Role
Dr Thode is a Senior Lecturer in Pharmacology, who teaches on several modules of undergraduate and postgraduate courses, mainly covering the subject areas of pharmacology, neuroscience and physiology.
His other academic responsibilities include:
- Module Leader of the undergraduate modules Neuroscience and Current Topics in Neuroscience
- Personal Tutor and Placement Tutor
- Biosciences Placement Manager
- Lead academic of the Biosciences Employer Advisory Group
- Workplace Mentor for colleagues pursuing the Academic Professional Apprenticeship (APA) or the Postgraduate Certificate in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education (PGCLTHE)
Career overview
- 2007–present Senior Lecturer in Pharmacology, NTU
- 2006–2007 CELS Lecturer, NTU
- 2001–2006 Research Fellow in the group of Prof. Mark G. Darlison, NTU
Research areas
Dr Thode's scientific research activities were concerned with the mechanisms that underlie the processes of learning and memory, such as the acquisition and production of complex vocalisations in songbirds. Here, the focus was on the molecular characterisation of ligand-gated ion channels. In recent years he has extended his research interests to the in situ profiling of selected non-coding RNAs in healthy and diseased brain tissues. In addition, Dr Thode carries out pedagogic research for which he has established an international teaching collaboration.
External activity
Member of the following professional societies:
- Higher Education Academy, the national body for enhancing learning and teaching in higher education
- ASET, the placement and employability professionals' body
Sponsors and collaborators
Current and recent research is being conducted with the collaboration, funding and/or support of:
- Professor Arsenio Fernández López (University of León, Spain)
Publications
Molecular Pharmacology - From DNA to Drug Discovery. Dickenson J, Freeman F, Lloyd Mills C, Sivasubramaniam S and Thode C, 2013, Chichester, Wiley-Blackwell
Peer-assisted learning (PAL) enhancement of oral communication in bio-molecular sciences amongst multi-lingual post-graduates: A pilot study between a British and a Spanish university. López AF, Thode C, Sivasubramaniam SD, Berrnico G and Blanco RD, Se celebrará en Madrid la segunda edición del Congreso Internacional sobre Innovación, Aprendizaje y Competitividad (CINAIC), 2013, 192-197
Expression of the GABA(A) receptor gamma4-subunit gene in discrete nuclei within the zebra finch brain. Thode C, Güttinger HR and Darlison MG, Neuroscience, 2008, 157, 143-152
Consequences of the evolution of the GABAA receptor gene family. Darlison MG, Pahal I and Thode C, Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology, 2005, 25, 607-624
Early socio-emotional experience induces the expression of the immediate-early gene arg3.1/Arc (activity-regulated cytoskeleton-associated protein / activity-regulated gene) in learning-relevant brain regions of the newborn chick. Bock J, Thode C, Hannemann O, Braun K and Darlison MG, Neuroscience, 2005, 133, 625-633
The immediate-early gene zenk is expressed in the mediorostral neostriatum / hyperstriatum ventrale, a brain region involved in acoustic imprinting, and is up-regulated after exposure to an auditory stimulus. Thode C, Bock J, Braun K and Darlison MG, Neuroscience, 2004, 130, 611-617
Press expertise
- Song birds as models of learning and memory
- Molecular processes involved in learning
- Receptors for clinically-important drugs, such as benzodiazepines (e.g. valium) and barbiturates
Course(s) I teach on
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Undergraduate | Full-time / SandwichCOURSE
Pharmacology - BSc (Hons)
https://www.ntu.ac.uk/course/science-and-technology/ug/bsc-hons-pharmacology
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Undergraduate | Full-time
https://www.ntu.ac.uk/course/science-and-technology/ug/pharmacology-with-foundation-year
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Undergraduate | Full-time / Sandwichhttps://www.ntu.ac.uk/course/science-and-technology/ug/bsc-hons-biological-science
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Postgraduate taught | Full-time / Part-time / Sandwich / January start (Postgraduate)COURSE
Pharmacology - MSc
https://www.ntu.ac.uk/course/science-and-technology/pg/msc-pharmacology
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Postgraduate taught | Full-time / Part-time / Sandwich / January start (Postgraduate)COURSE
Neuropharmacology - MSc
https://www.ntu.ac.uk/course/science-and-technology/pg/msc-neuropharmacology