biography:
I received my Ph.D. from USC in 1998 in Computer Science (Artificial intelligence) but found I was more interested in natural intelligence. I did two postdocs in the UK at Cambridge and Oxford where I received training in neuroimaging and transcranial magnetic stimulation. At Oxford I obtained a Wellcome Career Development award and a faculty position in Clinical Neurology before moving to my current post in Psychology at UCL. My formal background in computing has strongly influenced my research programme in that the constant underlying theme is to understand cognitive and neural functions in terms of transforming information at every level, from the basic biology up through cognition and behaviour. I‘m specifically interested in language processing and its relation to other cognitive, motor and sensory systems.
Abstract:
Neuroscience’s moral imperative to engage with business
Daniel Kahneman’s book, Thinking Fast and Slow, fundamentally changed the way businesses look to academia; we are no longer (or at least not entirely!) ivory-tower egg-heads arguing about the ineffable and instead have become people with valuable expertise that can directly benefit the commercial sector. There is now wide-spread recognition that focus groups provide only limited insight into understanding consumer behaviour and that subconscious factors such as emotion, heuristics, and biases all play an important role in decision making. The ability to use neuroscientific tools including electroencephalography (EEG), functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and biometrics to measure these hidden influences is extremely appealing and has given to the birth to “neuromarketing” firms offering these services. But how well does industry meet these needs? I argue that neuromarketing firms often fail to provide valid insight and that it is the responsibility of the neuroscientific community to engage with industry via academic-corporate partnerships. If we choose to absent ourselves, then we must accept that this void will be filled – even if it is by untrained practitioners pedalling pseudo-scientific snake-oil – with potentially disastrous results, both for industry but also for society more generally. In contrast, when we engage we provide scientifically valid insights while upskilling the business community and moving applied neuroscience towards a “plateau of productivity.” Consequently, there is a moral imperative on us as neuroscientists to engage with business in order to ensure that the science we develop is used responsibly.
biography:
Dr. Hamed Ekhtiari admitted to the Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS), the first rank medical school in Iran, as a medical student, after passing the highly competitive national university entrance exam with a rank of 11 out of over 350,000 participants. Facing daily challenges of people with substance use disorder (SUD) in Tehran, he became interested to the neuroscience of cognitive disorders associated with SUDs. He received his first small grant as a medical student in this field in 2000 and published his first paper on the “role of prefrontal cortex in risky decision making” in 2001. He graduated from the medical school with honors in 2004 with a dissertation on the risky decision making and impulsivity. Immediately, he started to work at the Iranian National Center for Addiction Studies (INCAS) in 2004 in one of the least affluent neighborhoods in Tehran and launched a neurocognitive lab there in 2005. He also started a research program at Institute for Cognitive Science Studies (ICSS) in Tehran in 2010 entitled “Translational Neuroscience Program”. He enrolled in a PhD program in neuroimaging at TUMS in 2011 and did his thesis project on the neural basis of response inhibition using fMRI. Then, he moved to the U.S. for a postdoctoral position in the same direction with Dr. Martin Paulus, at the Laureate Institute for Brain Research (LIBR). He promoted to the associate investigator position at LIBR in January 2018.
Abstract:
Methodological Parameter Space in Combining tES and fMRI: From Mechanism to Prediction
Combination between non-invasive brain stimulation techniques and neuroimaging methods have enabled researchers to go beyond the correlational associations between brain activity and behavior. Functional (f)MRI in combination with transcranial electrical stimulation (tES), have helped researchers to understand the effects of tES beyond the stimulated area and the mechanisms by which tES produces changes across different levels of the nervous system. To explore variability in the tES-fMRI methodological parameter space (MPS), I will talk about tES-fMRI studies and their MPS along with our experiences in running tES-fMRI studies. Based on the role of fMRI, tES-fMRI studies are classified to mechanistic, predictive, and electrode positioning. I will present potential explanations on how tES modulates activation and connectivity beyond the stimulated areas especially with prefrontal stimulation. Potentials and challenges for consensus guidelines to harmonize MPS in future studies will be discussed.
biography
Dr. Reza Khosrowabadi got his Ph.D in Computer Engineering from Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. Then he spend two years as post-doctoral researcher in multi-modal neuroimaging at Duke-Nus graduate medical school, and then the one year post-doctoral in modelling of high cognitive functions in Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran. He is now Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Assistant Professor of Cognitive Modeling at Institute for Cognitive and Brain Science, Shahid Beheshti University. He took part in a variety of national and international projects which led to publications in form of scientific papers in journals and international conferences. Dr. Khosrowabadi’s research field is mostly signal and brain image processing and the use of computational modelling to assess development process.
Abstract:
Structural and Functional Differences in Neurodevelopmental Disorders
Evaluating brain’s structural and functional changes during normal development is very important and this led to so many studies using neuroimaging methods. In addition to the assessment of nervous system’s normal development mechanism, diversions from the normal path which can lead to neurodevelopmental disorders also attract a lot of attention. These studies, without a doubt, can help detecting and treating the disorders in early stages. Institute for Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Shahid Beheshti University has done some related researches which will be presented in this symposium.
co-founder of Cognetivity ltd, United Kingdom
biography:
Dr. Khaligh-Razavi is co-founder and Chief Science Officer at Cognetivity ltd, UK; and Assistant Professor of Neuroscience at Royan Institute, Brain and Cognitive Sciences Dept. He graduated from Cambridge University, Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, in 2014. After that he became a postdoctoral researcher at the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), for about 3 years, studying the human brain using computational models and brain imaging techniques.
Abstract:
The Aging Brain Under Scrutiny: Employing Artificial Intelligence for Early Detection of Cognitive Impairment in Patients with Dementia
Despite significant progress in biomarker development for the diagnosis of dementia, these have yet to translate into efficient early diagnostic tools primarily due to limited sensitivity, cost considerations and ease of access. I will present the Integrated Cognitive Assessment (ICA), a 5-minute, self-administered, computerised test that is independent of language, cultural background and education. The ICA addresses standard assessment limitations by targeting cognitive domains that are affected in the initial stages of the disease, specifically before the onset of memory symptoms and by utilising Artificial Intelligence (AI) to analyse high-dimensional clinical and demographic data to continuously improve its predictive power.
In a task-based fMRI study, we find that the ICA task engages areas that are amongst the earliest affected by tau-pathology in pre-symptomatic stages of AD as per Braak staging. The ICA also shows a strong correlation with NfL and severity of cognitive impairment. The test shows excellent test-retest reliability, no evidence of a learning bias (Khaligh-Razavi et al, Scientific Reports, 2019), and a high accuracy in detecting cognitive impairment (AUC=94%; 239 participants).
The ICA platform can impact dementia diagnosis and research on a large scale. With the advent of new AI tools (e.g. ICA platform) with the potential to identify health conditions earlier, the focus should shift on treating early-stage diseases, rather than late-stage ones. This can fundamentally change the way the industry and research operates today towards more preventative rather than curative care.
biography:
Doctor Reza Rostami is a full professor at the department of psychology at the University of Tehran. He received his medical degree from Tehran University of medical sciences in 1996 and psychiatry specialty from Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences in 2002. He joined the faculty of psychology and education of the University of Tehran afterwards. His research interests include clinical neuroscience and the application of new technologies for the treatment of mental disorders. He founded the first clinical neuroscience center in Iran in 2007. This center takes a technological approach to the assessment and treatment of psychological disorders.
Abstract:
Efficacy and Clinical Predictors of Response to rTMS Treatment in Pharmaco-Resistant Patients With Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
Despite overall encouraging results, rTMS effects differ among patients suffering from OCD. Knowledge about clinical predictors of rTMS response would help to increase clinical efficacy and response rate. We investigated the efficacy of rTMS over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) or supplementary motor area (SMA) in 65 OCD patients recruited for the rTMS treatment from July 2015 to May 2017. Scores on the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS), and Beck Anxiety and Depression Inventories (BAI, BDI-II) were assessed before and after 20 sessions of rTMS treatment.Patients scores in Y-BOCS, BAI, and BDI-II were significantly decreased following rTMS treatment. Stimulation target (DLPFC vs. SMA) did not have a significant effect on rTMS efficacy. Specifically, 46.2% of all patients responded to rTMS, based on at least 30% reduction of the Y-BOCS scores. No significant demographic predictors were found. Interference due to obsessions and resistance against compulsions were the only two clinical predictors of rTMS treatment response that could significantly predict response failure to rTMS. Patients with less intrusive and interfering thoughts might benefit more from rTMS treatment.
biography:
Dr. Guive Sharifi, currently a faculty member of the Shahid Beheshti University of Medical
Sciences, has provided research work in the field of neurosurgery, especially in endoscopic surgery of cerebral and pituitary tumors and global skull base surgery. He has done about 83 scientific articles published in international and international medical journals.
He is also a member of the specialized neurosurgical associations, including the American Society of Neurosurgeons.
ایشان فعالیت های پژوهشی در زمینه جراحی مغز و اعصاب به ویژه در جراحی آندوسکوپی تومورهای قشری مغز و هیپوفیز و جراحی قاعده جمجمه انجام داده اند. حدود 83 مقاله ی علمی ایشان در نشریات داخلی و بین المللی پزشکی به چاپ رسیده است.
ایشان همچنین عضو انجمن های تخصصی جراحی مغز و اعصاب از جمله انجمن جراحان مغز و اعصاب آمریکا می باشند.
abstract:
fMRI and DTI for Presurgical Brain Mapping: Complications and Applications
Functional MRI (fMRI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) are becoming increasingly common in pre-surgical planning, as they allow for noninvasive identification of important functional areas involved in predefined cognitive tasks and for tracking white matter fiber bundles, respectively.
In this case, we used these techniques on two cases of Virchow Robin Space (very rare cases) and multiple cases of sensory cortices involved tumour patients. Utilizing these techniques allowed us to evaluate cognitive and sensory properties and finding out the white matter tract involvement which helped us to approach the tumour resection more accurate.
biography:
Dr. Mir-Shahram Safari graduated from Tarbiat Modares University in physiology and worked for 4 years in RIKEN Center for Brain Science in Japan as a research scientist. He is currently a faculty member and assistant professor at Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences and the director of the Laboratory for Cortical Circuit Dynamics. His research interests are mostly involved with sensory processing, visual system, auditory system, neural plasticity, functional mapping of neural networks, memory, pain, reward and addiction by electrophysiologic technics, optogenetics, and 2p laser scanning systems.
Abstract:
How the serotonin system changes the function map of visual cortex?
The visual system has long been studied by neurologists to understand the function of the brain's sensory systems and to get an insight into the basics of the functions of neural circuits. For projects which are about the assessment of structural and functional map of the brain, one of the most basic priorities is