the University of Leeds and then completed an MSc in neuroscience at UCL where I performed patch-clamp elecrophysiological studies on ionotropic glutamate receptors under the supervision of Prof S Cull-Candy.  I then obtained my PhD from Imperial College under the supervision of Prof S Bloom and Prof J Bell. My thesis was entitled “Investigating Energy Homeostasis Using In Vivo Imaging Techniques” and was largely concerned with elucidating the central circuits which govern appetite appetite and the role of brown adipose tissue in weight loss following bariatric surgery. During the course of my doctoral training, I utilized cell culture and behavioral techniques as well as MEMRI and positron emission tomography.  

Publications

Increased energy expenditure in gastric bypass rats is not caused by activated brown adipose tissue. Hankir MK, Bueter M, Gsell W, Seyfried F, Khalil M, Smith KL, Bloom SR, Bell JD, Le Roux CW. Obesity Facts 2012

The effects of glutamate receptor agonists and antagonists on mouse hypothalamic and hippocampal neuronal activity shown through manganese enhanced MRI. Hankir MK, Parkinson JR, Bloom SR, Bell JD. Neuroimage. 2011

Peptide YY_3-36 and pancreatic polypeptide differentially regulate hypothalamic neuronal activity in mice in vivo as measured by manganese-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging. Hankir MK, Parkinson JR, Minnion JS, Addison ML, Bloom SR, Bell JD. J Neuroendocrinol. 2011

The combined effects on neuronal activation and blood-brain barrier permeability of time and n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in mice, as measured in vivo using MEMRI. Kuo YT, So PW, Parkinson JR, Yu WS, Hankir MK, Herlihy AH, Goldstone AP, Frost GS, Wasserfall C, Bell JD. Neuroimage. 2010