Cognitive impairment is a devastating symptom of Parkinson’s disease, with limited treatment options. Non-invasive brain stimulation shows potential to treat cognitive impairment. However, interindividual heterogeneity of cognitive impairments compromises its efficacy, so personalised approaches are needed. Dr. Tim van Balkom has been awarded a Veni grant of the Dutch Research Council.
In this Veni project, Van Balkom will personalise the target of brain stimulation for Parkinson-related cognitive impairment. Aiming to boost treatment efficacy. He will identify ‘fingerprints’ of brain network disruptions that are related to cognitive impairment and may serve as potential targets for brain stimulation.
To obtain personalised fingerprints, Van Balkom will use a large healthy reference samples (N ≈ 43.250) to train ‘brain charts’. These are models of ‘normal’ functional connectivity for every brain region. He will assess deviations from normal connectivity, and relate these deviations to their cognitive impairment. This will be done in ±1500 individuals with Parkinson’s disease. This will result in a ‘cognitive shortlist’ of relevant brain regions for brain stimulation to improve cognitive function.
Strategies
To translate the brain charts to clinical application, two strategies will be used. First, a retrospective assessment of the association between efficacy of brain stimulation and deviation from normal connectivity. Van Balkom will assess this in two studies that used non-invasive brain stimulation in healthy controls (N = 50) and Parkinson’s disease (N = 20). Second, he will assess the effect of stimulating a personalised target (based on the fingerprint) relative to a standard stimulation target in 40 individuals with Parkinson’s disease and cognitive impairment in a prospective, randomised controlled study.
Altogether, this project will provide a proof of concept for the use and translation of brain charts to personalise non-invasive brain stimulation. The models and methods developed in this study will be made freely available, to benefit other brain disorders and diseases.
Read more about the laureates of the Veni grant on the website of NWO