What is the relationship between brain activity and conscious thought? Like other difficult questions in science, a good model is needed to investigate this question. Our lab uses epilepsy as a model system for investigating consciousness.
Ongoing studies in the Blumenfeld Laboratory include experiments to explore electrophysiologic and network mechanisms common to seizures and other states of impaired consciousness. In particular, we are investigating the role of subcortical structures such as the thalamus and brainstem in the propagation and behavioral manifestations of seizures. Current projects include in vivo and in vitro multimodal electrophysiology and fMRI recordings from animal models of epilepsy, human neuroimaging (fMRI and SPECT) and intracranial EEG studies in relation to behavior during seizures.
Related themes in the Blumenfeld Lab include:
1. Computational methods for neuroimaging data analysis
2. Fundamental relationships between neuroimaging signals and underlying neurophysiology
3. Molecular mechanisms of epileptogenesis and strategies to prevent or cure epilepsy |
Links:
SPECT analysis tools
Childhood Absence Epilepsy Study
Neuroanatomy through Clinical Cases
Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program
Yale Epilepsy Program
Yale Neurology
American Epilepsy Society
Society for Neuroscience
|
