Functional MRI

In the past decades, functional MRI research has investigated task processing in largely static fashion based on evoked responses during blocked and event-related designs. Despite some progress in naturalistic designs, our understanding of threat processing remains largely limited to those obtained with standard paradigms with limited dynamics. In the present work, we applied Switching Linear Dynamical Systems (SLDS), a framework that estimates a generative model of the data with both states and transitions like HMMs, to uncover the dynamics of threat processing during a continuous threat-of-s

…using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Using this method, called IEG BLUsH, we interrogated the spatiotemporal relationships between neural activity and plasticity gene induction in an opioid administration paradigm. IEG activity and functional MRI (fMRI) signals were recorded following fentanyl treatments lasting several days (Fi

…game (Figure 1a) while undergoing 3T functional MRI. We found that trust learning was impaired in older adults, particularly in those who reported h

…question, we conducted a preregistered functional MRI experiment during which healthy participants (N = 49) received individually calibrated painful electrical shocks while exposed to audio-visual virtual n

…of 25 participants recorded with functional MRI while carrying conversations in 4 sessions x 6 trials alternating a Human and a Ro

One reason for humans’ advanced social interaction skills is their capacity to continuously make predictions about the state of mind of others. Predictions (or expectations) about one’s social environment can be formed based on the perception of others’ actions, knowledge, and beliefs. A key region for this complex social ability in humans is the temporoparietal junction, and recent evidence suggests that the evolutionary origin of this area was already present in their close primate ancestors. Like humans, dogs are also sensitive to others' actions or intentions, but the neural mechanisms sup

Social drinking is one of the most common reasons for drinking among young people. Excessive alcohol consumption alters affective and reward brain function, and entails risks for mental health problems. To understand of the effect of early social drinking on real-life and neural reward functions is of particular importance. 378 community-based young healthy social drinkers (13 to 28 years) took part in a 7-day Ecological momentary assessment protocol using GPS-triggered smartphone-based e-dairies with 9 to 23 prompts per day to rate momentary affective well-being. Only self-identified current

…and tau protein burden and task-based functional MRI measures of core memory mechanisms, such as the strength of cortical reinstatement during remembering, have each been linked to individual differences in memory in CU. This study assesses whether combining CSF biomarkers with fMRI indices of cortical reinstatement improves estimation of memory function in CU, assayed using three unique tests of hippocamp

…physiopathology, from anatomical and functional MRI to positron emission tomography.

Monetary incentive delay task (MID) is a well-validated human functional MRI task widely used in probing affective-motivational processes in psychiatric disorders. We are developing a mouse version of the MID task in order to facilitate translations of findings from the wealth of human imaging studies. This talk presents our task design and behavioural data from the ongoing work.

…present new research on mapping the functional architecture of the human subcortex. They used 3T and 7T functional MRI from more than 1000 people to map one of the most detailed functional atlases of the human subcortex to date. Comprising four hierarchical scales, the new atlas reveals the complex topographic organisation of the subcortex, which dynamically adapts to changing cognitive demands. The atlas enables whole-brain mapping of connectomes and has been used to optimise targeting of deep brain stimulation. This joint work with P

Understanding and remembering realistic experiences in our everyday lives requires activating many kinds of structured knowledge about the world, including spatial maps, temporal event scripts, and semantic relationships. My recent projects have explored the ways in which we build up this schematic knowledge (during a single experiment and across developmental timescales) and can strategically deploy them to construct event representations that we can store in memory or use to make predictions. I will describe my lab's ongoing work developing new experimental and analysis techniques for conduc