Dr Elsa Fouragnan | Inducing short to medium neuroplastic effects with Transcranial Ultrasound Stimulation

This seminar is free to attend and is open to all, both within and outside the University. Attendance is possible both in-person and online on Zoom, details of Zoom registration and physical location can be found above.

We are delighted to announce that the Centre for Human Brain Health (CHBH) will welcome Dr Elsa Fouragnan to present a hybrid CHBH Seminar, taking place on the date and time above.

Dr Fouragnan is an Associate Professor of Neuroscience and Head of the Brain Stimulation Department at the Brain Research and Imaging Centre, Faculty of Health, University of Plymouth. She is also Head of the Fouragnan Lab.

Attendance is possible either in person (exact location details will be shared prior to the event via email), or online via Zoom, if you wish to attend in person or via Zoom, please register your interest to attend via the Zoom portal using the link above. Exact location details will be shared prior to the event via email. 

To arrange a 1:1 meeting with the speaker, please state your interest when registering to attend via the link above.

CHBH Event Host
Dr Joe Galea

Inducing short to medium neuroplastic effects with Transcranial Ultrasound Stimulation

Abstract

Sound waves can be used to modify brain activity safely and transiently with unprecedented precision even deep in the brain - unlike traditional brain stimulation methods. In a series of studies in humans and non-human primates, I will show that Transcranial Ultrasound Stimulation (TUS) can have medium- to long-lasting effects. Multiple read-outs allow us to conclude that TUS can perturb neuronal tissues up to 2h after intervention, including changes in local and distributed brain network configurations, behavioural changes, task-related neuronal changes and chemical changes in the sonicated focal volume. Combined with multiple neuroimaging techniques (resting state functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging [rsfMRI], Spectroscopy [MRS] and task-related fMRI changes), this talk will focus on recent human TUS studies.

Speaker Biography

Dr Elsa Fouragnan is a cognitive neuroscientist, appointed Associate Professor at the School of Psychology, UKRI Future Leader Fellow, and the Head of the Brain Stimulation Department at Brain Research Imaging Centre (BRIC), Faculty of Health, University of Plymouth, UK.

She is a trained biomedical engineer and moved into neuroscience during her PhD at the University of Trento, Italy (2009-2013) followed by two Postdoctoral Fellowships at the Universities of Glasgow and Oxford, UK (2013-2018). In 2018, she started her own laboratory at Plymouth, investigating the human brain circuits mediating decision making and learning using a range of neuroimaging and neurostimulation methods.

Since she started her lab, she has generated more than £3M in grant income (~£1.2M as PI), published 18 papers in high-impact journals, been an integral part of the development of £9M BRIC and built an internationally renowned laboratory. She has also been responsible for creating a new MSc in Human Neuroscience programme (the first at the University of Plymouth), leading and teaching in several modules in Life Science and Neuroscience.

She also took two career breaks for maternity leave from June 2019 (6 months; her first daughter), and June 2021 (3 months; her second daughter).

This seminar is free to attend and is open to all, both within and outside the University. Attendance is possible both in-person and online on Zoom, details of Zoom registration and physical location can be found above.