My Research Group uses translational MR imaging to understand how cortical microstructure links to human brain function in health and disease. We study healthy younger and older adults, people with neurodegenerative and neurological diseases and people with mental disorders to understand the neuronal mechanisms that underlie healthy and pathological brain states and their modification. 

overview research topics


lab research at a glance

NEW
Multi-modal layer modeling reveals in vivo pathology in ALS 
​Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a rapidly progressing neurodegenerative disease characterised by the loss of motor control. Current understanding of ALS pathology is largely based on post-mortem investigations at advanced disease stages. We combined submillimeter structural 7T-MRI data, functional localisers of body parts and automated layer modelling to compute layer-specific in vivo pathology maps of the primary motor cortex (M1) in living ALS-patients with reference to age-, gender-, handedness- and education-matched controls. The data uncover a layer-specific profile of ALS pathology in MI that matches the clinical profile of the patients. Our data shows that layer-specific markers of in vivo pathology can be identified in ALS-patients with a single 7T-MRI measurement after first diagnosis, which emphasizes the importance of 7T MRI as a clinical tool (Northall et al. 2023 Brain [link]). 
KEY-FINDING
Septa in the human brain
Monkeys' and rodents' primary somatosensory cortices (SI) are equipped with myelin-poor septa that separate adjacent body part representations. It has been a long-standing question whether or not also humans are equipped with such structural body part boundaries. We used in vivo 7 Tesla MRI in humans to show that structural boundaries exist between major body part representations (hand and face) in the human sensory and motor cortices  (Kuehn et al. 2017 Cereb Cortex [link]). They do not exist, however,  between individual finger representations in human SI, other than in many monkey species (Döhler et al. 2023 J Neurosci [link]). Human septa are a stable feature of cortex architecture and do not degenerate with age (Northall et al. 2023 Neurobiol Aging [link]). 
RESEARCH
The organizational principles of de-differentiated cortical maps
A common model assumes that more 'de-differentiated' topographic maps characterize human aging and link to worse behavior. Here, we use 7 Tesla fMRI im combination with behavioral phenotyping to show that cortical de-differentiation is not the common characteristic of older adults' topographic maps. In addition, specific shifts within the map architecture link to better rather than worse motor function in older adults. We introduce a feature-based model of cortical reorganization that captures age-related changes in topographic map architectures. Read the full eLife paper: [link]
TREND
Model the human cortex in 3D
Modeling the human cortex in three dimensions, that is, across the cortical surface and in depth, allows novel and unprecedented insights into brain dys-/function in health and disease. 3D models of human cognition that take into consideration the different computations along the cortical surface and in depth allow understanding human brain function in its full complexity. In this Trends in Cognitive Sciences paper [link] and  Nature Reviews Neuroscience commentary [link], we delineate the critical importance of 3D models of the cortex in health and disease.
METHOD
A new computational framework for ultra-high field fMRI
Lack of statistical power and inflated false positive rates have been identified as major problems for fMRI analyses. Here, we introduce a new, non-parametric and threshold-free software package called LISA to target this problem. LISA uses a non-linear filter for incorporating spatial context without sacrificing spatial precision. Compared to widely used other methods (e.g., SPM, FLS), LISA boosts statistical power and increases the reliable detection of small activation areas. The spatial sensitivity of LISA makes it especially suitable for the analysis of fMRI data acquired at ultrahigh field (≥7 Tesla). Read the full Nature Communications paper: [link] 

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KEY-FINDING
Non-afferent topographic maps in human SI
The human primary somatosensory cortex area 3b has long been believed to code self-perceived (afferent) touch only. In a series of studies, we show using 7 Tesla fMRI that feeling touch on the hand and observing touch at another person's hand activates similar fine-grained topographic maps in area 3b, and similar inhibitory receptive field interactions during their co-activation. Topographic maps in area 3b can therefore also be triggered from non-afferent sources. Read the full Journal of Neuroscience and Brain Structure and Function papers: [link] [link]