Using ultrasound thalamotomy as an opportunity to understand the contributions of the human thalamus to decision making and learning

The contribution of the human thalamic nuclei to decision making are poorly understood and a focus of considerable interest given their routine use as safe targets for functional neurosurgery in tremor and Parkinson's disease. Understanding whether neuromodulation (e.g. Deep Brain Stimulation) of the thalamus can be used for non-motor symptom control (eg. apathy, impulsivity or cognitive impairment) using relies upon mapping of the functional contribution of thalamic nuclei onto their role in human behaviour.

MR guided Focused Ultrasound Thalamotomy provides a unique opportunity to study the effect of this procedure on the cognitive thalamic nuclei. By studying the effects of MRgFUS thalamotomy on decision making using cognitive neuroscience paradigms and computational models of decision making, this project aims at elucidating the discrete contributions of different thalamic nuclei and their cortical connectivity on goal directed learning.

The student will be trained in the acquisition of cognitive neuroscience paradigms in patients, the analysis and fitting of computational models to human behaviour and quantitative neuroimaging techniques with an emphasis on connectomics. This project will be a collaborative initiative with clinicians at the Walton Centre Liverpool & University of Liverpool and cognitive neuroscientists at University of Glasgow’s Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging (CCNI).

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