Wellcome Trust Career Development Award Fellow
Research Interests
My research interests centre around understanding the neurobiological and cognitive mechanisms that drive differences in child development and mental health, with a focus on neurodevelopmental conditions such as autism. My research combines experimental techniques such as electroencephalography and neurocognitive paradigms with statistical models that can handle complex data such as is found in longitudinal cohorts. The overarching idea is to use this approach to model individual differences in development and see what predicts variation in these trajectories. I am also interested in using models of comorbidity to understand the overlap of mental health difficulties and autism, in order to promote positive mental health for autistic youth.
I am passionate about engaging the wider public with my research, and as such seek to use creative approaches to make science more engaging for non-scientific audiences and accessible to those with lived experience of the research topic in question. See https://www.kcl.ac.uk/a-sonic-exploration-of-neurodivergent-identities-1 for more information on my most recent engagement project.
Funding
- 2023-2031: Wellcome Trust Career Development Award. £2,052,013
- 2021-2023: Wellcome Trust Research Enrichment Award. £99,700
- 2019-2023: Sir Henry Wellcome Postdoctoral Fellowship. £300,000
- 2018-2019: National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centre Early Career Bridging & Career Development Grants. £49,705
- 2017: King’s College London Graduate School Conference Fund. £300
- 2016: Medical Research Council Public Engagement Seed Fund. £700
- 2015: King’s College London Collaborative Innovation Scheme for Early Career Researchers. £1000
Publications
Adolescent eating behaviours: associations with autistic and ADHD traits in childhood and the mediating role of anxiety
Cortical markers of excitation/inhibition balance are associated with sensory responsivity from infancy in longitudinal cohorts enriched for autism and ADHD
Methodological challenges and opportunities when studying the course of autism
Advancing health-care equity for autistic people: Mental health as a key priority
Recommendations for Advancing Understanding of Eating Disorders in Neurodivergent People: A Commentary on Inal‐Kaleli et al. 2024 and Nimbley et al. 2024
Book Chapters
Carter Leno, V. & Simonoff E. (2020). ASD and Co-occurring Psychiatric Conditions: A Conceptual Framework. In S. W. White, B. B. Maddox, & C. A. Mazefsky (Eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Autism and Co-occurring Psychiatric Conditions. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.