Our laboratory explores the cerebral basis of cognitive function in healthy people and in patients with neurological and psychiatric diseases. We are particularly interested in human memory formation and emotional processing.
We are based within the Centre for Biomedical Technology, Technical University of Madrid, and are affiliated to a number of clinical institutions (such as Hospital Clinico San Carlos, a central Madrid teaching Hospital), providing an interdisciplinary platform for clinical and cognitive neuroscience.
We employ a multimodal approach to the study of human memory and emotions, and are currently conducting research using:
- Magnetoencephalography (MEG)
- Intracranial recordings in humans
- Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)
- Psychopharmacology
- Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)
- Cognitive effects of deep-brain stimulation (DBS)
As part of a major research focus in understanding memory decline in aging and dementia, we form the Neuroimaging Department of the Spanish Research Centre for Neurological Diseases. At this site we have:
- A research-dedicated MRI facility attached to a 156-bed residence for patients with Alzheimer’s disease.
- A brain-bank providing post-mortem histopathological confirmation of dementia diagnosis for patients scanned pre-mortem.
- A 5-year longitudinal study (currently in year 5) of 1200 healthy elderly individuals (aged 70-85). At each yearly visit, volunteers undergo detailed neuropsychological and clinical evaluation, serum biochemistry analysis, as well as a comprehensive MRI protocol, with genetic data acquired on visit 1.
- Ex-vivo MRI scanning.
