Like to sneak in Brain Health and Activity: Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Spectroscopy applications in brain tumors and aging brain, Assistant Prof, IISER
Indeed, a scientifically encouraging moment!! Bringing science to all, and for a purpose is humbling. Kudos to you Niraj @nirajgupta02 for your hard work. Deep regards to our institution @IISER_BERHAMPUR for the support. Thanks to the Scientific Editorial members of The Hindu. White matter connectivity and its integrity seems to be a really important brain event in the aging trajectory.
Well… this happened.
Our recent research on brain vascular and white matter changes with aging just got covered by The Hindu!
White matter isn’t just “wiring.” It reflects vascular health, resilience & biological ageing.
https://t.co/OUkfF8BH0U
@iamvivekt@IISER_BERHAMPUR
Is it possible to connect with them? I am having a Brain Imaging cohort at IISER Berhampur. We are developing a meta cohort of imaging of twin brains to study brain Remodeling and Metabolic maps. It will be great to connect with these twins and see an opportunity to recruit them in our cohort.
It was an amazing interaction with Prof Mausam @mishumausam. Super expert in AI (NLP, ML) from IIT Delhi. Got to look deep into his brain as well. Super queue of lectures aligning with AI Summit activities @IISER_BERHAMPUR
Parkinson’s as a Somato-Cognitive Action Network Disorder? A New Brain Circuit Model Emerges. Somato-cognitive refers to how the body and brain work together by integrating movement, motivation and internal body states in order to guide action. Ren, Zhang Dosenbach, Liu and colleagues describe in a new paper that just dropped in Nature how Parkinson’s disease may be better understood, not just as a movement disorder, but as a disorder of the Somato-Cognitive Action Network (SCAN). The team leveraged a massive multimodal dataset across six interventions to show how SCAN hyperconnectivity might explain both motor and non-motor symptoms and could guide future neuromodulation treatments.
Key Points:
– The SCAN links motor, cognitive, autonomic and emotional systems, and is more tightly connected to PD circuits than traditional motor-only areas.
– Folks w/ Parkinson’s showed hyperconnectivity between the SCAN and key subcortical structures (e.g., substantia nigra, STN, GPi), a pattern not seen in other movement disorders.
– Successful therapies like DBS, TMS, focused ultrasound, and levodopa reduced the SCAN to subcortex hyperconnectivity.
My take: This paper opens the door to rethinking Parkinson’s as a disorder of action readiness and integration, not just movement execution. This is a big step forward for brain network science in Parkinson's.
Here are 5 points that resonated w/ me:
1- Parkinson’s may be better framed as a whole-body network disorder rooted in the SCAN, not just a hand or foot movement issue.
2- Brain imaging showed that the subthalamic nucleus and other DBS targets are functionally linked to the SCAN, not just to movement effectors.
3- Reducing SCAN hyperconnectivity through neuromodulation or dopamine led to better motor outcomes.
4- Targeting cortical SCAN regions w/ repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) doubled the benefit as compared to traditional motor cortex stimulation.
5- Future neuromodulation strategies have the potential to personalize therapy by matching treatment to SCAN hubs, rather than single motor targets.
https://t.co/onEMBveFig
Nice write up in Scientific American today:
https://t.co/EPCRXAJwdY
@ParkinsonDotOrg@FixelInstitute@sciam
📢 Hiring | Project Research Scientist–I (Medical)
If you enjoy out-of-the-box thinking, pushing beyond comfort zones, and thriving on ambitious, cutting-edge neuroscience research challenges — there’s a place for you in our group.
Apply by 12th Feb
@iamvivekt@IISER_BERHAMPUR
Happy to share coverage of our recently published research on axonal pruning with aging, featured by @biopatrika .
Many thanks to the @biopatrika team for the thoughtful coverage and space, and congratulations to wonderful PhD scholar @nirajgupta02 for articulating complex neurobiology in a clear, engaging, and lay-friendly manner.
Feature: https://t.co/kLECDTd3T1
Research article: https://t.co/p5EYuVsXC9
Wishing you all a Happy and Prosperous New Year! Immense gratitude to all the mentors, friends, colleagues and dear students for the guidance, learning and continued support. @NIBBRlab@nirajgupta02@nehayadav1211@RittikaDutta23