Rebeccah Slater

Slater established the Paediatric Neuroimaging Group at the University of Oxford in 2013 as an Associate Professor of Paediatric Neuroimaging, which she continues to lead. She was awarded a Title of Distinction by Oxford University in 2018 to become a Professor of Paediatric Neuroscience.{{cite journal |title=Notices |journal=University of Oxford Gazette |date=27 September 2018 |volume=149 |issue=5215 |page=14 |url=https://gazette.web.ox.ac.uk/files/27september2018-no5215redactedpdf |accessdate=26 December 2019}} She is also a Senior Wellcome Trust Research Fellow, was awarded a Statutory Chair in Paediatric Neuroimaging in 2019, and has been a Professorial Fellow at St John's College since 2019.

Slater's work constituted the first evidence for specific cortical pain response in premature infants from 25 weeks old. She measures the blood flow changes in the brain during clinically required blood tests using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) and compares it to the blood flow during non-painful tactile stimulation.{{Cite journal |last1=Slater |first1=Rebeccah |last2=Cantarella |first2=Anne |last3=Gallella |first3=Shiromi |last4=Worley |first4=Alan |last5=Boyd |first5=Stewart |last6=Meek |first6=Judith |last7=Fitzgerald |first7=Maria |date=5 April 2006 |title=Cortical Pain Responses in Human Infants |journal=Journal of Neuroscience |volume=26 |issue=14 |pages=3662–3666 |doi=10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0348-06.2006 |pmc=6674141 |pmid=16597720}} She was the first to directly measure pain-specific neural activity in infants using electroencephalography (EEG),{{Cite journal |last1=Slater |first1=Rebeccah |last2=Worley |first2=Alan |last3=Fabrizi |first3=Lorenzo |last4=Roberts |first4=Siân |last5=Meek |first5=Judith |last6=Boyd |first6=Stewart |last7=Fitzgerald |first7=Maria |date=13 December 2010 |title=Evoked potentials generated by noxious stimulation in the human infant brain |journal=European Journal of Pain |volume=14 |issue=3 |pages=321–326 |doi=10.1016/j.ejpain.2009.05.005 |pmid=19481484|s2cid=1731687 }} during clinically required blood tests. This EEG measure was then developed by Slater and her research group into a general EEG template for measuring pain response in infants - a significant step towards using objective neuroimaging tools to evaluate pain experience in infants - which has been used to validate pain relief interventions for infants during clinical procedures.{{Cite journal |last1=Hartley |first1=Caroline |last2=Duff |first2=Eugene P. |last3=Green |first3=Gabrielle |last4=Mellado |first4=Gabriela Schmidt |last5=Worley |first5=Alan |last6=Rogers |first6=Richard |last7=Slater |first7=Rebeccah |date=3 May 2017 |title=Nociceptive brain activity as a measure of analgesic efficacy in infants |journal=Science Translational Medicine |volume=9 |issue=388 |pages=eaah6122 |doi=10.1126/scitranslmed.aah6122 |pmc=5884430 |pmid=28469039}}{{cite journal |last1=Gursul |first1=Deniz |last2=Goksan |first2=Sezgi |last3=Hartley |first3=Caroline |last4=Mellado |first4=Gabriela Schmidt |last5=Moultrie |first5=Fiona |last6=Hoskin |first6=Amy |last7=Adams |first7=Eleri |last8=Hathway |first8=Gareth |last9=Walker |first9=Susannah |last10=McGlone |first10=Francis |last11=Slater |first11=Rebeccah |title=Stroking modulates noxious-evoked brain activity in human infants |journal=Current Biology |date=December 2018 |volume=28 |issue=24 |pages=R1380–R1381 |doi=10.1016/j.cub.2018.11.014 |pmid=30562526 |pmc=6303187 }} She is an advocate for neuroimaging tools for objective measurement of infant pain, and has demonstrated that brain activity could be more sensitive to pain responses in infants than other common assessment tools.{{Cite journal |last1=Slater |first1=Rebeccah |last2=Cantarella |first2=Anne |last3=Franck |first3=Linda |last4=Meek |first4=Judith |last5=Fitzgerald |first5=Maria |date=24 June 2008 |title=How Well Do Clinical Pain Assessment Tools Reflect Pain in Infants? |journal=PLOS Medicine |volume=5 |issue=6 |pages=e129 |doi=10.1371/journal.pmed.0050129 |pmc=2504041 |pmid=18578562 |doi-access=free }}{{cite journal |last1=Slater |first1=Rebeccah |last2=Cornelissen |first2=Laura |last3=Fabrizi |first3=Lorenzo |last4=Patten |first4=Debbie |last5=Yoxen |first5=Jan |last6=Worley |first6=Alan |last7=Boyd |first7=Stewart |last8=Meek |first8=Judith |last9=Fitzgerald |first9=Maria |title=Oral sucrose as an analgesic drug for procedural pain in newborn infants: a randomised controlled trial |journal=The Lancet |date=October 2010 |volume=376 |issue=9748 |pages=1225–1232 |doi=10.1016/S0140-6736(10)61303-7 |pmid=20817247 |pmc=2958259 }}

As well as work directly within her research group, she is a collaborator on the [http://www.developingconnectome.org/project/ developing Human Connectome Project] (dHCP), a large-scale multi-centre project to develop the first developmental map of human brain connectivity between 20–44 weeks of age, that will include and link imaging, clinical, behavioural and genetic information.{{Cite web |url=http://www.developingconnectome.org/teams-and-collaborators-v2/ |title=Teams and Collaborators | The Developing Human Connectome Project |website=www.developingconnectome.org}} She has also been on the scientific organising committee for the International Symposium on Paediatric Pain.{{Cite web |url=https://www.ispp2019.org/2019/welcome/scientific-committee.html |title=Scientific Committee |website=www.ispp2019.org|date=22 July 2021 }}

She is part of a collaboration to develop wearable magnetoencephalography (MEG) scanners for children, described by Physics World as one of the Top 10 Breakthroughs of the Year for 2019.{{Cite web |url=https://physicsworld.com/a/physics-world-announces-its-breakthrough-of-the-year-finalists-for-2019/ |title=Physics World announces its Breakthrough of the Year finalists for 2019 |date=4 December 2019 |website=Physics World}}

One research study published in April 2015 involved infants, accompanied by their parents, being gently poked with a rod-like device while being scanned by MRIs to measure and understand infant pain.{{cite journal |last1=Goksan |first1=Sezgi |last2=Hartley |first2=Caroline |last3=Emery |first3=Faith |last4=Cockrill |first4=Naomi |last5=Poorun |first5=Ravi |last6=Moultrie |first6=Fiona |last7=Rogers |first7=Richard |last8=Campbell |first8=Jon |last9=Sanders |first9=Michael |last10=Adams |first10=Eleri |last11=Clare |first11=Stuart |last12=Jenkinson |first12=Mark |last13=Tracey |first13=Irene |last14=Slater |first14=Rebeccah |title=fMRI reveals neural activity overlap between adult and infant pain |journal=eLife |pages=e06356 |doi=10.7554/eLife.06356 |date=21 April 2015|volume=4 |pmid=25895592 |pmc=4402596 |doi-access=free }} This research suggested that "not only do babies experience pain but they may be more sensitive to it than adults" stated Slater.{{cite news |title=Babies feel pain 'like adults', MRI scan study suggests |url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2015/apr/21/babies-feel-pain-like-adults-mri-scan-study-suggests |work=the Guardian |date=21 April 2015 |agency=Reuters }}

Slater is considerably involved in public engagement and media communication. With her research group, she has produced several videos for a public audience to communicate research in infant pain and neuroimaging{{Cite web |url=https://neuroimaging.paediatrics.ox.ac.uk/public-engagement/our-work-in-action |title=Videos — Paediatric Neuroimaging |website=neuroimaging.paediatrics.ox.ac.uk}} as well as developing artwork and games in collaboration with artists,{{Cite web |url=https://neuroimaging.paediatrics.ox.ac.uk/public-engagement/things-weve-made/things-weve-made-cover |title=Things We've Made — Paediatric Neuroimaging |website=neuroimaging.paediatrics.ox.ac.uk}} and her group is very active at public engagement events and science festivals such as the Cheltenham Science Festival.{{Cite web |url=https://neuroimaging.paediatrics.ox.ac.uk/whats-new/cheltenham-science-festival |title=Public Engagement with Research — Paediatric Neuroimaging |website=neuroimaging.paediatrics.ox.ac.uk}}

She has appeared on radio and podcasts to talk about measurement and understanding of infant pain, including Radio 4 pieces "From agony to analgesia",{{Cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08r1tsx |title=BBC Radio 4 - From Agony to Analgesia, Seeing Pain |website=BBC}} Case Notes with Dr Mark Porter,{{cite web |title=Case Notes |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/science/casenotes_20080729.shtml |website=Radio 4 |publisher=BBC |date=29 July 2008 }} as well as the BBC World Service: Health Check,{{Cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0084b76 |title=BBC World Service - Health Check, 21/06/2010 |website=BBC}} and The Naked Scientists podcast "Do Newborn Babies Feel Pain?"{{Cite web |url=https://www.thenakedscientists.com/articles/interviews/do-newborn-babies-feel-pain |title=Do Newborn Babies Feel Pain? |date=18 May 2015 |website=www.thenakedscientists.com}} She has also appeared on BBC News,{{cite web |title=Rebeccah Slater talks to the BBC about infant pain — Department of Paediatrics |url=https://www.paediatrics.ox.ac.uk/news/rebeccah-slater-talks-to-the-bbc-about-infant-pain |website=University of Oxford, Department of Paediatrics }} and in articles by the BBC,{{cite news |title=Stroking babies 'provides pain relief' |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/health-46591640 |work=BBC News |date=18 December 2018 }} The Guardian, and Scientific American{{Cite web |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/is-the-baby-in-pain-brain-scans-can-tell/ |title=Is the Baby in Pain? Brain Scans Can Tell |last=Costandi |first=Moheb |website=Scientific American}} to communicate advances in measuring and managing infant pain.

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Category:Year of birth missing (living people)

Category:Living people

Category:Fellows of St John's College, Oxford

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Category:Pediatric neurologists

Category:British neuroscientists