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Rigshospitalet

Functional MRI

Contact person: Patrick Fisher

At NRU, we apply functional magnetic resonance imaging to extract features of brain function, connectivity, and blood flow that we in turn map onto molecular, behavioral, and clinical phenotypes as well as pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions.

Our application of BOLD fMRI includes the acquisition of resting-state fMRI and task-based fMRI, including paradigms related to threat, reward, aggression, and learning as well as visual, auditory, and motor processing. Measures of blood flow are acquired with pseudo-continuous arterial spin labeling (pcASL).

Consistent with the translational research aims of NRU, fMRI data acquisition is integrated into many research projects with healthy and patient human populations. Leveraging a particular strength of NRU, many of our human studies combine the complementary information about brain function that is gained from fMRI and brain chemistry that is gained from PET.

MRI data are acquired on our Siemens 3T Prisma scanner using 20, 32- or 64-channel head coils. Through collaboration with the Department of Clinical Physiology, Nuclear Medicine & PET, we also collect data on one of two Siemens 3T mMR Biograph combined PET-MRI scanners. We develop and maintain in-house pipelines to facilitate rapid and documented data preprocessing and analysis to meet the needs of large-scale data collection project.

We are always eager to explore and develop local and international collaborations including those that apply fMRI to address immediately relevant clinical research questions. In addition to international collaborations, we have on-going clinical projects with partners in the Danish Capital Region including the Departments of Psychiatry, Cardiology, and Neurology as well as the Danish Headache Center at Rigshospitalet (Blegdamsvej and Glostrup).

Examples of recent publications:

  • Amiri M*, Fisher PM*, Raimondo F, Sidaros A, Cacic Hribljan M, Othman MH, Zibrandtsen I, Albrechtsen SS, Bergdal O, Hansen AE, Hassager C, Højgaard JLS, Jakobsen EW, Jensen HR, Møller J, Nersesjan V, Nikolic M, Olsen MH, Sigurdsson ST, Sitt JD, Sølling C, Welling KL, Willumsen LM, Hauerberg J, Larsen VA, Fabricius M, Knudsen GM, Kjaergaard J, Møller K, Kondziella D. 2023. Multimodal prediction of residual consciousness in the intensive care unit: the CONNECT-ME study. Brain. 146: 50–64. DOI: 10.1093/brain/awac335.
  • Macoveanu J, Petersen JZ, Fisher PM, Kessing LV, Knudsen GM, Miskowiak KW. 2023. Associations between aberrant working memory-related neural activity and cognitive impairments in somatically healthy, remitted patients with mood disorders. Psychological Medicine. 1–11. DOI: 10.1017/s0033291723000715.
  • Sankar A, Ozenne B, Dam VH, Svarer C, Jørgensen MB, Miskowiak KW, Frokjaer VG, Knudsen GM, Fisher PM. 2023. Association between brain serotonin 4 receptor binding and reactivity to emotional faces in depressed and healthy individuals. Translational Psychiatry. 13: 165. DOI: 10.1038/s41398-023-02440-3.
  • Bjertrup A, Macoveanu J, Laurent H, Moszkowicz M, Finnegan MK, Egmose I, Fisher PM, Nielsen RE, Pagsberg AK, Kessing LV, Væver M, Miskowiak K. 2022. Reduced prefrontal cortex response to own vs. unknown emotional infant faces in mothers with bipolar disorder. European Neuropsychopharmacology. 54: 7–20. DOI: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2021.09.011.
  • Fisher PM, Ozenne B, Ganz M, Frokjaer VG, Dam VN, Penninx BW, Sankar A, Miskowiak K, Jensen PS, Knudsen GM, Jorgensen MB. 2022. Emotional faces processing in major depressive disorder and prediction of antidepressant treatment response: A NeuroPharm study. Journal of Psychopharmacology. 36: 626–636. DOI: 10.1177/02698811221089035.
  • Olsen AS, Lykkebo-Valløe A, Ozenne B, Madsen MK, Stenbæk DS, Armand S, Mørup M, Ganz M, Knudsen GM, Fisher PM. 2022. Psilocybin modulation of time-varying functional connectivity is associated with plasma psilocin and subjective effects. NeuroImage. 264: 119716. DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2022.119716.
  • Bjertrup A, Macoveanu J, Laurent H, Moszkowicz M, Finnegan MK, Egmose I, Fisher PM, Nielsen RE, Pagsberg AK, Kessing LV, Væver M, Miskowiak K. 2022. Reduced prefrontal cortex response to own vs. unknown emotional infant faces in mothers with bipolar disorder. European Neuropsychopharmacology. 54: 7–20. DOI: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2021.09.011.
  • Madsen MK, Stenbæk DS, Arvidsson A, Armand S, Marstrand-Joergensen MR, Johansen SS, Linnet K, Ozenne B, Knudsen GM, Fisher PM. 2021. Psilocybin-induced changes in brain network integrity and segregation correlate with plasma psilocin level and psychedelic experience. European Neuropsychopharmacology. 50: 121–132. DOI: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2021.06.001.
  • Hansen HD, Lindberg U, Ozenne B, Fisher PMD, Johansen A, Svarer C, Keller SH, Hansen AE, Knudsen GM. 2020. Visual stimuli induce serotonin release in occipital cortex: A simultaneous positron emission tomography/magnetic resonance imaging study. Human Brain Mapping. 41: 4753–4763. DOI: 10.1002/hbm.25156.
  • da Cunha-Bang S, Fisher PM, Hjordt L V., Perfalk E, Beliveau V, Holst K, Knudsen GM. 2018. Men with high serotonin 1B receptor binding respond to provocations with heightened amygdala reactivity. NeuroImage. 166: 79–85. DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2017.10.032.