(*) Summary: Human motor circuit of the Basal Ganglia (BG) is a complex network of functionally interconnected brain regions, considered as the substrate for motor control and patho-physiology of movement disorders in Parkinson’s disease (PD). The subthalamic nucleus (STN) of BG is the main target for functional neurosurgery in PD, but small size and low contrast has been a challenge in image-guided targeting. Despite the success of surgical procedures, the role of STN in motor control has so far not been clarified.

    This talk will highlight imaging and computational strategies to study the role of the STN during response selection in human brain and involvement in pathophysiology of PD. We combine high resolution magnetic resonance imaging (3D-MRI) and functional MRI (fMRI) with computational models and clinical data to provide insight into the dynamics of the BG network, from a neural to a system level. We have combined neuroimages with Graph Theory to identify network topology of brain circuitry underlying motor control. This procedure has allowed us to show disease-associated changes in functional and morphological patterns.
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(**) Rafael Rodriguez Rojas, MSc, is a Junior Associate of the ICTP (Physics of the Living State, Neurophysicsis). Currrently he completing his doctoral research in the area of neurophysics. He is an Assistant Researcher in the Brain Images Processing Group at the International Centre for Neurological Restoration. He is also Associate Professor of Physics in the Polytechnic High Institute Jose A. Echeverria, Havana, Cuba.
    Among the distinctions he has received we should mention: the Annual Prize of National Academy of Sciences, Cuba (2008), the Annual Prize of Health, Cuba (2001 and 2007), the Biannual Prize of Cuban Society on Biomedical Engineering (2003 and 2005) and especially the National Prize for Young Scientists, Cuba (2000).
    His fields of expertise are medical-image processing and analysis, brain computational models and computer-aided diagnosis and surgery. He is the author of 32 publications and conference presentations.