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Project

De NEural BAsis of Thermoception (NEBAT): een gecombineerde intracerebrale elektrofysiologische en systeemneurowetenschappelijke studie

Thermoception refers to the sensation of temperature differences derived from heat flux. It is a particular modality of interoception, which covers all sensations related to the state of the body. There is accumulating evidence that interoception contributes to the way that social cues are perceived and interpreted, i.e. social cognition. Deficits in social cognition are a hallmark of frontotemporal dementia (FTD), a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by behavioral changes and thermoceptive deficits. Importantly, all these concepts (thermoception, interoception, social cognition and FTD) share a neuroanatomical basis: the insular cortex. This project bridges these concepts by combining unique expertise from UCL with unique expertise at KU Leuven, both at the conceptual and methodological level. Specifically, we will investigate thermoception by means of intracerebral electroencephalography (iEEG) in epilepsy patients with electrodes implanted in the insula (UCL expertise) . This sample of epilepsy patients and a new sample of FTD patients will also take part in a task-based functional magnetic resonance imaging and behavioral assessment of interoception and social cognition (KUL expertise). This combination of center-specific techniques and expertise allows obtaining optimal focal temporal and spatial resolution, together with coverage of neural responses across the whole brain. The project will provide innovative findings of the neural mechanisms underlying thermoception, the role of thermoception and interoception in social cognition, and the pathophysiology of FTD. Furthermore, the project may lay the basis for a long term collaboration between the respective research groups.
Date:1 Oct 2023 →  Today
Keywords:insula, fMRI, intracerebral EEG, interoception
Disciplines:Electrophysiology, Diagnostic radiology, Social perception and cognition, Neuropsychology