CV

Education

• PhD in Neuroscience - Free University Amsterdam, 2015-2020 (defended 2023)
• MSc in Research Master Brain and Cognitive Sciences, University of Amsterdam, 2013-2015
• BSc in Psychobiology, University of Amsterdam, 2010-2013

Work experience

• 2024-: Senior Research Fellow
  • Institute of Ophthalmology - University College London
  • Topic: Spatial navigation in a sensory world.
  • Advisors: Matteo Carandini and Kenneth Harris
• 2020-2024: Research Fellow
  • Institute of Ophthalmology - University College London
  • Topic: Tracking neurons across chronic recordings.
  • Supervisors: Matteo Carandini and Kenneth Harris
• 2015-2020: PhD candidate
  • Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience - Amsterdam
  • Thesis: Keep your eyes on the prize: Corticocortical and corticostriatal interactions in visually-driven goal-directed behavior.
  • Supervisors: Pieter Roelfsema, Ingo Willuhn, and Matthew Self
• 2014-2015: Research Intern
  • Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience - Berlin
  • Topic: Predicting cognitive decline in (presymptomatic) Alheimer’s Disease.
  • Supervisors: Kerstin Ritter and John-Dylan Haynes
• 2014: Research Intern
  • Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience - Amsterdam
  • Topic: Contextual modulation in the visual system of the awake mouse.
  • Supervisors: Alexander Heimel and Matthew Self
• 2013: Research Intern
  • Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences - University of Amsterdam
  • Topic: Anesthetic and awake-state modulation in mouse visual cortex.
  • Supervisors: Jorrit Montijn and Cyriel Pennartz

Awards and prizes

• 2024: UCL open science award: open-source software - Honourable mention
• 2024: Shortlisted for UCL Inclusion Award: Award for EDI Excellence
• 2023: GEMM grant for the generation of a novel genetically altered mouse line - MRC Harwell
• 2022: NIN Brain award for Methodological Excellence for “Kirchberger, Mukherjee, Schnabel, van Beest, et al., 2021”.
• 2020: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowship

Publications

An adaptable, reusable, and light implant for chronic Neuropixels probes

Célian Bimbard, Flóra Takács, Joana A Catarino, Julie MJ Fabre, Sukriti Gupta, Stephen C Lenzi, Maxwell D Melin, Nathanael O'Neill, Ivana Orsolic, Magdalena Robacha, James S Street, José M Gomes Teixeira, Simon Townsend, Enny H van Beest, Arthur M Zhang, Anne K Churchland, Chunyu A Duan, Kenneth D Harris, Dimitri Michael Kullmann, Gabriele Lignani, Zachary F Mainen, Troy W Margrie, Nathalie L Rochefort, Andrew Wikenheiser, Matteo Carandini, Philip Coen (2025). "An adaptable, reusable, and light implant for chronic Neuropixels probes." eLife.

Tracking neurons across days with high-density probes

Enny H van Beest, Célian Bimbard, Julie MJ Fabre, Sam W Dodgson, Flóra Takács, Philip Coen, Anna Lebedeva, Kenneth D Harris, Matteo Carandini (2024). "Tracking neurons across days with high-density probes." Nature Methods.

The direct and indirect pathways of the basal ganglia antagonistically influence cortical activity and perceptual decisions

Enny H van Beest, Mohammed AO Abdelwahab, J Leonie Cazemier, Chrysiida Baltira, M Cassandra Maes, Brandon D Peri, Matthew W Self, Ingo Willuhn, Pieter R Roelfsema (2024). "The direct and indirect pathways of the basal ganglia antagonistically influence cortical activity and perceptual decisions." iScience.

Unraveling the mechanisms of deep-brain stimulation of the internal capsule in a mouse model

Bastijn JG van den Boom, Alfredo Elhazaz-Fernandez, Peter A Rasmussen, Enny H van Beest, Aishwarya Parthasarathy, Damiaan Denys, Ingo Willuhn (2023). "Unraveling the mechanisms of deep-brain stimulation of the internal capsule in a mouse model." Nature communications.

The essential role of recurrent processing for figure-ground perception in mice

Lisa Kirchberger, Sreedeep Mukherjee, Ulf H Schnabel, Enny H van Beest, Areg Barsegyan, Christiaan N Levelt, J Alexander Heimel, Jeannette AM Lorteije, Chris van der Togt, Matthew W Self, Pieter R Roelfsema (2021). "The essential role of recurrent processing for figure-ground perception in mice." Science advances.

Mouse visual cortex contains a region of enhanced spatial resolution

Enny H van Beest, Sreedeep Mukherjee, Lisa Kirchberger, Ulf H Schnabel, Chris van der Togt, Rob RM Teeuwen, Areg Barsegyan, Arne F Meyer, Jasper Poort, Pieter R Roelfsema, Matthew W Self (2021). "Mouse visual cortex contains a region of enhanced spatial resolution." Nature communications.

Activity in lateral visual areas contributes to surround suppression in awake mouse V1

Joris Vangeneugden, Enny H van Beest, Michael X Cohen, Jeannette AM Lorteije, Sreedeep Mukherjee, Lisa Kirchberger, Jorrit S Montijn, Premnath Thamizharasu, Daniela Camillo, Christiaan N Levelt, Pieter R Roelfsema, Matthew W Self, J Alexander Heimel (2019). "Activity in lateral visual areas contributes to surround suppression in awake mouse V1." Current Biology.

Orientation-Tuned Surround Suppression in Mouse Visual Cortex

Matthew W Self, Jeannette AM Lorteije, Joris Vangeneugden, Enny H van Beest, Mihaela E Grigore, Christiaan N Levelt, J Alexander Heimel, Pieter R Roelfsema. (2014). "Orientation-Tuned Surround Suppression in Mouse Visual Cortex." Journal of Neuroscience.

Software

Bombcell

UnitMatch

Talks

UnitMatch - Tracking neurons across recordings with large density probes

at University of Oxford - Cortexclub, Oxford, United Kingdom

Distributed spatial modulation and how to track this over time

at Northwestern University - Dan Dombeck lab, Chicago, United States of America

Keep your eyes on the prize: distributed activity in goal-directed behavior

at GELIFES - Rijks Universiteit Groningen - online, Groningen, Netherlands

Tracking neurons across days with high temporal resolution.

at Quantum Photonics Media - public outreach, World wide web

Tracking neurons across large-scale recordings

at International Brain Laboratory - online, world wide web

Tracking neurons across large-scale recordings.

at Sydney Cash lab - Harvard Medical School - online, Boston, United States of America

Early career speaker nomination talk: Keep your eyes on the prize

at RANK Symposium on Neural Processing of Visual Information and Behavioral Context., Windermere, United Kingdom

Neuropixels recordings

at UCL Neuroscience Technology Workshops - online, London, United Kingdom

Cortical organization in visual perception.

at Experimental Psychology, University College London - online, London, United Kingdom

The direct and indirect pathways modulate dorsal cortical activity and future perceptual decisions.

at Human Brain Project - Brain Matters #7 - online, Brussels, Belgium

Cortical organization in visual perception.

at Cruciform building, University College London, London, United Kingdom

Neuronal correlates of figure-ground segregation throughout mouse cortex.

at Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience., Amsterdam, Netherlands

Neural correlates of figure-ground segregation throughout mouse cortex.

at Amsterdam Vision Meeting, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Teaching

UCL Neuropixels Course 2024

UCL Neuropixels Course 2023

Statistics in R

Private tutor

Conference abstracts

• 2025: Cosyne. Poster (shared last author): Tracking neurons across days in chronic electrophysiological recordings with Deep Neural Networks - CA
• 2024: SfN. Nanosymposium talk: Spatial modulation of sensory activity in multiple brain regions - USA
• 2024: iNav. Poster: Spatial modulation of sensory activity in multiple brain regions - ITA
• 2024: Cosyne. Poster: Tracking neurons across days with high-density probes - POR
• 2023: SfN. Poster: Fast and scalable method for tracking neurons across recordings - USA
• 2023: UCL Symposium. Poster: Tracking neurons across recordings - UK
• 2022: SfN. Poster: Spatial modulation of sensory activity during virtual navigation - USA
• 2021: SfN. Poster: The direct and indirect pathways modulate dorsal cortical activity and future perceptual decisions - USA
• 2020: FENS Forum. Poster: Contribution of striatal pathways to cortical activity during visually driven working memory - EU
• 2019: European Visual Cortex Meeting. Poster: Cortical dynamics in visually driven working memory - NL
• 2018: SfN. Poster: Neuronal correlates of figure-ground segregation throughout mouse cortex - USA
• 2017: SfN. Poster: Figure-ground modulation in higher visual areas in mice - USA
• 2017: European Visual Cortex Meeting. Poster: Figure-ground modulation in higher visual areas in mice - UK

Symposia organized

• 2024: Nanosymposium: Circuit dynamics across brain regions during navigation. Organizer and chair - Society for Neuroscience.
• 2023: Symposium: Perception and behavior in a variable world. Organizer and chair - Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience.

Professional service

• 2021-2025: Daily supervision of three bachelor and three (integrated) master students for their research projects, University College London (3 - 6 months each).
• 2025: Mentor for Institute of Ophthalmology/ear institute mentoring scheme (UCL)
• 2025: Event manager/host for Pint of Science - team ‘beautiful mind’, London
• 2024: Abstracts reviewer for Cosyne 2025
• 2024: Reviewer for Nature Protocols
• 2022-2024: In2Science: co-supervision of talented high school students for 1 week during the summer
• 2021-2024: Mentor for Neuromatch Academy
• 2023-2024: Hiring committee(s) member, obtained fair and inclusive recruitment certificate
• 2021: Science is wonderful! Science education initiative of the European Commission. Online lecture for primary school students. Title: We see with our brain!
• 2016: Weekend school educational program for kids, aged 10-14. Workshop: Visual perception and the brain game.
• 2015-2020: Treasurer Alumni Network and Cognitive Sciences, University of Amsterdam
• 2017-2020: President of the Social Committee, Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience
• 2015-2020: Daily supervision of three bachelor and three master students for their research projects, Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience (5 – 10 months each).

Attended conferences, symposia, and schools

• 2019: FENS summer school: Brain reading and writing - Bertinoro Italy
• 2018: NSAS: Cell-reprogramming technology - Venice Italy
• 2017: NIN summer school: Procedural learning - Amsterdam Netherlands
• 2017: Human Brain Project meeting - Paris France
• 2016: Barrel cortex meeting - Amsterdam Netherlands
• 2016: FENS Brain Conferences - new approaches to imaging - Copenhagen, Denmark
• 2015: U4 workshop: extra-retinal influences on vision - Göttingen, Germany
• 2015: Winter school BCCN: ethics and neuroscience - Berlin, Germany
• 2015: Scientific writing workshop BCCN - Berlin, Germany
• 2014: ABC Summer school: early life experience - Amsterdam, Netherlands