Dr Llwyd David Orton

Senior Lecturer in Neurophysiology

Find out more about:

My profile
Impact
Teaching and supervision
Research outputs

Biography

I am a neuroscientist with research and teaching interests in neuroanatomy and neurophysiology. I lead the Doctor of Clinical Science network in the Department of Life Sciences at Manchester Met. In this role, I lead a team of academics and work with external partners to provide doctoral education and research supervision for students on academic components of the NHS Higher Specialist Scientific Training (HSST) programme. Manchester Met is the only university to offer HSST training in the following eight healthcare science specialisms:

Cardiac science
Haematology
Molecular Pathology of Acquired Disease
Neurophysiological science
Reproductive science
Respiratory & Sleep science
Transfusion science,
Vascular science

Using an inclusive and humanist approach, I have supervised students to successful completion of 2 PhDs (one as director of studies), 7 DClinSci degrees (five as director of studies), 6 STP Clinical Science (Neurophysiology) degrees, 9 MSc degrees and 52 BSc degrees. I also wrote, developed, and led the MSc Human Physiology from the first cohort in 2018 to 2021.

I have received 14 competitive funding awards from funders including Action on Hearing Loss, Alzheimer’s Research UK and The Physiological Society. I have published as lead author in leading journals, including The Journal of Neuroscience, eLife, Psychological Medicine and the European Journal of Neuroscience, as well as a book chapter in the Oxford Handbook of the Auditory Brainstem. As a strong advocate for open and reproducible science, all my lead author outputs are freely available via open access.

Words of wisdom

“It comes from a deep-rooted conviction that if there is anything worthwhile doing for the sake of culture, then it is touching on subject matters and situations which link people, and not those that divide people.”

- Krzysztof Kieślowski

“When you learn about the teaching and the practice of another tradition, you always have a chance to understand your own teaching and practice.”

- Thích Nhất Hạnh

“There is much pleasure to be gained from useless knowledge.”

- Bertrand Russell

Academic and professional qualifications

2007 - BSc Neuroscience and Molecular Cell Biology (2:1) – University of Manchester (UMIST)
2013 - PhD Auditory Neuroscience – Newcastle University
2020 - MA Higher Education - Manchester Metropolitan University

Other academic service (administration and management)

2021-present - Academic Lead Doctor of Clinical Sciences network
2015-present - Pathway Lead: Scientist Training Programme MSc Clinical Science (Neurophysiology)
Undergraduate unit lead:
- 2015-present - Neuroscience & Pharmacology (second year unit)
Postgraduate unit lead:
- 2024-present - Introduction to Neurophysiology (first year STP unit)
- 2015-present - Nerve Conduction, EMGs & Evoked Potentials (second year STP unit)
- 2015-present - Sleep, Long Term Monitoring, Paediatric EEG and EEG on the ICU (third year STP unit)
Doctoral unit lead:
- 2021-present - Research and Innovation in Clinical Science (third year HSST unit)
- 2021-present - Research Project (fourth and fifth year HSST unit)
2018-present - Deputy chair Faculty of Science & Engineering research ethics and governance committee
2019-present - Faculty of Science & Engineering education committee - Department of Life Sciences representative
2023-present - Faculty of Science & Engineering research degrees committee

External examiner roles

2020-present - King’s College London: MSc Applied Neuroscience and MSc Psychology & Neuroscience of Mental Health
2022-present - Roehampton University: MSc Clinical Neuroscience

Membership of professional associations

British Neuroscience Association – full member
The Physiological Society - full member
Higher Education Academy (Advance HE) - fellow

Impact

Recent external contributions include:

2024 - Invited contributor - Scottish government consultations on their strategic approach to Healthcare Science education and workforce development.
2024 – Invited contributor – National School of Healthcare Science collaborative meeting – exploring how to best support HSST research projects
2023-24 - Invited contributor - development of the new Scientist Training Programme (Neurophysiology) Intraoperative Neuromonitoring curriculum.
2023-present - Membership of British Neuroscience Association credibility advisory board.

Teaching

Why study…

The nervous system mediates and controls our perceptions, thoughts and actions. How the nervous system is organised to produce its functions, both in health and disease, is therefore of fundamental importance. I use my passion for this subject to teach a range of topics, ranging from the basic function of nervous systems to research-led sessions discussing basic, translational, and clinical research. My teaching also incorporates a clinical neurophysiology focus.

If you learn with me, you will investigate what nervous systems are made of (neuroanatomy) and how they function (neurophysiology). You’ll learn some of the techniques we can use to study the brain and their applications, such as electrophysiology (EEG, evoked potentials, single unit recording), imaging (MRI, PET), and molecular biology (immunohistochemistry, in situ hybridisation, PCR, NGS). These fundamentals provide a basis for students to investigate diseases and disorders of the nervous system.

I am also developing methods to better train and support doctoral students.

Subject areas

Neuroscience - neuroanatomy & neurophysiology.

Supervision

Current doctoral students (director of studies):

Baird, James Scott - Seizure Semiology Identification and Interpretation of Clinical Signs in the Adult Intensive Care Setting.

Carter, Perry - Development of Central Video Fixation Cued Multifocal Visual Evoked Potentials For Improved Sensitivity And Compliance In Paediatric Visual Field Defect Detection.

Glover, richard – Comparison of Acoustic Breath Sound Detection to Spirometry in the Assessment of Airflow Obstruction.

Lodwick, Stuart - Neurophysiological Identification of Thalamocortical Tracts in Combination with Diffusion Tensor Imaging Tractography During Asleep Craniotomy for Glioma Resection Surgery.

Pridgeon, Michael - Neurophysiological Measures Of Chronic Neuropathic Pain and Their Modulation by Spinal Cord Stimulation.

As co-supervisor:

Blunt, Carla – Echocardiographic Foetal Speckle Trackingi n Ventricular Disproportion and Tachyarrhythmia (director of studies: Dr Rehan Junejo)

Eastwood, Laura - Evaluating the Efficacy of Virtual Reality Technology for Improving Engagement and Competency in Transfusion Science Crossmatch Training (director of studies: Dr Lisa Coulthwaite)

Ince, Emma – An Investigation into the Association Between Perimenopause and Late-Onset Asthma (director of studies: Dr Fatemeh Moheimani)

Ngwa-Ndifor, Naavalah - Natural History of Transcranial Doppler Velocities in an East London Cohort of Children with Sickle Cell Disease (director of studies: Dr Rehan Junejo)

Thwaites, Keeley – Novel Detection of MET Amplification and Overexpression In EGFR Mutated Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Patients Progressing on TKI Therapy (director of studies: Dr Qiuyu Wang)

Warren, Elliott - Electrical Source Imaging in Presurgical Evaluation of Intractable Focal Epilepsy in Children (director of studies: Dr Virginia Hawkins)

Doctoral students supervised to degree award (director of studies):

Broomfield, Nicola Andrea (2024) The Structure and Function of the Retina in Multiple Sclerosis.

Malladi, Anjaneya Prasad (2024) - A Feasibility Study Examining the Utility of Sacral Dermatomal Evoked Potentials in Assessing Urogenital Dysfunction.

Cliff, Ian James (2022) Can Historical Assumptions be Used to Assess Fitness to Fly for Other Respiratory Compromised Patients? An Evaluation of Physiological Parameters to Risk Stratify Patients Planning Air Travel.

Twigg, Gillian L (2022) Validation of a Novel Screening Tool for Obstructive Sleep Apnoea in Bariatric Surgery Candidates.

Walsh, Peter (2022) Intraoperative Neurophysiological Monitoring of The Ocular Vestibular Evoked Myogenic Potential (oVEMP): A Novel Implementation to Detect Vestibular and Oculomotor Pathway Dysfunction During Brainstem Surgery.

Webb, Samuel (2020) An Investigation Regarding Cellular, Synaptic and Glial Processing in the Inferior Colliculi.