ZFIN ID: ZDB-PERS-100811-2
Almeida, Rafael
Email: Rafael.G.Almeida@ed.ac.uk
URL: https://discovery-brain-sciences.ed.ac.uk/our-staff/research-groups/rafael-almeida
Affiliation: Almeida Lab
Address: Chancellor’s Building 49 Little France Crescent EH16 4SB Edinburgh Scotland United Kingdom
Country: United Kingdom
Phone: +44(0)131 242 6799
Fax:
ORCID ID:


BIOGRAPHY AND RESEARCH INTERESTS
2021: Chancellor’s Fellow, Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, UK
2015-2021: Postdoctoral fellow, University of Edinburgh, UK
2015: PhD in Neuroscience, University of Edinburgh, UK
2008: MSc in Molecular Biology & Genetics, University of Lisbon, Portugal
2007: Undergraduate degree in Microbiology & Genetics, University of Lisbon, Portugal


Despite the attention devoted to studying how neurons communicate through neurotransmitters released at synapses, many neurons also release neurotransmitters away from the synapse. Neurotransmitters released non-synaptically in vivo have a potentially broad reach, placing non-synaptic release as a potentially fundamental mode of circuit regulation. Such non-synaptic release is implicated in many cognitive functions, but we have a poor understanding of it occurs and how it can alter neural circuit function in the intact CNS.

Furthermore, non-synaptic release involves some proteins typically studied only in synapses and encoded by genes implicated in neurodevelopmental disorders. However, the mechanistic overlap and distinctions in synaptic and non-synaptic release remain unclear, and how dysregulated non-synaptic signalling contributes to such neurodevelopmental disorders is unknown.

Due to their optical and genetic access, we use zebrafish to study intact neurons embedded in their natural circuits and gain insights into the molecular mechanisms and circuit roles of this understudied mode of communication in vivo.


PUBLICATIONS
Zhang, Y., Marshall-Phelps, K., Almeida, R.G. (2023) Fast, precise and cloning-free knock-in of reporter sequences in vivo with high efficiency. Development (Cambridge, England). 150(12):
Vagionitis, S., Auer, F., Xiao, Y., Almeida, R.G., Lyons, D.A., Czopka, T. (2022) Clusters of neuronal neurofascin prefigure the position of a subset of nodes of Ranvier along individual central nervous system axons in vivo. Cell Reports. 38:110366
Almeida, R.G., Williamson, J.M., Madden, M.E., Early, J.J., Voas, M.G., Talbot, W.S., Bianco, I.H., Lyons, D.A. (2021) Myelination induces axonal hotspots of synaptic vesicle fusion that promote sheath growth. Current biology : CB. 31(17):3743-3754.e5
Marshall-Phelps, K.L.H., Kegel, L., Baraban, M., Ruhwedel, T., Almeida, R.G., Rubio-Brotons, M., Klingseisen, A., Benito-Kwiecinski, S.K., Early, J.J., Bin, J.M., Suminaite, D., Livesey, M.R., Möbius, W., Poole, R.J., Lyons, D.A. (2020) Neuronal activity disrupts myelinated axon integrity in the absence of NKCC1b. The Journal of cell biology. 219(7)
Klingseisen, A., Ristoiu, A.M., Kegel, L., Sherman, D.L., Rubio-Brotons, M., Almeida, R.G., Koudelka, S., Benito-Kwiecinski, S.K., Poole, R.J., Brophy, P.J., Lyons, D.A. (2019) Oligodendrocyte Neurofascin Independently Regulates Both Myelin Targeting and Sheath Growth in the CNS. Developmental Cell. 51(6):730-744.e6
Kegel, L., Rubio, M., Almeida, R.G., Benito, S., Klingseisen, A., Lyons, D.A. (2019) Forward Genetic Screen Using Zebrafish to Identify New Genes Involved in Myelination. Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.). 1936:185-209
Williamson, J.M., Lyons, D.A., Almeida, R.G. (2019) Manipulating Neuronal Activity in the Developing Zebrafish Spinal Cord to Investigate Adaptive Myelination. Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.). 1936:211-225
Almeida, R.G., Pan, S., Cole, K.L.H., Williamson, J.M., Early, J.J., Czopka, T., Klingseisen, A., Chan, J.R., Lyons, D.A. (2018) Myelination of Neuronal Cell Bodies when Myelin Supply Exceeds Axonal Demand. Current biology : CB. 28(8):1296-1305.e5
Almeida, R., Lyons, D. (2016) Oligodendrocyte Development in the Absence of Their Target Axons In Vivo. PLoS One. 11:e0164432
Koudelka, S., Voas, M.G., Almeida, R.G., Baraban, M., Soetaert, J., Meyer, M.P., Talbot, W.S., Lyons, D.A. (2016) Individual Neuronal Subtypes Exhibit Diversity in CNS Myelination Mediated by Synaptic Vesicle Release. Current biology : CB. 26(11):1447-55
Almeida, R.G., Lyons, D.A. (2015) Intersectional Gene Expression in Zebrafish Using the Split KalTA4 System. Zebrafish. 12(6):377-86
Mensch, S., Baraban, M., Almeida, R., Czopka, T., Ausborn, J., El Manira, A., Lyons, D. A. (2015) Synaptic vesicle release regulates myelin sheath number of individual oligodendrocytes in vivo. Nature Neuroscience. 18:628-630
Almeida, R.G., Czopka, T., Ffrench-Constant, C., and Lyons, D.A. (2011) Individual axons regulate the myelinating potential of single oligodendrocytes in vivo. Development (Cambridge, England). 138(20):4443-50

NON-ZEBRAFISH PUBLICATIONS