Research Areas
The research at PNC is organized in five areas:
- Multimodal Neuroimaging and Analysis Methods: including data analysis, and applications in human and animal models. This includes magnetic resonance imaging (MRI); electrophysiology (electroencephalography, EEG; magneto-encephalography, MEG; electro-corticography, ECoG; single/multi-unit activity, SUA/MUA); Positron Emission Tomography (PET) for receptor and metabolic mapping; neuro-stimulation methods including (transcranial magnetic stimulation, TMS; transcranial electrical stimulation, TES; deep brain stimulation, DBS, etc.). Methods in animal models include imaging with calcium and other fluorescent reporters, high density electrophysiology, and optogenetics;
- Circuits and Cellular Neuroscience. This area aims at studying the relationships between neural circuit functions at multiple spatial and temporal scales and behaviour, using imaging, electrophysiology, and optogenetics.
- Cognitive, Affective and Behavioral Neuroscience. including normal development and aging. This platform aims at the discovery of the brain mechanisms mediating psychological processes (attention, memory, emotion, social cognition). In this platform may also enter studies related to ethics, philosophy, economics, and sociology.
- Translational and Clinical Neuroscience. This area examines the pathophysiology and treatment of central and peripheral nervous system disorders, psychiatric and psychological disorders including both human and animal models.
- Computational Neuroscience. This area works on the analysis, integration and modelling of brain signals, behaviour, and biomarkers of disease using techniques such as machine learning and statistical physics.