Addiction: Addiction is defined as a chronic, relapsing brain disease that is characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use, despite harmful consequences. It is considered a brain disease because drugs change the brain-they change its structure and how it works. These brain changes can be long-lasting, and can lead to the harmful behaviors seen in people who abuse drugs. Addiction is a lot like other diseases, such as heart disease. Both disrupt the normal, healthy functioning of the underlying organ, have serious harmful consequences, and are preventable and treatable, but if left untreated, can last a lifetime.
Since its initial description more than 70 years ago, autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has been diagnosed more frequently in boys. However, we remain unsure of why males are affected in greater...
Is sensory awareness facilitated by activity in only sensory cortices? For several decades, this has been the dominant viewpoint among many prominent voices in both neuroscience and philosoph...
Most neuropsychiatric diseases involve multifactorial systems characterized by complex interactions among genetic predisposition/resiliency, environmental/social determinants, molecular seque...
Biomedical research depends on the use of model systems to explore basic biology, probe disease mechanisms, and conduct drug discovery and development. However, results from such systems are...
The cerebellum is incorporated into the distributed neural circuits subserving motor control, cognitive processing and the modulation of emotion. This lecture provides an overview of anatomic...
98% of small molecules and 100% of large molecules do not cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Biologics, including therapeutic antibodies (e.g. anti-amyloid antibodies), have been at the for...
Complex animal behavior is produced by dynamic interactions between discrete regions of the brain. As such, defining functional connections between brain regions is critical in gaining a full...
Psychiatric diagnosis is inherently difficult, due to the lack of clear biomarkers or any other objective assessment. Although quantitative, the psychometric scales employed during the psychi...
Acute and chronic pain are often managed with drug therapy, which may include extended use of drug classes such as opioids and benzodiazepines. Pain does not go away, and may intensify...
Studying the genetics of rare congenital disorders disrupting cognitive function has led to the identification of multiple disease genes that helped us better understand the mechanisms underl...
Alterations in homeostatic functions such as energy balance and sleep patterns are frequently seen in the elderly and these changes may precede and predict subsequent cognitive decline. ...
As we experience our environments, our brains are constantly computing inferences about the most likely state of the world: Are those lights in the distance headlights or streetlights? ...
Epigenetics refers to the study of nuclear architecture and gene regulation. Epigenetic mechanisms govern many physiological processes such as cell differentiation, x-inactivation, and genomi...
Specialized aggregations of extracellular matrix called perineuronal nets (PNNs) appear during juvenile stages of development and surround primarily fast-spiking, parvalbumin (PV)-containing...
Working memory ability matures late in life, in adolescence or early adulthood, and may be enhanced even in adulthood through cognitive training. The mechanisms through which working memory i...
A fundamental challenge in developing brain machine interfaces (BMIs) is building a decoder between patterns of brain activity and movement in patients with spinal cord injury, ALS, and amput...
Miniaturized microscopes in combination with genetically encoded calcium indicators now allow recordings of activity from hundreds of neurons simultaneously in freely moving animals. We are b...
Gilles de la Tourette syndrome (GTS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder exhibiting both motor and behavioral impairment. Like most neuropsychiatric disorders, its pathophysiology has yet to be...
Basal forebrain cholinergic inputs to the cortex are known to contribute to attentional performance. A major focus of my laboratory has been to study the receptors mediating the effects of ac...
Dr. Kasthuri is a Neuroscience Researcher at Argonne National Labs and an Assistant Professor (adjunct) in the Dept. of Neurobiology, University of Chicago. He has an MD from Washington...
The idea of schizophrenia typically conjures up images of people who hear voices, see visions and have delusional beliefs. However, clinicians have long recognized cognitive dysfunction as on...
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is characterized by the loss of dopamine and the disruption of brain circuits (basal ganglia and cortex) that are responsible for normal cognitive and motor per...
Our decisions are governed by a balance between prospective instrumental goal-oriented and retrospective habitual learning strategies. This arbitration is relevant dimensionally across psychi...
Since its initial description more than 70 years ago, autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has been diagnosed more frequently in boys. However, we remain unsure of why males are affected in greater...
Is sensory awareness facilitated by activity in only sensory cortices? For several decades, this has been the dominant viewpoint among many prominent voices in both neuroscience and philosoph...
Most neuropsychiatric diseases involve multifactorial systems characterized by complex interactions among genetic predisposition/resiliency, environmental/social determinants, molecular seque...
Biomedical research depends on the use of model systems to explore basic biology, probe disease mechanisms, and conduct drug discovery and development. However, results from such systems are...
The cerebellum is incorporated into the distributed neural circuits subserving motor control, cognitive processing and the modulation of emotion. This lecture provides an overview of anatomic...
98% of small molecules and 100% of large molecules do not cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Biologics, including therapeutic antibodies (e.g. anti-amyloid antibodies), have been at the for...
Complex animal behavior is produced by dynamic interactions between discrete regions of the brain. As such, defining functional connections between brain regions is critical in gaining a full...
Psychiatric diagnosis is inherently difficult, due to the lack of clear biomarkers or any other objective assessment. Although quantitative, the psychometric scales employed during the psychi...
Acute and chronic pain are often managed with drug therapy, which may include extended use of drug classes such as opioids and benzodiazepines. Pain does not go away, and may intensify...
Studying the genetics of rare congenital disorders disrupting cognitive function has led to the identification of multiple disease genes that helped us better understand the mechanisms underl...
Alterations in homeostatic functions such as energy balance and sleep patterns are frequently seen in the elderly and these changes may precede and predict subsequent cognitive decline. ...
As we experience our environments, our brains are constantly computing inferences about the most likely state of the world: Are those lights in the distance headlights or streetlights? ...
Epigenetics refers to the study of nuclear architecture and gene regulation. Epigenetic mechanisms govern many physiological processes such as cell differentiation, x-inactivation, and genomi...
Specialized aggregations of extracellular matrix called perineuronal nets (PNNs) appear during juvenile stages of development and surround primarily fast-spiking, parvalbumin (PV)-containing...
Working memory ability matures late in life, in adolescence or early adulthood, and may be enhanced even in adulthood through cognitive training. The mechanisms through which working memory i...
A fundamental challenge in developing brain machine interfaces (BMIs) is building a decoder between patterns of brain activity and movement in patients with spinal cord injury, ALS, and amput...
Miniaturized microscopes in combination with genetically encoded calcium indicators now allow recordings of activity from hundreds of neurons simultaneously in freely moving animals. We are b...
Gilles de la Tourette syndrome (GTS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder exhibiting both motor and behavioral impairment. Like most neuropsychiatric disorders, its pathophysiology has yet to be...
Basal forebrain cholinergic inputs to the cortex are known to contribute to attentional performance. A major focus of my laboratory has been to study the receptors mediating the effects of ac...
Dr. Kasthuri is a Neuroscience Researcher at Argonne National Labs and an Assistant Professor (adjunct) in the Dept. of Neurobiology, University of Chicago. He has an MD from Washington...
The idea of schizophrenia typically conjures up images of people who hear voices, see visions and have delusional beliefs. However, clinicians have long recognized cognitive dysfunction as on...
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is characterized by the loss of dopamine and the disruption of brain circuits (basal ganglia and cortex) that are responsible for normal cognitive and motor per...
Our decisions are governed by a balance between prospective instrumental goal-oriented and retrospective habitual learning strategies. This arbitration is relevant dimensionally across psychi...