MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences UnitLanguage is a key human ability. When impaired (e.g., after stroke or neurodegeneration), patients are left with significant disability in their professional and everyday lives. These language problems (known as aphasia) are common – around one-third of the 10 million+ patients in the acute phase post stroke. Many patients show some degree of partial recovery […]
A core brain network organizing thought and behaviour
Every thought or action brings together different kinds of information. If we go to the fridge for milk, we combine knowledge of the spatial layout of the kitchen, sensory input from the contents of the fridge, our goal of making tea and our knowledge of what tea requires, as well as the commands that move […]
Does decoding the brain tell us about the mind?
In the past decade, scientists have been excited about new analytical methods, using machine learning, that allow us to track information coded in patterns of brain activity. We can use them to “read” out from brain activity what participants are looking at or paying attention to, or even what they are imagining. But are the […]
Why does brain activity increase in old age?
Increased prefrontal cortex activity during tasks such as encoding new memories is often observed in some healthy older adults, despite overall age-related declines in memory and other cognitive functions. This study compared two leading models of brain ageing: that the frontal cortex is either compensating for impairments elsewhere in the brain; or alternatively, that structural […]
Using machine learning to predict behaviour from brain injury
In the search for the neural basis of behaviour, researchers tend to work backwards: they first collect data about a given characteristic, then search for brain imaging metrics that correlate with that measure. But recent developments in applied mathematics and neuroimaging have enabled researchers to adopt the opposite approach. By evaluating the importance of neural […]
Behavioural disinhibition, glutamate, and GABA: mechanisms of frontotemporal lobar degeneration
Behavioural disinhibition is a common feature of frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) syndromes. Impulsive behaviour in several neuropsychiatric diseases and FTLD have been linked with reduced levels of the neurotransmitters, glutamate and GABA. This study aimed to investigate, through a transdiagnostic approach, whether prefrontal glutamate and GABA levels are reduced by FTLD and if these deficits […]
Keeping the beat: how the brain processes the rhythms of speech
When the brain encounters a rhythm—for instance, through music, or direct electrical stimulation—it aligns its oscillation patterns (‘brainwaves’) to the beat. However, it is unclear if these stimulus-aligned brain responses are internally driven—through the brain’s own underlying patterns of activity—or if they are evoked by the rhythm of the stimulus itself. In this study, researchers […]
Mind over Matter: how hippocampal GABA enables inhibitory control over unwanted thoughts
We can’t always control what we think, for those with psychiatric disorders, this is especially challenging. Intrusive memories, flashbacks, and hallucinations are hallmark symptoms of a variety of mental health conditions. Although these symptoms are often attributed to problems with brain regions that help us inhibit unwanted thoughts—such as the prefrontal cortex—difficulties in controlling intrusive […]
