Key Points
- The 8th annual Brainbox Initiative Conference was held September 19–20 in London.
- Kim Butts-Pauly, PhD, a focused ultrasound expert from Stanford University, gave the keynote address.
- Focused ultrasound was heavily featured in the program, with 9 talks and 7 posters covering various focused ultrasound neuromodulation applications.
- JeYoung Jung, PhD, and Godber Mathis Godbersen, MD, PhD, won awards.
The 2024 Brainbox Initiative Conference was held in London on September 19-20 and united participants from around the globe to explore the latest breakthroughs in neuroscience. The program centered on noninvasive brain stimulation research and highlighted innovations in transcranial ultrasound stimulation (TUS), electrical stimulation (tES), and magnetic stimulation (TMS). Speakers also presented advanced brain imaging techniques that could enable a deeper mechanistic understanding of neural activity.
Ultrasound neuromodulation was discussed in 15 presentations and posters in addition to this year’s keynote speech, given by Dr. Kim Butts-Pauly of Stanford University. Two focused ultrasound researchers, Dr. JeYoung Jung and Dr. Godber Mathis Godbersen, won awards for their work.
When asked about her experiences attending this meeting, Dr. Butts-Pauly said, “Small, cutting-edge conferences such as the BrainBox Initiative provide great opportunities to meet people and have discussions across modalities.”
Focused Ultrasound Presentations
- Stressing the Strain in Transcranial Ultrasound Stimulation by Kim Butts-Pauly, Stanford University
- Transcranial Ultrasound Stimulation to the Human Amygdala in Emotion and Decision Making by Miriam Klein-Flügge, University of Oxford
- Ultrasound System for Precise Neuromodulation of Human Deep Brain Circuits by Bradley Treeby, University College London
- The Effects of Ultrasound Neuromodulation at the Cellular and Molecular Level by Daniel Whitcomb, University of Bristol
- Ultrasound System for Precise Neuromodulation of Human Deep Brain Circuits by Ioana Grigoras, University of Oxford
- A Nudge in the ‘Right’ Direction: Biasing Eye Movements with Ultrasonic Stimulation by Soha Farboud, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behavior
- Human Cognitive Function Improvements After Focused Ultrasound Stimulation Are Linked to Functional Connectivity Changes by Marcus Kaiser, University of Nottingham
- Emerging Noninvasive Brain Stimulation Technologies by Kevin Caulfield, Medical University of South Carolina
- Differential Roles of the Anterior Insula and Dorsal Anterior Cingulate Cortex in Motivational Learning Biases by Nomiki Koutsoumpari, University of Plymouth
Focused Ultrasound Posters
- Mapping the Brain Circuit of Pain Modulation with Transcranial Ultrasound Stimulation by Sophie Clarke, University of Exeter and University of Plymouth
- TUS of the Human RmPFC and Precuneus Differentially Modulate Decision Making in Private and Social Contexts by Mathilde Lojkiewiez, University of Plymouth
- Excitatory-Inhibitory Modulation of Transcranial Focused Ultrasound Stimulation on Human Motor Cortex by Tingting Zhang, Capital Medical University
- Enhancing Semantic Memory With Transcranial Focused Ultrasound Stimulation of the Anterior Temporal Lobe by JeYoung Jung, University of Nottingham*
- Sonication of the Right Caudate Nucleus Seems to Affect Cognitive Flexibility by Franz R. Schmid, University of Vienna
- Optimizing Transcranial Focused Ultrasound Stimulation: An Open-Source Tool for Precise Targeting by Cyril Atkinson-Clement, University of Nottingham
- Excitatory Offline Effects of 5Hz-rTUS (tbTUS) Fail to Replicate: A Double-Blind Study by Benjamin R. Kop, Radboud University
Awards
- Research Challenge Award 2024, Dr. Godber Mathis Godbersen, Medical University of Vienna
Brainbox Initiative’s Scientific Committee granted the 2024 Research Challenge Award to Dr. Godber Mathis Godbersen for his work on establishing a quantifiable molecular marker for neuromodulatory effects of functional transcranial ultrasound stimulation. This research enables “tuning” of the sonication parameters to standardize treatment across patients. This award is designed to springboard early-career researchers and includes the loan of state-of-the-art equipment along with expert technical support.
- *Best Research Poster Award 2024, Dr. JeYoung Jung, University of Nottingham