Tuesday 26 September 2017, 4.00PM to 5.00pm
Speaker(s): David Pitcher
Abstract
Mapping the cortico-cortical connections of the functional brain networks that underpin human behaviour is a fundamental challenge for neuroscience. The next conceptual gains in this area will come from a greater understanding of the causal interactions across these brain networks. Targeting a cortical area with TMS, and measuring the disruptive effects across the brain with fMRI, offers a way to safely do this in a neurologically normal population. Results from these combined TMS/fMRI studies can be used to model the effects of traumatic brain injuries and brain disorders (e.g. autism) to improve understanding of how cortical disruption impacts the brain and behaviour. In my talk, I will present a series of studies in which I have combined thetaburst (TBS) TMS with fMRI to map the remote impact of disruption in the cortical network that underpins face perception in the human brain. These studies identify the causal connectivity between face-selective regions and how these regions are connected with remote brain regions that support other cognitive functions.
Location: PS/B020