Experts at the University of Nottingham have received £2.4m in funding to develop new noninvasive brain stimulation interventions for patients with a wide range of conditions including depression, schizophrenia, and Tourette's syndrome.
Experts in the University's School of Medicine, have received a Medical Research Programme Grant to test a series of novel interventions will lead to improved brain function and cognition in brain and mental health.
The study will be Led by Professor Marcus Kaiser and will involve Dr Mohammad Katshu and Professor Stam Sotiropoulos (from the School of Medicine) as well as Professor Stephen Jackson and Dr Jeyoung Jung from the School of Psychology, the project will start mid-2025.
As patients are reluctant to use brain implants, and pharmaceutical drugs can cause severe side effects, new interventions are needed. Non-invasive brain stimulation is an emerging possibility, but so far results have been inconsistent as not all patients respond to these interventions. As we know from animal studies, stimulation can be more effective if it is applied in line with ongoing activity in the brain. Therefore, a closed-loop approach, deciding on the right timing for stimulation has a prospect of better outcomes. Within this project, we will develop closed-loop neuromodulation in humans and test brain function improvements for schizophrenia and depression as well as for Tourette's syndrome."
Within this five year programme grant, the team will (1) test the effect of novel ultrasound or magnetic stimulation approaches, (2) study what biological changes ultrasound stimulation causes, (3) try to predict intervention outcomes, and (4) test brain function improvements in patients with psychiatric (schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression) and neurological (tics disorder) disorders.
A patient highlighted "The chance to improve someone's quality of life so profoundly in ways that can often be minimally invasive is an exciting frontier."
The project is part of Precision Imaging, the Institute of Mental Health, and the new Centre for Neurotechnology, Neuromodulation, and Neurotherapeutics (CN3) that will launch in May 2025. The CN3 brings together more than 24 faculty members ranging from basic research to clinical trials.
