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To optimally adapt to our ever-changing environments, our brain continuously integrates exteroceptive and interoceptive information, that is, signals received from external (e.g., through vision or touch) and internal sources (e.g., through viscerosensation or proprioception). Particularly the coupling between the heart and the brain or - more generally - between the autonomic and the central nervous system plays a major role for mental processes and behavior. I will present studies, in which we found (1) an association between resting heart rate variability (HRV) and resting-state functional connectivity, (2) task-related HRV changes in response to emotion or stress, and (3) that perception and behavior vary across the cardiac cycle. Showing the psychological relevance of both directions of the heart-brain axis suggests the "rest of the body’s" importance for the mind and contributes to a more comprehensive investigation of mind-brain-body interactions. [mehr]

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Compared to the spatial synchronization, temporal dynamics of neuronal activity only recently gained a widespread attention in neuroscience. A particularly interesting discovery was a demonstration of Long-Range Temporal Correlations (LRTC) in the amplitude dynamics of neuronal oscillations. Neuronal LRTC might indicate a presence of a critical state in neuronal dynamics which was previously shown to be beneficial for the optimal processing of information in the brain. In my talk I will review studies showing relevance of LRTC for cognitive and motor tasks. Moreover, I will show that LRTC can serve as clinical biomarkers sensitive to pathological neuronal activations in Schizophrenia, Depression and Parkinson’s Disease. [mehr]

Stroke is a leading cause of life-long disability. The improvement of acute treatment has increased stroke survival, leaving more people in rehabilitative care than ever. Here, the recovery of function typically reaches a plateau after initial progress. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has been suggested to facilitate recovery beyond this plateau, even in the chronic stage. However, no clear pattern of tDCS-induced effects could be established in patients yet, likely due to inconsistent experimental designs in previous studies. In this talk I will present data from two studies I performed during my PhD here at the MPI CBS. The first (pilot) study covers differential effects of tDCS on proprioception in healthy ageing and introduces and applies an individualised current modelling approach to explain differences between age groups. In the second study, we have investigated a large array of sensorimotor functions in chronic stroke patients and the impact of two different tDCS protocols on the kinematics of those functions. [mehr]

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The OMEGA Lab’s research goal is to investigate lifestyle factors on brain health. In this colloquium, we will report on findings from the GUT-BRAIN study, a MPI in-house conducted double-blind cross-over within-subject designed randomized controlled trial. The study investigates potential effects of a two-week high-fiber diet in overweight healthy adults. We will report on a series of four projects, spanning from cross-sectional to longitudinal analyses. Associations of dietary and serum tyrosine on white matter microstructure and executive function Neurocognitive predictors of food memory Effects of a high-fiber diet on hypothalamic and peripheral inflammation Effects of a high-fiber diet on neural and behavioural correlates of food wanting Further studies on meal choices and methodological advances from the OMEGA Lab will be touched upon briefly. [mehr]