WELCOME TO DR. TONY WILSON'S LABORATORY
Collaborators
Research Goals
Funding
Techniques used in the laboratory
Personnel
Dr. Wilson's home page
Dr. Wilson's biographical information
Collaborators
Max Kurx
Steve Bonasera
Howard Gendelman
Jordan Green, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Tiffany Hogan, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Christopher Kratochvil
Michele Aizenberg
Deepak Madhavan
R. Lee Mosley
Howard Fox
Mike Boska
Uriel Sandkovsky
Susan Swindells
Martin Wetzel
Matthew White
Research Goals:
Current work in Dr. Wilson’s Laboratory focuses on the application of neurophysiological imaging methods for understanding the basic pathophysiology of disease, and for quantifying neuronal changes that accompany pharmacotherapies and/or behavioral interventions directed at these diseases. The primary neurophysiological focus is on high- and ultra high-frequency cortical oscillations due to their known role in information processing, and network level inter-regional communication. At present, major effort is directed toward using these methods to further understand how HIV-infection affects the brain's neocortical areas, and to discern whether HIV treatments (e.g., combined antiretroviral therapy) modulate or reverse these neocortical changes. It is well known that HIV crosses the blood-brain-barrier, but its ultimate impact on neurons and cognitive function in HIV patients who are receiving treatment is not understood. A second line of work investigates the neural pathophysiology of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). A primary goal of this work is to understand how traditional (e.g., amphetamines) and non-traditional (e.g., atomoxetine) medications modulate cortical functioning to achieve symptom suppression in patients with ADHD, and to illuminate how these drug-related neuronal effects change as young patients enter adulthood. An underlying premise of this work is that by understanding the mechanisms of efficacious treatments, one can extract key insights on the basic pathophysiology of ADHD and its symptomatology. Another line of work in Dr. Wilson's Laboratory evaluates the impact that dopaminergic treatments have on cortical function and cortical-subcortical oscillatory activity in patients with mild to moderate Parkinson’s disease. Currently, it is widely recognized that Parkinson’s is associated with pathological levels of cortical-subcortical synchronization. Work in the Laboratory focuses on how such neuronal synchronization is affected by dopamine-based treatments and disease progression.
Funding:
Annual Translational Research Award, Green/Hogan (co-PIs) 07/01/2010 - 06/30/2012
Great Plains Health Research Consortium (GPHRC)
Biological Pathways in Childhood Speech and Language Impairments
Role: Co-Investigator (Co-I)
This project examines the neural basis of language aberrations in children with specific language impairment (SLI) and childhood apraxia of speech. Dr. Wilson oversees the MEG and MRI imaging aspects of the project.
HBM Foundation Award, Stuberg (PI) 01/01/2011 – 12/31/2015
Hattie B. Munroe Foundation
Center for the Neural Basis of Motor Development & Rehabilitation
Role: Co-Investigator (Co-I)
This award provides startup money for a brain imaging center that is dedicated to comparative neuroplasticity research using different rehabilitation methods in children with developmental disabilities such as cerebral palsy and childhood apraxia. Dr. Wilson will oversee all imaging aspects of the project.
Techniques used in the laboratory
Magnetoencephalography (MEG) Electroencephalography (EEG) Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) Intracranial recordings (electrocorticography, or ECoG) Structural magnetic resonance imaging (sMRI) Diffusion-tensor imaging (DTI) Psychophysics Behavioral methods
Personnel
Beth Heinrichs (BS) - graduate student
John Franzen (MD) - 4th year psychiatry resident
Nichole Knott (R.EEG.T) - MEG Specialist
Autumn McIlraith (BA) - graduate student
Dr. Wilson's home page
Dr. Wilson's biographical information
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