The post appeared first on Focused Ultrasound @ 黑料网.

CHAPEL HILL, NC 鈥� The human brain constantly receives information from the body, specifically from internal organs such as聽the heart and lungs. This information seldom reaches consciousness but is crucial for maintaining a healthy body and for influencing performance in the brain, including perception, emotion, and cognition. Now, researchers are investigating how exactly the brain processes the incoming stream of information from the heart and lungs, leading to a broader understanding of brain-body integration and the resulting health or disease.

聽in the聽Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences听(PNAS), co-senior authors聽Vibhor Krishna, MD, associate professor of neurosurgery at the 黑料网;聽, director of the Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute and associate dean of neuroscience at the West Virginia School of Medicine; and聽, director of the laboratory of cognitive neuroscience at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, discovered that specific neurons in the thalamus are actively involved in processing cardiac and respiratory signals.

鈥淓ach heartbeat and every breath create a rich, incoming stream of sensory information for the human brain,鈥� said Krishna. 鈥淗owever, a deeper understanding of how the brain integrates this information has remained elusive. We have been interested in discovering how the human brain achieves the integration of cardio-respiratory information and whether its breakdown is linked to any disorders of the brain, heart, or lungs observed in the clinic.鈥�

Over the years, clinical and research teams collaborated to painstakingly study this integration using an established technique of microelectrode recording during deep brain stimulation surgery.聽Using a new approach to study single neurons in three different thalamic regions, the researchers were able to observe a direct functional involvement of thalamic and subthalamic neurons in processing cardio-respiratory signals. This information can help to better characterize how subcortical regions of the brain process signals through a functional pathway from internal organs.

To complete this work, the research team took advantage of microelectrode recordings during deep brain stimulation for patients undergoing treatment for neurological conditions. The researchers then used these recordings to investigate the activity of single neurons related to cardiac and respiratory functions in three subcortical regions: ventral intermedius nucleus and ventral caudalis nucleus of the thalamus, and the subthalamic nucleus.

They found that about 70% of the recorded neurons were modulated by either the heartbeat, the cardiac inter-beat interval, or the respiration.

These cardiac and respiratory response patterns varied largely across neurons both in terms of timing and their kind of modulation, the authors wrote. A substantial proportion of these visceral neurons 鈥� about 30% 鈥� were responsive to more than one of the tested signals, underlining specialization and integration of cardiac and respiratory signals in subthalamic nucleus and thalamic neurons.

鈥淲e think our work will be significant for several medical specializations, including cardiology, pulmonology, neurology, psychiatry, and psychological research,鈥� Krishna said.

Rezai added, 鈥淏etter understanding of the human brain is the next frontier. And interdisciplinary collaborations between functional neurosurgeons and neuroscientists will enable us to gain an unprecedented window into the inner functioning of the human brain.鈥�

Applauding this research as a significant step forward, Nelson Oyesiku, MD, PhD, chair of the 黑料网 Department of Neurosurgery, said, 鈥淲e understand that the brain maintains homeostasis throughout the body through direct neurological and endocrine regulation. This research reveals that the incoming information from the heart and lungs is processed in the thalamic and subthalamic brain regions, besides other regions, enabling our brain to effectively assume its role in regulating bodily functions.鈥�

Media contact:聽Mark Derewicz,聽黑料网

The post Researchers Expand Our Understanding of How the Body and Brain Communicate appeared first on Focused Ultrasound @ 黑料网.

.

The post New Publication in the New England Journal of Medicine Shows Focused Ultrasound Effective for treating Parkinson鈥檚, Movement Disorders appeared first on Focused Ultrasound @ 黑料网.

An artist鈥檚 representation of the focused ultrasound transducer which incorporates roughly 1000 ultrasound emitting elements. The ultrasound beam from each element is focused on the Vim (shown in red).

Functional neurosurgeon and scientist, Dr. Vibhor Krishna, was awarded an R01 grant from the National Institutes of Health to fund his focused ultrasound ablation research for essential tremor patients.

Over 10 million Americans live with essential tremor, a common neurological disorder and a leading cause of functional and psychological聽disabilities. While some patients gain tremor control using medications, up to 20% of essential tremor patients cannot achieve satisfactory tremor control by relying on medication alone.

Focused ultrasound ablation of the ventral intermediate nucleus (Vim) is an FDA-approved procedure for essential tremor patients resistant to medications. Guided by real-time MR imaging, this procedure is incisionless, and allows neurosurgeons to precisely target and ablate the brain area causing the tremor. 鈥淲e are honored to receive research funding from the National Institutes of Health and are excited about the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of individuals suffering from essential tremor,鈥� said Dr. Krishna. 鈥淚 am grateful to my mentors, collaborators, and the clinical and research staff.鈥�

The success of this treatment depends on the ability to accurately ablate the Vim without damaging the surrounding structures. Dr. Krishna鈥檚 grant-funded research will optimize this emerging treatment by identifying Vim and its boundaries, standardizing the ultrasound delivery, and monitoring the ultrasound treatment with novel imaging techniques. 鈥淭he Department of Neurosurgery at 黑料网 Health is absolutely delighted to announce the National Institutes of Health investigator grant to Neurosurgeon-Neuroscientist, Dr. Vibhor Krishna, to investigate focused ultrasound in essential tremor,鈥� said Dr. Nelson Oyesiku, Chair of 黑料网 Health鈥檚 Department of Neurosurgery. 鈥淭his cutting-edge research brings new hope to restoring motor function to patients with a debilitating movement disorder.鈥�

Dr. Krishna鈥檚 focused ultrasound ablation research is also supported by the聽Focused Ultrasound Foundation, an organization that aims to accelerate the development and adoption of focused ultrasound. 鈥淭he Focused Ultrasound Foundation has supported the testing, funding, and clinical rollout of focused ultrasound treatment for essential tremor and many other indications,鈥� said Dr. Neal F. Kassell, founder and chairman of the foundation. 鈥淧atients have been excited to pursue this emerging treatment 鈥� which is now covered by Medicare in all 50 U.S. states 鈥� to alleviate their tremors and improve quality of life. Dr. Krishna鈥檚 research aims to make this treatment safer and even more effective, and his research findings will be highly relevant and anticipated by the focused ultrasound community.鈥�

Dr. Vibhor Krishna聽joined 黑料网 Neurosurgery鈥檚 faculty last year as an associate professor. His research and clinical focus is the treatment of movement disorders, including essential tremor, Parkinson鈥檚 disease, and epilepsy. 鈥淭hrough this opportunity, we aim to develop a deeper understanding of brain function relevant to tremor treatment and its modulation with focused ultrasound ablation,鈥� said Krishna.

To learn more about Dr. Krishna鈥檚 research, please visit the聽Krishna Lab website.

The post Dr. Vibhor Krishna Receives Grant to Fund Essential Tremor Treatment Research appeared first on Focused Ultrasound @ 黑料网.