TRANSLATIONAL NEUROIMAGING CORE C ABSTRACT Project Summary The Translational Neuroimaging Core services will: (1) provide U54 investigators with facilities and services to support their individual neuroimaging research programs in the area of intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD); (2) develop novel data acquisition and analysis methods for measuring sensory/perceptual, cognitive, and social/ motivational functioning in those with IDD; (3) utilize repositories of ?big data? at Vanderbilt to develop new tools and discoveries for IDD; (4) facilitate interdisciplinary collaborations among VKC investigators who may or may not have neuroimaging expertise; and (5) ensure that the services provided are timely, of the highest quality, and cost-effective. The Translational Neuroimaging Core C will support U54 users in the above areas for magnetic resonance (MR) neuroimaging as well as psychophysiological measures. The Core?s services can be broadly construed into two different categories: (1) those that are responsive to investigators? needs and (2) those that are generative, and provide new directions in IDD for investigators to leverage. Investigator need-based services provided include assistance in (a) experimental design, including selecting appropriate tasks for functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) or electroencephalogram (EEG)/event-related potentials (ERP), (b) identification of the optimal modalities of MR imaging or EEG/ERP/eye tracking acquisition parameters, (c) implementation of MRI and EEG/ERP data collection with special populations (individuals with various IDDs, especially infants and children), and (d) management and analysis of MRI and EEG/ERP/eye tracking data. The generative and innovative component of the Translational Neuroimaging Core C focuses on key areas that are of particular interest for IDD researchers: design of novel experimental paradigms optimized for IDDs; increasing data quantity and quality; and conducting data analysis on a large scale (e.g., across studies). To this end, the Core will focus on developing robust image processing techniques to handle challenging data (e.g., movement artifacts) and leveraging BioVU resources using ?big data? approaches. While expertise and resources in neuroimaging, advanced computing, and data management tools are available at Vanderbilt University, none are tailored for the special needs of those who study IDDs.
The Aims and services in Core C all have the central goal: to facilitate cost-efficient discovery that leads to the prevention and/or amelioration of IDD. Each member of the Core has strong ties to the larger Vanderbilt community, thus enabling seamless linkages between entities at Vanderbilt that are critical for the Core. The Core will serve 17 funded IDD research-related projects, along with the Research Project (PI: Wallace).
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