Brain plasticity, Brain tumor, Cognitive control, Huntington's disease, Language, White matter connectivity
How neurological conditions impact brain function and connectivity?
In our group we are interested in how a brain disease modifies brain structure and how these changes can further translate into cognitive function, language and behavior. We understand human cognition as a multifaceted system, difficult to separate into rígid categories. Our research is highly translational, as we join in my research state-of-the-art neuroimaging techniques with the design of new neuropsychological evaluation tests and bateries which has already been applied in clínics or have a great potential for an immediate and highly demanded application. Once a year, we share our knowledge on the neuropsychological assistance for awake brain surgeries during Bellvitge brain Mapping Course.
The two main research lines carried out at our lab englobe: (1) Pre-, intra- to postoperative language/cognitive function, and quality of life in brain tumour patients undergoing awake brain surgery with language/cognitive mapping; (2) The study of language and cognitive control in Huntington´s Disease (HD).
Additionally, we collaborate in studies on various neurological populations, as well as in non-human primates, like chimpanzees. To give some examples – we currently investigate the neural basis of rhythm processing in non-human primates (collaboration with the University of Tufts, USA and Marseille in France), neural correlates of memory loss in HD (UB), brain connectivity changes in HD (UB, Oxford University, UK and Donders Institute, NL ) or brain plasticity in post-stroke aphasia recovery (collaboration with the University of Groningen and the Donders Institute, NL).
We are also actively involved in science communication, by activities like carrying talks and workshops at the European Researchers Night, by participating in creation of science exhibitions (both at CosmoCaixa Museum in Barcelona) or by giving yearly talks at the International Day of Women and Girls in Science (100tifíques initiative).
Collaborators
Dr. V. Piai (Radboud University, NL)
Prof. R. Mars (University of Oxford, UK)
Prof. W. Kloc and Dr. A. Zdun-Ryzewska (University of Gdansk, PL)
Prof. A. Kiejna (Lower Silesia University, PL) and Prof. Ardi Roelofs (Radboud University, NL)
Dr. A. Rofes (University of Groningen, NL)
Dr. M. Polczynska (UCLA, USA)
Dr. K. Bryant (Aix-Marseille University, FR) and Prof. A. Patel (Tufts University, Boston, USA)
Prof. Albert Prats and Dr. Federico Varriano (both University of Barcelona, ES)
Former group members and international students
2023 -2024 Candidate: Natalia Antonova
Master | Joint European Erasmus Mundus Master’s Programme in Clinical Linguistics
(EMCL++) (University of Groningen, Ghent University, and University of Eastern Finland)
Master Thesis: Medial Temporal Lobe and Hippocampal connectivity and Memory and Language in Huntington’s Disease
2022 -2023 Candidate: Jo-Anne van der Sluijs
Master | Joint European Erasmus Mundus Master’s Programme in Clinical Linguistics (EMCL++) (University of Groningen, Ghent University, and University of Eastern Finland)
Master Thesis: The roles of the bilateral middle and inferior longitudinal fasciculi in verbal effectiveness and lexical retrieval after left hemisphere stroke
2022 -2023 Candidate: Daniela Lizarazo
Master | University of Roma La Sapienza – Cognitive Neuroscience Master (ERASMUS trainee at the University of Barcelona)
Master Thesis: The structural connectivity of (pre)Supplementary Motor Area and its relations with (language) cognitive control
Latest publications
Cepero-Escribano, V., Cerda-Company, X.; León-Cabrera, P.; Olivé, G.; Cucurell, D; Gasa-Roqué, A..; Gabarrós, A.; Naval-Baudin, P.; Camins, A.; Rico, I.; Fernandez-Coello, A.; Sierpowska, J. & Rodríguez-Fornells, A. Can the knight capture the queen? The role of supramarginal gyrus in chess rule-retrieval as evidenced by a novel combined awake brain mapping and fMRI protocol, Cortex, 2024
Gasa-Roqué, A., Rofes, A., Simó, M., Juncadella, M., I Rico Pons, I., Camins, A., Gabarrós, A., Rodríguez-Fornells, A., Sierpowska, J.; UNDERSTANDING LANGUAGE AND COGNITION AFTER BRAIN SURGERY – tumor grade, fine-grained assessment tools and, most of all, individualized approach, Journal of Neuropsychology, 2023
Sierpowska, J.1 & Bryant, K.L.1, Janssen, N., Freches, G., Römkens, M., Mangnus, M., Kessels R.P.C., Roelofs, A., Mars, R.B. & Piai, V. Comparing the architecture of temporal lobe language hubs in humans and chimpanzees reveals a suite of modifications beyond the frontotemporal arcuate fascicle, PNAS, 2022
Sierpowska, J., Rofes A., et al. Piai, V. THE AFTERCARE SURVEY – The assessment and intervention survey for professionals working with individuals after brain surgery, Neurooncology Practice 2022
Camins, A, Naval-Baudin,P, Majós,C, Sierpowska, J, Sanmillan, J L, Cos, M, Rodriguez-Fornells, A, Gabarrós, A, Inferior fronto-occipital fascicle displacement in temporoinsular gliomas using diffusion tensor imaging, Journal of Neuroimaging, 2022
Chupina, I., Sierpowska, J., Zheng X., Dewenter, A., Piastra, M.C., Piai, V., Time course of right-hemisphere recruitment during word production following left-hemisphere damage: A single case of young stroke , European Journal of Neuroscience, 2022, DOI: 10.1111/ejn.15813
Nicolás, B., Wu, X., Dimiccolli, M., Sierpowska, J., Saiz-Masvidal, C., Soriano-Mas, C., Radeva, P., & Fuentemilla, L., Behavioural and neurophysiological signatures in the retrieval of individual memories of recent and remote real-life routine episodic events. Cortex, 2021
Camerino, I; Sierpowska, J; Reid, A; Meyer, NH; Tuladhar, AM; MD, Kessels, RPC; de Leeuw, FE; Piai, V; White matter hyperintensities at critical crossroads for executive function and verbal abilities in small vessel disease, Human Brain Mapping, 2021
Janssen, N, Roelofs, A, Mangnus, M, Sierpowska, J, Kessels RPC; Piai, V. How word finding depends on ventral tract integrity in primary progressive aphasia, Neuroimage Clinical, 2020
Sierpowska, J; León-Cabrera, C; Camins, A; Juncadella, M; Gabarros, A; Rodríguez-Fornells, A; The black box of global aphasia: neuroanatomical underpinnings of remission from acute global aphasia with preserved inner language function, Cortex, 2020
Piai, V., De Witte, E., Sierpowska, J., Zheng, X., Hinkley, L. B., Mizuiri, D., Knight, R. T., Berger, M. S., & Nagarajan, S. S., Language Neuroplasticity in Brain Tumor Patients Revealed by Magnetoencephalography. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 2020
François, C., Ripollés, P., Ferreri, L., Muchart, J., Sierpowska, J., Fons, C., Solé, J., Rebollo, M., Zatorre, R.J., Garcia-Alix, A., Bosch, L., & Rodriguez-Fornells, A., Right structural and functional reorganization in 4-year-old children with perinatal arterial ischemic stroke predict language production, e-Neuro, 2019
De Paepe, A.E., Sierpowska, J., Garcia-Gorro, C, Martinez-Horta, S., Perez-Perez, J., Kulisevsky, J., Rodriguez-Dechicha, N., Vaquer, I., Subira, S., Calopa, M., Muñoz, E. Santacruz, P., Ruiz-Idiago, J., Mareca, C., de Diego-Balaguer, R., Camara, E., White matter cortico-striatal tracts predict apathy subtypes in Huntington’s disease, Neuroimage – Clinical, 2019
The Neuropsychological Assistance Workshop organized by us
Funding
Current:
Previous:
