1.09.2016

Prof. Dr. Benjamin Straube took up the Heisenberg Professorship for Translational Imaging

Benjamin Straube took up the Heisenberg Professorship (W2) for Translational Imaging - Focus on Action and Perception at the Department Clinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy on september, 1st 2016.

Translational Neuroimaging

Principal Investigator: Prof. Dr. Benjamin Straube 

The Translational Neuroimaging group in Marburg (TNM-Lab) is an interdisciplinary workgroup linking experimental psychology, neuroimaging and the clinical neurosciences at the Philipps-University Marburg (UMR). The aim of the TNM-Lab is to fill the need for translating basic research from experimental psychology and neuroimaging to clinical investigations in patients with mental disorders, in particular schizophrenia and anxiety disorders. The Heisenberg Professorship is focused on three overarching themes, namely 1) the neural correlates of action-perception circuits, 2) dysfunctional multisensory integration and 3) the aberrant functional connectivity as general pathophysiological mechanism. The specific focus of the TNM-Lab is on predictive neural mechanisms in a multisensory environment as well as adaptive behavior reflected in learning, memory and neuro-functional plasticity (e.g., in context of psychotherapy). 
Additionally, the TNM-Lab is concerned with interdisciplinary research questions of how the human brain gives rise to complex processes such as ToM, social interactions and communication. In this sense the TNM-Lab combines multidisciplinary fields from speech science, social, cognitive and clinical psychology with experimental neurosciences.
The main method used in the TNM-Lab is functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Complementary to fMRI we also apply electroencephalography (EEG), brain stimulation techniques (tDCS) as well as behavioral experiments.
The TNM-Lab collaborates with different research consortia as well as national and international researchers. In particular, the TNM-Lab is associated to current DFG consortia in Marburg and Giessen regarding the neuroscientific investigation of action (IRTG 1901; Title: The Brain in Action, www.uni-marburg.de/fb13/forschungsgruppen/neurophysik/brainact/), perception (SFB/TRR 135; Title: Cardinal Mechanisms of Perception; http://www.allpsych.uni-giessen.de/sfb/projects.html) and their dysfunctions in psychiatric disorders (FOR 2107; Title: Neurobiology of Affective Disorders; www.FOR2107.de). Furthermore, the group is involved in the BMBF consortia (www.protect-ad.de) investigating the neural plasticity of psychotherapy. Using fear conditioning, extinction and semantic priming paradigms before and after cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) we try to shed light on neural changes of basic learning mechanisms due to therapeutic intervention. The experimental neuroscience group is concerned with interdisciplinary research questions of how the human brain gives rise to complex processes such as perception, memory, emotions, action, and communication. In this sense it combines multidisciplinary fields from speech science, social, cognitive and clinical psychology with experimental neurosciences. The specific focus is on predictive neural mechanisms in a multisensory environment as well as adaptive behavior reflected in learning, memory and neuro-functional plasticity.

The main method used in the experimental neuroscience group is functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Complementary to fMRI we also apply electroencephalography (EEG), brain stimulation techniques (tDCS) as well as behavioral experiments.

Focus of Research:

• Action and perception
• Multisensory integration
• Disconnectivity
• Clinical investigations: Schizophrenia, Anxiety disorders

Research Group:
Dr. phil. Arne Nagels, M.A. (Linguist)
Dr. rer. nat.  Bianca van Kemenade, M.Sc. (Psychologist)
Dipl.-Psych. Yunbo Yang, (doctoral candidate, Psychologist)
Yifei He, M.Sc. (doctoral candidate, Linguist)
Belkis Ezgi Arikan, M.Sc. (doctoral candidate, Psychologist)
Miriam Steines, B.A. (doctoral candidate, Linguist)
Gizem Neziroglu, M.Sc. (doctoral candidate, Psychologist)
Adrian Wroblewski, M.Sc. (doctoral candidate, Neuroscience)
Rasmus Schülke (doctoral candidate / medical student)
Benjamin Schmalenbach (doctoral candidate / medical student)
Denis Cana (doctoral candidate, Medicin)
Stephanie Morlock (doctoral candidate, Medicin)

Carolin Wittke (student assistant)
Christina Lubinus (student assistant)
Inessa Kraft (student assistant)
Alexei Surbo (student assistant)

Publications
Click here for Medline list of publications!