Laboratory of Neurophysiology

In our laboratory we use various neurophysiological techniques to research the neuronal basis and therapeutic approaches to psychiatric disorders in children and adolescents. Currently, our focus is Autism Spectrum Disorder, social phobia and depression. We use electroencephalography (EEG) and transcranial magnetic stimulation with simultaneous electroencephalography (TMS-EEG). We also use Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) and investigate its neurophysiological effects by means of EEG measurements. Neurophysiological measures are not only recorded at rest but also during cognitive and affective processes relevant to the individual psychiatric disorders. For this purpose, neuropsychological tasks are applied, e.g. for implicit facial emotion recognition or working memory performance.

Luckhardt, C., Kröger, A., Elsuni, L., Cholemkery, H., Bender, S., & Freitag, C. M. (2018). Facilitation of biological motion processing by group‐based autism specific social skills training. Autism Research, 11(10), 1376-1387.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30324710/

Luckhardt, C., Kröger, A., Cholemkery, H., Bender, S., & Freitag, C. M. (2017). Neural Correlates of Explicit Versus Implicit Facial Emotion Processing in ASD. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 47(7), 1944-1955.  

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10803-017-3141-1

Jarczok, T. A., Fritsch, M., Kröger, A., Schneider, A. L., Althen, H., Siniatchkin, M., Freitag, C.M.,  Bender, S. (2016). Maturation of interhemispheric signal propagation in autism spectrum disorder and typically developing controls: a TMS-EEG study. Journal of neural transmission, 123(8), 925–935. doi:10.1007/s00702-016-1550-5

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00702-016-1550-5

Luckhardt, C., Jarczok, T. A., & Bender, S. (2014). Elucidating the neurophysiological underpinnings of    autism spectrum disorder: new developments. Journal of Neural Transmission, 121(9), 1129-1144.

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00702-014-1265-4

A list of the respective publications can be viewed via Researchgate or pubmed under the names of the respective researchers.

• EU-funded project STIPED: Transcranial brain stimulation as an innovative therapy for chronic paediatric neuropsychiatric disorders
• Study on neurophysiological correlates of social phobia
• Study on social competence in autism (SoKo ASS)

http://cordis.europa.eu/project/rcn/207203_en.html

The aim of the project is to evaluate the effectiveness of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) as an innovative, effective and safe treatment alternative for neuropsychiatric diseases in children and adolescents. Initially, two randomised, double-blind, sham-controlled phase IIa clinical studies in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) will establish standard procedures for the use of tDCS in the clinical setting, investigating brain regions involved in the core symptoms of ADHD and ASD. Secondly, state-of-the-art imaging and neurophysiological techniques are used to investigate the effects of tDCS on brain development and function. Furthermore, the neurobiological mechanisms underlying the response to tDCS will be studied. Finally, innovative, personalised treatment options for tDCS at home will be developed. Our research team is responsible for work package 5 (clinical study of tDCS in autism) and also investigates the neurobiological mechanisms by analysing event-related potentials before and after tDCS treatment within work package 7.

STIPED is funded by the European Union's Promotion and Innovation Programme under Grant Agreement No 731827. The total duration of the project is 5 years (2017-2022).

The project is carried out in collaboration with the Institute for Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology (IMPS) of the University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, the Clinic for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (KKJP) of the Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg, the Institute for Biomedical Imaging and Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, the Hovedstaden region (RegionH) Danish Research Center for Magnetic Resonance (DRCMR), the Centre Hospitalier Regional Universitaire de Tours, the Clinic for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Centre for Integrative Psychiatry Kiel and the Clinic for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy Evangelisches Klinikum Bethel Bielefeld.

Further information: Christina Luckhardt, Sara Boxhoorn, Magdalena Schütz & Andreas Mühlherr

E-Mail: KJP_stiped[at]kgu.de

Processing social stimuli is an important basis for putting oneself in someone else’s shoes and being able to socially interact with them. Using electroencephalography, we investigate the underlying brain activity during various tasks related to social perception and compare the activity patterns of children and adolescents with and without autism.

Further information: KJP_stiped[at]kgu.de

EU-gefördertes Projekt "Transcranial brain stimulation as innovative therapy for chronic pediatric neuropsychiatric disorders - STIPED consortium" (EU Horizon 2020 grant agreement No 731827 STIPED). Coordinator: Prof. Michael Siniatchkin, Universitätsklinikum Schleswig-Holstein

Prof. C.M. Freitag - Head of Workpackage 5 (clinical study on tDCS in autism)

Prof. C. Ecker - Head of Workpackage 6 (Prediction of the individual response to tDCS - Biomarker)