Neuromodulation Speaker Series

This monthly Speaker Series will be presented via Zoom and aims to present innovative ideas and cutting-edge methods for clinicians and researchers. At each meeting, a speaker will present a topic or study relating to the improvement of rehabilitation techniques through the use of neuromodulation. Researchers and clinicians of all career stages (including students and fellows) who are interested in neuromodulation and novel rehabilitation techniques are invited. The attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions, exchange ideas and opinions, and develop informal discussions.

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January 8: Felipe Fregni, MEd, MPH, MMSc, MD, PhD of Harvard Medical School and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

Bridging the Gap: Advancing from Mechanistic Trials to Real World Evidence in the Development of tDCS as a Therapeutic Tool for Chronic Pain Treatment

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Past Presentation Video Recordings

December 4: Paul Sajda, Ph.D.. of Columbia University

Closed-Loop Non-Invasive Neural Therapeutics 

Paul Sajda is Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Radiology (Physics) at Columbia University. He is also a Member of Columbia’s Data Science Institute. Sajda is interested in what happens in our brains when we make a rapid decision and, conversely, what processes and representations in our brains drive our underlying preferences and choices, particularly when we are under time pressure. His work in understanding the basic principles of rapid decision-making in the human brain relies on measuring human subject behavior simultaneously with cognitive and physiological state. Important in his approach is his use of machine learning and data analytics to fuse these measurements for predicting behavior and infer brain responses to stimuli. Sajda applies the basic principles he uncovers to construct real-time brain-computer interfaces that are aimed at improving interactions between humans and machines. He is also applying his methodology to understand how deficits in rapid decision-making may underlie and be diagnostic of many types of psychiatric diseases and mental illnesses.

November 6, 2024: Colum MacKinnon, Ph.D.

Corticospinal and Non-corticospinal Contributions to TMS Motor Evoked Potentials 

Colum MacKinnon received his PhD in Physiology from the University of Toronto and did postdoctoral training in neurophysiology and movement disorders at University College London.  He was a faculty member in the Department of Physical Therapy and Human Movement Sciences at Northwestern University for 10 years and is now Professor of Neurology, Fellow in the Institute of Translational Neuroscience, and the Director of the Movement Disorders Laboratory at the University of Minnesota.  This laboratory is focused on understanding the mechanisms contributing to impaired movement control in people with Parkinson’s disease and other movement disorders.  The laboratory uses motion capture, neuroimaging and non-invasive brain stimulation techniques to examine the cortical, subcortical and spinal mechanisms contributing to movement impairment.  The Movement Disorders Laboratory is part of the University of Minnesota Udall Center of Excellence in Parkinson’s Disease Research.  In his spare time, Colum is an avid cyclist, nordic skier and aspiring Scottish highland bagpiper.

October 4, 2024: Ellyn A. Riley, Ph.D., CCC-SLP

Pre-Frontal tDCS to Improve Language and Attention in Aphasia

Dr. Ellyn Riley studies acquired speech and language disorders, improving treatment outcomes for persons with aphasia, the role of fatigue in stroke recovery, and neuromodulation as a tool to enhance speech and language therapy. For a complete listing of Dr. Riley's research go to her Laboratory Website. Dr. Riley’s research lab focuses on improving treatments for aphasia, a language disorder primarily caused by stroke. In the lab, we use behavioral and physiological measures, applied linguistic theory, and neuromodulation techniques to study language and cognitive factors, changes in neurophysiology, and communicative barriers that can influence recovery for persons with aphasia. Our goal is to improve recovery outcomes and quality of life for persons with aphasia and their families.

September 4, 2024: Inge Leunissen, Ph.D.

Modulating Inhibitory Control Non-Invasively with Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation

Dr Leunissen is an Assistant Professor of Cognition and Cognitive Neuroscience and Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience at Maastricht University. Inhibitory control over unwanted thoughts, emotions, and movements is essential for effective interaction with our environment. This becomes particularly evident when there is too little inhibition, as in obsessive-compulsive disorder or Tourette’s syndrome, or too much, as in Parkinson’s disease. Recent evidence links successful inhibition to the power of neural oscillations in the beta band (15-30Hz) in a circuit involving the frontal cortex and the subthalamic nucleus. Here, Dr. Leunissen will present data from a series of electrical stimulation experiments, in both healthy volunteers and in Parkinson’s patients undergoing surgery for deep brain stimulation, demonstrating that both the power and phase of these beta oscillations causally relate to successful inhibition. Finally, Dr. Leunissen will illustrate the clinical relevance of these findings and how her team has used them to develop a novel closed-loop tACS treatment approach for inhibitory control disorders.

May 1, 2024: Daniel Lench, Ph.D.

Neuroimaging as a Guide to Develop Brain Stimulation for Parkinson's Disease

Dr. Lench is currently a NIND/NIH K99 postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Neurology at the Medical University of South Carolina. Daniel's research focuses on the brain circuitry underlying movement disorders and how it can be modulated to improve rehabilitation outcomes. This includes the use of invasive (DBS) and non-invasive (TMS) brain stimulation approaches in conjunction with neuroimaging (Diffusion MRI, fMRI).

April 3, 2024: Randolph J. Nudo, Ph.D., FAHA, FASNR

Brain Stimulation and Connectivity Across Multiple Time Scales

Dr. Nudo is a University Distinguished Professor and Vice Chair of Research, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine and the Associate Director of the Landon Center on Aging. As Associate Director of the Landon Center on Aging, Dr. Nudo is responsible for fiscal management of the Center, and assisting the Director in the coordination of interdisciplinary education, research and service activities, and the development of new programs devoted to the health and well-being of older Kansans. He is also Director of the Institute for Neurological Discoveries, dedicated to developing solutions to the growing number of neurological disorders occurring in the United States. He serves as the Marion Merrell Dow Distinguished Professor in Aging.

March 6, 2024: Stephen Bornheim, PT, Ph.D.

Challenges from Transitioning from Research to Clinical Practice with tDCS

Dr. Stephen Bornheim was born in South Africa and lived there for 9 years before moving to France, where he graduated from high school. He moved to Belgium and studied physical therapy, where he graduated from Liège University in 2014. He went on to get his second master’s degree from Liège University in Sports Physical therapy, and in 2021 he defended his PhD thesis on non-invasive brain stimulation. He has been teaching neuro-rehabilitation at Liège University since 2015, both theoretical and practical courses, and since 2014 he has been working as a physical therapist in the Liège University Hospital, in the neurological internal medicine ward and Stroke Unit. He currently lives in Belgium with his wife and baby son.

February 7, 2024: Elsa Fouragnan, Ph.D.

Inducing early phase neuroplasticity with low intensity focused ultrasound in humans

Dr. Fouragnan's research focuses on the neurobiology of decision-making and learning, both in healthy adults and in patients with psychiatric disorders. After working as a biomedical engineer, developing brain-related clinical devises, she pursued an academic career in computational neuroscience at the universities of Glasgow and Oxford. Previous research focused on the proof of principle that transcranial ultrasound neuromodulation can safely and transiently change neural activity in precise parts of the brain, particularly deep regions of the brain, responsible for core cognitive and motivational processes. She is now working towards bringing this technology forward and applying it to mental health challenges. 

January 2024: No session

December 6, 2023: Roy Hamilton, M.D.

Stimulating Conversations: Using Non-Invasive Neuromodulation to Understand And Rehabilitate the Language System in Aphasia

Dr. Roy Hamilton is a tenured Professor of Neurology at the University of Pennsylvania with secondary appointments in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Psychiatry. Dr. Hamilton’s laboratory research employs noninvasive neuromodulation to characterize and remediate human cognition in neurological disorders. He directs the Laboratory for Cognition and Neural Stimulation (LCNS) and the Penn Brain Science, Translation, Innovation and Modulation Center (brainSTIM). Additionally, Dr. Hamilton been recognized nationally for his work in diversity, inclusion, and equity in neurology and academic medicine.

October 4, 2023: Genevieve Albouy, Ph.D.

Modulating the Neurophysiological Processes Supporting Wake- and Sleep-Related Motor Memory Consolidation

Dr. Geneviève Albouy started her research career at the Universities of Lyon (France) and Liège (Belgium) where she conducted neuroimaging studies examining the influence of sleep on motor memory consolidation (2004-2008). She subsequently completed her postdoctoral research at the University of Montreal (Canada) where she specifically investigated the functional roles of the hippocampus and the striatum in this process (2009-2014). She became Assistant Professor in the Movement Science Department at KU Leuven (Belgium) where she was the leader of the Sleep and Motor Memory Lab (2015-2020). Dr. Albouy is now an Associate Professor in the Department of Health and Kinesiology at the University of Utah. Her research focuses on modulating the neurophysiological processes underlying motor learning and sleep-related motor memory consolidation in order to optimize motor behavior in healthy populations. She employs multimodal neuroimaging approaches, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and electroencephalography (EEG), in order to characterize the neural substrates of these modulatory effects.

September 6, 2023: Cristin Welle, Ph.D.

Vagus Nerve Stimulation to Drive Motor Learning and Myelin Repair 

Cristin Welle, Ph. D., is a systems neurophysiologist with expertise in the interaction between medical devices and the nervous system. She completed her Ph.D. in 2010 from the University of Pennsylvania, and then started the Neural Interfaces Program at the FDA Center for Devices and Radiological Health Office of Science and Engineering Labs. In 2016, she joined the faculty of Neurosurgery and Bioengineering at the University of Colorado. Dr. Welle’s BIOElectrics Lab investigates how neurological medical devices interact with the nervous system.

June 7, 2023: Inês Violante, Ph.D.

Non-Invasive Stimulation of the Human Hippocampus Using Temporal Interference Stimulation 

Dr. Ines Violante is an Assistant Professor at the University of Surrey, UK, where she leads the NeuroModulation Lab. Dr Violante is interested in developing and applying tools capable of influencing brain function non-invasively to understand and modulate brain networks to impact behavior. The lab uses a multidisciplinary approach ranging from computational models, imaging (fMRI, EEG), sensory and electrical stimulation.

May 3, 2023: Kevin Caulfield, Ph.D.

Toward Personalized and Optimized Noninvasive Brain Stimulation for Transdiagnostic Applications

Dr. Caufield is a faculty member at the Medical University of South Carolina.  A member of Mark S. George's lab, his research includes Brain Stimulation (TMS, TMS-EEG, TMS-EEG-fMRI, tDCS, tFUS), Electric Field Modeling, and Neuroimaging.

April 5, 2023: George Wittenberg, M.D., Ph.D.

MS and MRI Determine a Cortical Area's Role and Connectivity as it Pertains to Motor Behavior

George Wittenberg, M.D., Ph.D., has a tenured appointment as professor in the Department of Neurology pending and is a Neurologist/Researcher in the Veterans Affairs Pittsburgh Healthcare System, and is Director of the Laboratory for Research on Arm Function and Therapy (RAFT), one of the Rehab Neural Engineering Labs. Dr. Wittenberg’s overall goal is the restoration of voluntary movement after neurological injury and in neurological disorders. His ongoing research interests presently lie in using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and functional imaging to understand motor cortical reorganization following stroke and in designing and testing new methods for neurorehabilitation. He has been conducting clinical trials with robotic rehabilitation and continues to study the neural plasticity that underlies it. He is developing hybrid methods of combining TMS with robotic and virtual reality training, and multimodal physiological monitoring with feedback control of robotic assistance, to maximize the return of motor function after neurological injury by harnessing activity-dependent brain plasticity.

March 1, 2023: André Machado, M.D., Ph.D.

V-DBS for Post-Stroke Rehabilitation: A First-in-Man Translational Study

Andre Machado, M.D, Ph.D. is the Chairman of the Neurological Institute and the Charles and Christine Carroll Family Endowed Chair in Functional Neurosurgery. Dr. Machado performs deep brain stimulation (DBS) surgery for patients with Parkinson’s disease, tremor, dystonia and obsessive-compulsive disorder as well as surgical procedures for patients with trigeminal neuralgia, intractable pain syndromes and spasticity. Dr. Machado is a Professor of Neurosurgery at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine and has Joint Appointments in the Departments of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering. Dr. Machado leads several deep brain stimulation and neuromodulation clinical trials as well as laboratory research. His research in deep brain stimulation for thalamic pain syndrome was awarded the National Institutes of Health Director’s New Innovator’s Award. His current research is aimed at developing novel treatments to promote rehabilitation after stroke and other acquired brain injuries and is funded by the NIH BRAIN initiative.

February 1, 2023: Jesse Dawson, M.D., BSc (Hons), MBChB (hons), FRCP, FESO

Vagus Nerve Stimulation for Post Stroke Recovery – Current Evidence and Next Steps

Jesse Dawson, M.D., is Professor of Stroke Medicine and Consultant Physician in the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital. His research portfolio includes prevention and rehabilitation clinical trials in stroke survivors. His main interest is in improving the long-term outcome after stroke. Dr. Dawson holds a BHF/Stroke Association programme grant, HTA NIHR funding and NIH funding; runs a large outcomes adjudication system for multi-national stroke trials; is NHS Research Scotland lead for stroke research; and sits on the editorial board of Stroke.

December 7, 2022: Flavio Frohlich, Ph.D.

Fifteen Years of Entraining Brain Oscillations with Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation: Past, Present, Future

Dr. Frohlich’s goal is to revolutionize how we treat psychiatric illnesses. His vision is that understanding brain network activity will enable the development of novel diagnosis and treatment paradigms. Flavio is convinced that such rational design of neurotherapeutics will open the door for individualized, highly effective brain stimulation in psychiatry. He is passionate about combining different methodological approaches to scientific problems and is a pioneer in the field of network neuroscience. His research integrates neurobiology, engineering, and medicine. The Frohlich Lab performs computer modeling combines electrophysiology, imaging, brain stimulation, and behavioral assays in animal models; records and modulates human brain activity; and studies new treatments in randomized controlled clinical trials. Flavio is also the director of the Carolina Center for Neurostimulation, which integrates brain stimulation research and clinical care.

October 5, 2022: Dan Iosifescu, M.D.

Transcranial Photobioneuromodulation with Near Infrared Light for Depression and Cognition

Dan Iosifescu, M.D., is the Director of Clinical Research at the Nathan Kline Institute and Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the New York University School of Medicine. His research is focused on novel pharmacological treatments (such as ketamine and other glutamatergic drugs) and devices (such as novel forms of magnetic stimulation) for patients with severe mood disorders (major depression and bipolar disorder). In his research, Dr. Iosifescu uses neuroimaging (MRI, MRS) and neurophysiology (quantitative EEG) techniques to evaluate structural, biochemical, and functional brain abnormalities in mood disorders and their impact on clinical treatment. In parallel, Dr. Iosifescu also focuses on the recognition and treatment of cognitive deficits associated with mood disorders.

August 3, 2022:  Michael Urbin, Ph.D.

Targeting a Mechanism of Dysfunction in the Spinal Cord to Address Motor Deficits after Stroke

Mike Urbin, Ph.D., is a Scientist with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. He is jointly affiliated with the Rehabilitation Neural Engineering Laboratories at the University of Pittsburgh and the Human Engineering Research Laboratories within the VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System. Dr. Urbin’s primary research interest is in human motor control and learning. He uses a variety of noninvasive stimulation and structural imaging methods to study pathophysiology of stroke and spinal cord injury. A broad goal of his current research agenda is to understand mechanisms of motor dysfunction and how neuromodulation can be used to retrain distal limb muscles weakened by neurological injury.

July 6, 2022: Joel Voss, Ph.D.

Enhancing Episodic Memory Networks with Noninvasive Brain Stimulation

Video not available due to recording error

Joel Voss, Ph.D., is an Adjunct Associate Professor of Medical Social Sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.  The Voss laboratory uses human neuroscience methods (fMRI, EEG, TMS, eye tracking) to investigate mechanisms of learning and memory and their impairment in neurologic and neuropsychiatric disorders. They also use noninvasive stimulation methods to modulate distributed networks of the human hippocampus in order to test their roles in memory and to develop novel treatments for memory impairment.

 

June 1, 2022: Teresa Kimberley, Ph.D., PT

Paired Neuromodulation with Rehabilitation:  Lessons from Vagus Nerve Stimulation in Stroke

Teresa Jacobson Kimberley, PhD, PT, FAPTA is Professor and Director of the Brain Recovery Lab, in the Department of Physical Therapy in the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences at the MGH Institute. Her lab's focus is to understand the pathophysiology of motor impairment and develop novel rehabilitation interventions for neurologic disorders, such as dystonia and stroke. She has an appointment as Research Staff at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Department of Neurology, and as Core Faculty in the Center for Neurotechnology and Neurorecovery. Her research helped to pioneer the use of neuroimaging and non-invasive brain stimulation in the investigation of rehabilitation-related areas. Her work is funded through the National Institutes of Health, private foundations and industry partners. She serves on the Foundation for Physical Therapy Scientific Review Committee, is an Associate Editor for the Journal of Neurologic Physical Therapy and Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience, and is on the editorial board of the Physical Therapy Journal.

May 4, 2022: Zhi-De Deng, Ph.D.

Model-Driven Design for Brain Stimulation Therapies

Dr. Zhi-De Deng is a Staff Scientist, Director of the Computational Neurostimulation Research Program, Noninvasive Neuromodulation Unit, at the National Institute of Mental Health. He is also Adjunct Assistant Professor of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine. He received the SB degree in physics, SB and MEng in electrical engineering and computer science, from MIT. He received PhD in electrical engineering from Columbia University. He completed postdoctoral training at Duke and research fellowship at NIMH. His research focuses on computational approaches 1) to understand the physics and biophysics of neurostimulation, 2) to optimize dosing and individualization, and 3) to advance noninvasive brain stimulation technology development via model-informed design. His vision is to transform psychiatry through engineering innovation.

April 6, 2022: Til Ole Bergmann, Ph.D., and Umair Hassan

The BEST Toolbox: Increasing Objectivity, Reliability, and Reproducibility in Non-invasive Brain Stimulation Research

 

Developed by Mr. Hassan working in Dr. Bergmann’s lab, the BEST Toolbox is easy-to-use MATLAB-based open-source software with a powerful graphical user interface, which allows the user to flexibly design, run, analyze, and share multi-protocol/multi-session non-invasive brain stimulation studies, involving transcranial magnetic, electric, and ultrasound stimulation in combination with EMG, EEG, and fMRI.

 

 

March 2, 2022: Aiko Thompson, Ph.D.

Operant Conditioning of Evoked EMG Responses for Enhancing Neurorehabilitation

A faculty member of NC NM4R, Aiko Thompson, Ph.D., has been investigating neurorehabilitation for over a decade. Dr. Thompson was the first researcher to implement the principles of Operant Conditioning for neural recovery on humans, and is the head of The Barbara S. Christie Evoked Potential Operant Conditioning (EPOC) laboratory and NC NM4R EPOC Core. She has won several NIH R01 grants, and will continue her research working with various populations to seek innovative approach for rehabilitation.

February 2, 2022: Simon Davis, Ph.D.

Modulating Memory Network Dynamics in Healthy & Pathological Aging

Our understanding of the cortical mechanisms that contribute to healthy cognition as we age is an exciting and nascent domain of knowledge. Such an understanding of such patterns in healthy aging is a precondition to the effective treatment of age-related disorders like Alzheimer's disease. For example, the notion that older adults rely on a more bilateral system of brain regions (relative to younger adults) to maintain cognitive function has become generally well accepted. Nonetheless, the compensatory role of bilateral activation remains controversial because most of the data supporting this idea is correlational, and fails to actively engage these bilateral networks. Understanding the importance and malleability of such cross-hemispheric communication in cognition will likely provide a clear path for developing novel therapies to ameliorate age-related cognitive decline. In this talk I will present neuroimaging, neurophysiology, behavioral and TMS data that highlights this and other age-related mechanisms by which older adults may continue to perform tasks successfully, and how these mechanisms may be encouraged by noninvasive neuromodulation.

Dr. Simon Davis is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Neurology at Duke University, as well as the co-Director of Duke Brain Stimulation Research Center and the Director of the Neuroimaging Core: Bryan Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center. His research includes age-related reorganization during episodic memory, executive functions, and semantic processes, cross-hemispheric communication during episodic and semantic memory in younger and older adults, myelination in the aging brain, and its role in cognitive decline and connectivity during episodic memory processes using neuromodulation.

December 1, 2021: Bashar Badran, Ph.D.

Developing Novel Therapeutics – Focused Ultrasound and Auricular Neuromodulation as Alternatives to Implantable Brain Stimulation 

Dr. Bashar Badran is a Neuroscientist and Assistant Professor of Psychiatry within the Brain Stimulation Division at the Medical University of South Carolina. Dr. Badran’s Neuro-X lab is a multidisciplinary neuromodulation, engineering, and innovation laboratory that fosters an environment of neurotechnology and innovation to begin addressing complex medical and neuropsychiatric disorders. His lab has been on the forefront of pioneering noninvasive vagus nerve stimulation and low transcranial focused ultrasound. Dr. Badran is also an inventor and co-founder of several startups, including Zendo, a neuromodulation device for meditation enhancement, and BabyStrong, a new feeding system for newborns.