Brain Stimulation and Cognition

FPN research group

The Brain Stimulation and Cognition group at Maastricht University aims to unravel the psychological and neural mechanisms of human cognition and behaviour. How is it that a brain, simply a collection of cells, can give rise to something as rich and expansive as everyday human experience? How does the brain solve the many problems -easy or difficult- that we encounter in our daily lives? Our group specifically focuses on the use of non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) methodologies combined with neuroimaging (fMRI, EEG) techniques to study functional network accounts of human cognition, and to develop and apply brain-based neuromodulation therapies for various neuropsychiatric disorders.

Our research lines span from basic cognitive neuroscience in healthy volunteers, to methodological advancements in brain stimulation technology and protocols, all the way to clinical applications in psychiatry, neurology, and rehabilitation. We are interested in the neural network dynamics underlying human cognition, but also investigate the role of brain oscillations in perception, memory, attention, and inhibitory control. 

We make an effort to advance NIBS methodology, optimising parameters and employing multimodal approaches combining TMS and TES with neuroimaging and neurophysiology as well as expanding closed-loop approaches to NIBS. Our group pioneered the development of simultaneously implemented TMS-fMRI-EEG during cognitive behaviour and has demonstrated the brain-state-and task-dependency of NIBS. We have successfully translated our fundamental and methodological work to the clinic including neuromodulation therapies for depression (now regulatory approved and reimbursed), OCD, and cognitive rehabilitation after stroke.  

Our interdisciplinary and translational research program continues to deliver both, fundamental insights into neurobiological mechanisms of attention, working memory, and inhibitory control in healthy participants, and new brain-system-based personalised interventions for clinical applications in psychiatry, neurology, and neurorehabilitation.

Research lines

Brain Stimulation and Cognition

Brain Stimulation and Cognition

This topic covers the overarching themes in our research group. See for other research topics the tabs on the right.


Human cognition

This research focuses on the neurobiological and psychological principles underlying attention, memory and cognitive control - combining various brain research techniques, ranging from psychophysics and eye-tracking to functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI), Electroencephalography (EEG), and Noninvasive Brain Stimulation (NIBS), especially Transcranial Magnetic (TMS) and Transcranial Electric Brain Stimulation (TES, including TDCS and TACS)

In this research line, we investigate the neural network dynamics underlying human cognition, aim to experimentally establish functional brain-cognition relationships, unmask and guide the highly dynamic network properties and enormous capacity, adaptivity, and flexibility of the human brain to compensate for any malfunction and to reorganize neural networks to maintain or regain functionality of cognition, as well as to use personalized, oscillatory- and network-based neuromodulation technologies to enhance cognitive performances in the healthy and diseased human brain.

 

Multimodal Cognitive Brain Stimulation

This research line simultaneously combines noninvasive brain stimulation and neuroimaging techniques, including concurrent TMS – fMRI, concurrent TMS – EEG, concurrent TES – fMRI, concurrent TES – EEG, and concurrent TMS – EEG – fMRI. Sack’s group in Maastricht pioneered the development of simultaneously implemented TMS-fMRI-EEG during cognitive behavior, allowing to apply brain-stimulation while recording the individual brain network (fMRI) and oscillation (EEG) states of cognitively engaged participants. These multimodal brain stimulation approaches enable the direct and non-invasive in-vivo probing of brain-state dependent signal propagation within specific brain-wide cortico-subcortical networks and to study how temporal (oscillations) and spatial (brain-wide networks) coding dynamics interrelate. The noninvasive investigation of such oscillation-network coupling principles allows for subject-specific network research into dynamic cognitive circuits and their dysfunction. 

 

State-dependence of noninvasive brain stimulation

This research line capitalizes on the combination of brain stimulation and neuroimaging to systematically assess the brain state dependence of transcranial magnetic and transcranial electric brain stimulation technologies. The neurophysiological and cognitive effects of various rTMS and TES protocols are empirically assessed using fMRI and EEG in the context of either different experimentally induced brain states (e.g. cognitive states), and/or EEG-indexed spontaneous fluctuations of endogenous oscillatory resting brain states (e.g. phase-dependent network effects of TMS), and/or the neural state history (e.g. priming or preconditioning). The state-dependence of brain stimulation is also relevant for optimizing protocols aimed at inducing neuroplasticity in the brain.

 

Brain Plasticity

This research line develops and tests new brain stimulation protocols capable of inducing longer lasting neuroplastic changes. Although repetitive TMS is capable of inducing such longer lasting changes in cortical excitability, the frequency-dependence, state-dependence, and inter-subject variability remain poorly understood. We aim to contribute to a better understating of the mechanisms of neuroplasticity as induced by neuromodulation and brain stimulation technologies, hoping to reduce the currently still unsolved problem of intra-subject reliability and inter-subjkect variability.  This will not only inform us about the fundamental mechanism of brain plasticity in the context of human cognition, but also guide the development of innovative and optimized clinical protocols for treating various psychiatric and neurological disorders.   

 

Clinical Applications of Noninvasive Brain Stimulation

All research lines described above have direct and indirect implications also for the clinical applications of TMS and TES. Our group constantly aims to promote scientific research and collaboration in the field of applied noninvasive brain stimulation and its translation to clinical practice. As part of a large international network of academic hospitals and clinical practitioners, we are actively involved in bringing the gap between scientific research and clinical practice in the field of brain stimulation. These research lines include clinical research for using TMS and TES for the drug-free treatment of Depression, OCD, Neuropathic Pain, Stroke rehabilitation, Parkinson’s Disease, and Alzheimer’s Disease. We are always open for other clinical cooperation partners interested in expanding, optimizing, and evaluating the indications for noninvasive brain stimulation. Please see also our External PhD Program. 

PI: Alexander Sack

PhD Positions and Internships at the BSC lab at Maastricht University 

Internships: we do have a limited number of internship positions available. In case you are interested, please send a motivation letter, your CV, the exact period of your intended commitment, and the study program under which the internship falls to fpn-bsclab@maastrichtuniversity.nl

PhD Positions: In case we have a PhD position available, this vacancy will always be transparently and explicitly advertised in the university website and academic transfer. Any applications need to go via those media.

Our Alumni

  • Samantha Baldi
  • Nina Bien
  • Aline Elias Caldeira Dantas
  • Tom de Graaf
  • Franziska Emmerling, néé Dambacher
  • Tahnée Engelen
  • Stefano Galloto
  • Guiseppe Giglia

     

  • Hannah Meijs

  • Christianne Jacobs
  • Shanice Janssens
  • Katerina Kandylaki
  • Selma Kemmerer
  • Mathilde Kennis
  • Noralie Krepel
  • George Mikellides 
  • Tomasso Picolli
  • Helena Voetterl

  • Rosanne Rademakers 
  • Geraldine Rodriguez Nieto
  • Lukas Schilberg
  • Alix Thomson
  • Eveline Vandewal
  • Ting Wang
  • Katie Wheat

Publications