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Filter by:Injuries affecting the central nervous system may disrupt the cortical pathways to muscles causing loss of motor control. Nevertheless, the brain still exhibits sensorimotor rhythms (SMRs) during movement intents or motor imagery (MI), which is the mental rehearsal of the kinesthetics of a movement without actually performing it. Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) can decode SMRs to control assistive devices and promote functional recovery. Despite rapid advancements in non-invasive BCI systems based on EEG, two persistent challenges remain: First, the instability of SMR patterns due to the non-stationarity of neural signals, which may significantly degrade BCI performance over days and hamper the effectiveness of BCI-based rehabilitation. Second, differentiating MI patterns corresponding to fine hand movements of the same limb is still difficult due to the low spatial resolution of EEG. To address the first challenge, subjects usually learn to elicit reliable SMR and improve BCI control through longitudinal training, so a fundamental question is how to accelerate subject training building upon the SMR neurophysiology. In this study, the investigators hypothesize that conditioning the brain with transcutaneous electrical spinal stimulation, which reportedly induces cortical inhibition, would constrain the neural dynamics and promote focal and strong SMR modulations in subsequent MI-based BCI training sessions - leading to accelerated BCI training. To address the second challenge, the investigators hypothesize that neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) applied contingent to the voluntary activation of the primary motor cortex through MI can help differentiate patterns of activity associated with different hand movements of the same limb by consistently recruiting the separate neural pathways associated with each of the movements within a closed-loop BCI setup. The investigators study the neuroplastic changes associated with training with the two stimulation modalities.
This study will perform magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measurements of hemodynamics and cerebrospinal fluid flow across breathing tasks and during breath-locked neuromodulation.
Neuroplasticity is the brain's ability to reorganize itself and adapt in response to changing environmental conditions or pathological stimuli. LSD is a potent psychedelic drug which has been able to rapidly stimulate neuroplasticity in animal studies. Various authors have speculated that changes in neuroplasticity may contribute to LSD's long-term effects, but there is still little direct evidence that LSD or other psychedelics enhance neuroplasticity in humans. The goal of this study is to investigate the effects of LSD on several measures of neuroplasticity in healthy human subjects.
Most cardiometabolic diseases are characterized by increased muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNA) during rest and exercise which contributes to poor health outcomes. In healthy humans during muscle contraction, there is a blunting of skeletal muscle vascular responsiveness to increases in MSNA. However, the exact mechanisms involved are unknown although, best evidence suggests that the mechanism is endothelium derived, but nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin (PG) independent. Endothelium-derived hyperpolarizing factor (EDHF) is a NO and PG independent vasodilator in both cerebral and skeletal muscle circulations, however, it is unknown if EDHF contributes to vascular responsiveness during elevated MSNA. The application of lower body negative pressure (LBNP) is a safe and non-invasive manipulation that can be used to increase MSNA causing vasoconstriction in humans. Therefore, the purpose of this experiment is to determine if acute inhibition of EDHF alters central and peripheral vascular responses to LBNP at rest and during dynamic exercise. Thereby, providing evidence by which EDHF contributes to vascular control in healthy humans and identify it's potential as a therapeutic target for cardiometabolic diseases that are characterized by elevated MSNA
The Multidisciplinary Expert System for the Assessment & Management of Complex Brain Disorders (MES-CoBraD) is an interdisciplinary project combining Real-World Data (RWD) from multiple clinical and consumer sources through comprehensive, cost-efficient, and fast protocols towards improving diagnostic accuracy and therapeutic outcomes in people with Complex Brain Disorders (CoBraD), as reflected in Neurocognitive (Dementia), Sleep, and Seizure (Epilepsy) disorders and their interdependence. It brings together internationally recognized experts in medicine, engineering, computer science, social health science, law, and marketing and communication from across Europe, and combines clinical information and scientific research in CoBraD with technical innovation in secure data-sharing platforms, artificial intelligence algorithms, and expert systems of precision and personalized care, with a primary focus on improving the quality of life of patients, their caregivers, and the society at large. It leverages RWD from diverse CoBraD populations across cultural, socioeconomic, educational, and health system backgrounds, with special attention on including vulnerable populations and minorities in an equitable manner and engaging key stakeholders to maximize project impact.
This is an randomised cross over trial in healthy participants measuring respiratory emissions during different respiratory activities.
The study aims to investigate body-weight and behavioural trajectories, as well as their underlying individual, social, and environmental determinants from University to early working life. The study employs mHealth approaches in the form of a smartphone app and smart wearables to collect health behaviour and related information to answer the following research questions: 1. To what extend do health behaviours (activity, diet, and sleep), body weight, and mental well-being change during the transition from university to early working life? 2. What is the relationship between health behaviours and mental well-being, and how does it differ at different stages of the transition from University to early working life? 3. What are the determinants of physical activity, healthy eating and sleep in university students and young working adults? 4. Do these determinants differ at different stages of the student to work life transition? 5. If so, how do these differences in these determinants relate to changes in health behaviours, weight status, and mental well-being?
The purpose of this project is to examine the impact of increases in brain insulin on sympathetic nervous system activity, as well as peripheral and cerebral blood flow in humans.
The study will apply state of the art radiology through advanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques to investigate structural and functional brain effects of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) and repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS).
The purpose of this research is to measure alterations in anxiety and brain activity associated with the use of an approved health device called Transauricular Vagal Nerve Stimulation (TaVNS) in distressed persons who work in a health care and distressed healthcare workers in the the Philadelphia, PA region. The Investigators will be using functional magnetic resonance imaging (or fMRI) to measure changes in each subject's brain function during the use of VNS. This study is designed to allow researchers to understand the changes in cerebral (brain) activity that occur when a subject uses VNS. Thus, the primary goal of the proposed study is to evaluate the ability of the TaVNS system to reduce distress and change neurophysiology among health care providers. The Investigators, hypothesize that using the TaVNS device will help reduce distress in individuals. In order to understand the mechanisms of change that occur while using the VNS study, the Investigators have added a substudy of participants who do not experience high levels of distress to evaluate the effects of the functional changes that may occur in the brain while using the TaVNS device. In addition to the primary aims of the overalll study to assess distress in workers while enrolled in a TaVNS program, a subgroup of 50 subjects will undergo functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while using the VNS device to assess the changes in the brain including neurophysiological effects of TaVNS. The goal of this substudy is to observe the changes in the brain while using the TaVNS earbuds in the MRI to increase our understanding of the mechanisms and processing involved while using TaVNS. In this substudy, which is amendment version 3.0, the investigators have increased the number of persons to include 50 subjects who will use the device in the MRI to evaluate the neural processes and cerebral blood flow while using TaVNS.