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Imad M Najm
Director, Cleveland Clinic Epilepsy Center
Director of Cleveland Clinic Epilepsy Center, Dr. Najm has more than 25 years of experience in clinical and basic research in Epilepsy Medicine and its mechanisms. Currently, he oversees one of the largest centers in the world for innovative medical and surgical treatment of epilepsy. Dr. Najm and his team pioneered the use of outcome measures through the Knowledge Project to improve patient care and education. The analyses of various outcome measures help to improve the care of patients with epilepsy at various stages of the disease and to help the consumers in addressing various questions related to the care of epilepsy: “What are the risks of epilepsy?”, “How can I track my disease and its treatment?”, “What treatments are available and appropriate for each stage of the disease?”, “When should I seek specialized care?”, and “Where can I go for care?"
Dr. Najm is a Clinician with deep commitment to patient care and an Academician/innovator with a keen interest in further understanding the disease and introducing innovative approaches for the treatment of epilepsy. He is also an educator of physicians, medical students and consumers. Dr. Najm developed the first application (MyEpilepsy App) that is directed to patients/consumers in 2013. Over the last 10 years, Dr. Najm has been voted as one of the Best Doctors in Cleveland and the United States.
MyEpilepsy informs consumers/patients about epilepsy, the state of the disease and empowers them to make better healthcare decisions. In addition, it enables the patients to track their disease, increase their compliance with medications, and share their data with their providers. In addition, the App provides a platform for consumers to interact with each other, share potentially useful information through social media. It has the potential to increase patient engagement and education. The free MyEpilepsy app has been available on the iTunes™ since November 2013.
Dr. Najm earned his medical and undergraduate degrees at Saint Joseph University in Beirut Lebanon, pursued post-doctoral clinical and research training in Paris, France, the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, and the Cleveland Clinic. He helped developed the educational curriculum at The Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western University and served as a co-director of Neurosciences (2005-2011), and Basic Sciences (2008-2011). He has practiced Epilepsy at Cleveland Clinic since 1997.
Dr. Najm enjoys reading, cycling, painting, and traveling with his three children.
Patrick Chauvel, MD
A. Personal Statement
I am Staff Member at the Neurological Institute Epilepsy Center of the Cleveland Clinic, and Professor of Physiology in the Faculty of Medicine, Aix-Marseille University, Deputy Director of the INSERM Institut de Neurosciences des Systèmes.
I first chose to undertake dual training in Medicine and Science during his Neurology Internship. Whilst directing his interest towards the pathophysiology of epilepsy under the direction of Jean Talairach and Jean Bancaud at the Sainte Anne Hospital, Paris, I also underwent training in Neurophysiology at the Paris VI University, supervised by Pierre Buser. After becoming an INSERM researcher at the age of 27, I began my work in experimental, and later clinical research into the mechanisms of the epilepsies. I worked over a period of 20 years in the Unité de Recherches sur l’Epilepsie (INSERM U 97), founded by Jean Talairach then directed by Jean Bancaud. My main interest at this time was in mechanisms of control of long-term development of epileptic foci. My research approach was based on designing experimental models according to questions arising from clinical practice, especially in motor and premotor cortex seizures and in trying to understand the epileptogenic dysfunctions of the cerebral cortex through comparison with its physiology.
The framework offered by stereotactic presurgical investigation (stereo-electro-encephalography, or SEEG) for drug-resistant epilepsies was ideally suited to this approach. This procedure provides access to direct recording from human brain using intracerebral electrodes, the ultimate goal being epilepsy surgery. This strategy requires to define epileptogenic activities, a process that evolves according to the advancing state of knowledge in electrophysiology, as well as to the changing conceptions of cortical organization on an ongoing basis. Within this methodological framework, I studied conditions of seizure triggering and lobar and multi-lobar propagation and its resulting semiology, as well as the physiology of the supplementary motor area, the auditory cortex and the mesial-temporal region.
My first main scientific contribution was to demonstrate that the human « epileptogenic zone » is organised as a neural network, defined by abnormal functional coupling of structures initially involved in the ictal discharge. This concept is in contrast to the classical notion of the « epileptic focus ». The clinical semiology of seizures is itself determined by the spreading activation of networks subserving cognition and behaviour. The domain in which I have been recognized as a pioneer is that of frontal epilepsies, their anatomo-functional differentiation and their surgical treatment. Significant advances have also been achieved by my team in mechanisms underlying hemispheric dominance (frequential vs temporal treatment of verbal sounds in non-dominant vs dominant auditory cortex, with Catherine Liegeois-Chauvel), in pathophysiology of autobiographic memory (déjà vu and reminiscences, with Eric Halgren, Fabrice Bartolomei and Emmanuel Barbeau), in the functional anatomy of fear experience from seizures or stimulations (role of amygdala and ventro-medial prefrontal cortex, with Fabrice Bartolomei and Agnès Trébuchon), in the role of baso-temporal cortex in language production (with Agnès Trébuchon and Catherine Liegeois-Chauvel).
In organisation of the different scientific laboratories and clinical departments that I have directed, I have always sought to put into practice a multi-disciplinary approach. Such an interface existed in Sainte Anne in INSERM Unité 97 between clinical and neurophysiology teams; this approach was then continued in Rennes from 1990 onwards, through the creation of a group (INSERM CJF 90-12) in which cognitive neurosciences were particularly developed in the context of SEEG, thanks to collaboration with Eric Halgren (physiology and pathophysiology of declarative memory) and Catherine Liégeois-Chauvel (first characterisation of activities evoked in human auditory cortex by sounds of language). It was at this time that engineering science was incorporated into the laboratory, allowing on one hand the development of methods of signal processing that were to demonstrate (i) the structure of epileptogenic neural networks, and (ii) on the other hand intracerebral localisation (the inverse problem) of electro-magnetic activity recorded from the cranial surface by EEG and MEG (magnetoencephalography). This domain uses direct comparison with SEEG data in order to validate these non-invasive methods of localisation, an important objective for epilepsy investigation in the future. With the goal of understanding signals recorded from human cortex using SEEG, I have progressively developed computational models of the epileptogenic zone through bringing together researchers in clinical neurophysiology (Fabrice Bartolomei) and signal processing (Fabrice Wendling). This has led to the current state of understanding of synchronisation of cortical areas at seizure onset, production of high frequency discharges and the relation of ictal and inter-ictal activity (Christian Bénar). Such modeling has become an operational link between the human epileptogenic zone features and related research in cellular and molecular mechanisms of ictogenesis.
It was on these bases that I developed new research axes 17 years ago in Marseille, by successively creating the CJF 97-06 research unit in 1997, through associating Michel Poncet and his researchers in Neuropsychology, then the « Epilepsy and Cognition » research unit (INSERM U751) in 2004, and finally the Institut de Neurosciences des Systèmes (INSERM U1106) in 2012. This Institute was formed by bringing together researchers in Neurobiology (Christophe Bernard), Cognitive and Behavioural neuroscience (Catherine Liégeois-Chauvel, Daniele Schön), Neurology (Fabrice Bartolomei), Signal Processing (Christian Bénar) and Applied Mathematics (Viktor Jirsa). The strong originality of this multi-disciplinary Institute is to introduce theoretical neurosciences to the domain of epileptology. This has produced the « Virtual Epileptogenic Brain » program, a multi-scale model of normal or pathological cerebral dynamics, drawing on real data obtained from exploration of epileptic patients at the macroscale network level, and on results of research from experimental models at the microscale network level.
B. Positions and Honors
1975-1990: Full-time Researcher, INSERM, Hôpital Sainte-Anne, Paris
1990-1997: Professor of Neurology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Rennes I.
Neurologist, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Rennes.
1997-1998: Professor of Neurology, Faculty of Medicine, University de la Méditerranée-Aix-
Marseille II.
Neurologist, Hôpital de la Timone, Marseille.
1998- Professor of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Aix-Marseille University
Neurologist, Clinical Neurophysiology Department at Hôpital de la Timone, Marseille
2014- Staff, Epilepsy Center, Neurological Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH.
Research Grant and Lab Director:
1990-1997: Director of the Laboratory of Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Rennes
I (INSERM CJF 90-12)
1997-2006: Director of the Laboratory of Neurophysiology and Neuropsychology (INSERM EMI
9926), Faculty of Medicine, Université de la Méditerranée
2006-2012: Director of INSERM UMR 751/Université de la Méditerranée “Epilepsie & Cognition”
2012-2014: Director of the “Institut de Neurosciences des Systèmes”, INSERM UMR 1106/Aix-
Marseille Université.
2014- Deputy Director of the “Institut de Neurosciences des Systèmes”, INSERM UMR
1106/Aix-Marseille Université
Past-President of the Société de Neurophysiologie Clinique de Langue Française
Past-President of the Ligue Française contre l’Epilepsie
Member of the Royal Academy of Medicine, Belgium.
C. Selected Peer-reviewed Publications
1.Bonini F, Burle B, Liégeois-Chauvel C, Régis J, Chauvel P, Vidal F. Action monitoring and medial frontal cortex: leading role of supplementary motor area. Science. 2014 Feb 21; 343(6173):888-91.
2.Malinowska U, Badier JM, Gavaret M, Bartolomei F, Chauvel P, Bénar CG. Interictal networks in Magnetoencephalography. Hum Brain Mapp. 2014 Jun; 35(6): 2789-805.
3.Trébuchon A, Démonet JF, Chauvel P, Liégeois-Chauvel C. Ventral and dorsal pathways of speech perception: an intracerebral ERP study. Brain Lang. 2013 Nov;127(2):273-83.
4.Maillard L, Barbeau EJ, Baumann C, Koessler L, Bénar C, Chauvel P, Liégeois-Chauvel C. From perception to recognition memory: time course and lateralization of neural substrates of word and abstract picture processing. J Cogn Neurosci. 2011 Apr;23(4):782-800.
5.Trebuchon-Da Fonseca A, Guedj E, Alario FX, Laguitton V, Mundler O, Chauvel P, Liegeois-Chauvel C. Brain regions underlying word finding difficulties in temporal lobe epilepsy. Brain. 2009 Oct;132(Pt 10):2772-84.
6.Arthuis M, Valton L, Régis J, Chauvel P, Wendling F, Naccache L, Bernard C, Bartolomei F. Impaired consciousness during temporal lobe seizures is related to increased long-distance cortical-subcortical synchronization. Brain. 2009 Aug;132(Pt 8):2091-101.
7.Bartolomei F, Chauvel P, Wendling F. Epileptogenicity of brain structures in human temporal lobe epilepsy: a quantified study from intracerebral EEG. Brain. 2008 Jul;131(Pt 7):1818-30.
8.Barbeau EJ, Taylor MJ, Regis J, Marquis P, Chauvel P, Liégeois-Chauvel C. Spatio temporal dynamics of face recognition. Cereb Cortex. 2008 May;18(5):997-1009.
9.McGonigal A, Bartolomei F, Régis J, Guye M, Gavaret M, Trébuchon-Da Fonseca A, Dufour H, Figarella-Branger D, Girard N, Péragut JC, Chauvel P.Stereoelectroencephalography in presurgical assessment of MRI-negative epilepsy. Brain. 2007 Dec;130(Pt 12):3169-83.
10.Lanteaume L, Khalfa S, Régis J, Marquis P, Chauvel P, Bartolomei F. Emotion induction after direct intracerebral stimulations of human amygdala. Cereb Cortex. 2007 Jun;17(6):1307-13.
11.Cosandier-Rimélé D, Badier JM, Chauvel P, Wendling F. A physiologically plausible spatio-temporal model for EEG signals recorded with intracerebral electrodes in human partial epilepsy. IEEE Trans Biomed Eng. 2007 Mar;54(3):380-8.
12.Guéguin M, Le Bouquin-Jeannès R, Faucon G, Chauvel P, Liégeois-Chauvel C. Evidence of functional connectivity between auditory cortical areas revealed by amplitude modulation sound processing. Cereb Cortex. 2007 Feb;17(2):304-13.
13.Vignal JP, Maillard L, McGonigal A, Chauvel P. The dreamy state: hallucinations of autobiographic memory evoked by temporal lobe stimulations and seizures. Brain. 2007 Jan;130(Pt 1):88-99.
14.Guye M, Régis J, Tamura M, Wendling F, McGonigal A, Chauvel P, Bartolomei F. The role of corticothalamic coupling in human temporal lobe epilepsy. Brain. 2006 Jul;129(Pt 7):1917-28.
15.Liégeois-Chauvel C, Lorenzi C, Trébuchon A, Régis J, Chauvel P. Temporal envelope processing in the human left and right auditory cortices. Cereb Cortex. 2004 Jul;14(7):731-40.
Research Support
2012-2014 : Director of the “Institut de Neurosciences des Systèmes”, INSERM UMR 1106/Aix-
Marseille Université
2014-2018: Grant DGOS-ANR “Vibrations” (Virtual Brain based interpretation of
electrophysiological signals in epilepsy) : realistic simulation of surface-recorded
electro-magnetic fields from intra-cerebral source configurations implemented in
PERSONAL INFORMATION
Name: Elena Borra
EDUCATION
March15, 2008: PhD in Neruoscience, University of Parma. Title of the thesis “Cortical connections of the macaque anterior intraparietal (AIP) area”.
March17, 2003: Degree in Pharmaceutical Chemistry and Technologies (vote 100/110 cum laude) at the University of Parma with a thesis in Molecular Pathology about apoptosis in leukemic cells.
CURRENT POSITION
From Dec 2013: Researcher (Physiology), Department of Neuroscience, University of Parma, Parma, Italy.
PREVIOUS POSITIONS
Jan-Dec 2013: Post-doctoral fellow at the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT), Brain Center for
Motor and Social Cognition, Parma.
2009-Jan2013: Post-doctoral fellow, Department of Neuroscience, University of Parma, with
the project “Anatomical and functional organization of the macaque ventral
prefrontal cortex” under the supervision of Prof. Giuseppe Luppino.
2008: Fellowship at the Department of Neuroscience University of Parma, with
the project “Anatomical and functional organization of the macaque prearcuate
(area F5) and postarcuate (area 45) cortex” under the supervision of Prof.
Giuseppe Luppino.
2008-2009: Visitor Scientist at RIKEN BSI.
2007-2008: Internship at RIKEN Brain Science Institute (Japan), in the laboratory “Cortical
Organization and Systematics”, headed by Dr. Kathleen Rockland.
2004-2007: PhD program in Neuroscience, University of Parma, director Prof. Giacomo
Rizzolatti, supervision of Prof. Giuseppe Luppino.
2002-2003: Internship at the Department of General Pathology, University of Parma, under
the supervision of Prof. Pier Giorgio Petronini.
FELLOWSHIPS
Oct 2013: Winner of the competitive call for a researcher position (Ricercatore a tempo
determinato), Department of Neuroscience, University of Parma, Italy.
Feb2009-Jan2013: Post-doctoral fellowship, Department of Neuroscience, University of Parma,
with the project “Anatomical and functional organization of the macaque ventral
prefrontal cortex”
2008: Fellowship at the Department of Neuroscience, University of Parma, title “Anatomical and
functional organization of the macaque prearcuate (area F5) and postarcuate (area 45) cortex”
2004-2007: PhD fellowship in Neuroscience, University of Parma.
TEACHING ACTIVITIES AND INSTITUTIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES
From AA 2014-2015: Teaching of Physiology in courses of the School of Medicine, University of Parma.
2011-2013: Member of examination committee (Physiology), in courses of the School of Medicine,
University of Parma.
SUPERVISION OF GRADUATE STUDENTS AND POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWS
From2014-: supervision of undergraduate students of Biology for the preparation of
dissertations.
2008-2014: supervision and training of doctoral students enrolled in the PhD program of
Neuroscience (University of Parma) and of postdoctoral fellows.
MAJOR COLLABORATIONS
Wim Vanduffel and Koen Nelissen, Laboratorium voor Neuroen Psychofysiologie, KU Leuven, Belgium. Co-registration of monkey fMRI data with connectional data.
Kathleen Rockland, RIKEN Brain Science Institute (Japan), now at the Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts. Connectional studies of the inferotemporal cortex.
2007-2008: one-year internship at RIKEN BSI; 2008-2009: Visitor scientist at RIKEN BSI.
Official partecipation as a postdoctoral fellow in the projects PRIN 2008 (2008J7YFNR_002) and PRIN 2010/2011 (2010MEFNF7_005).
Official partecipation in the “Rete Multidisciplinare Tecnologica” Italian Institute of Technology (IIT), 2008-2013.
Collaboration to the national projects: PRIN 2004 (PRIN-2004057380_002) and PRIN 2006 (2006052343_002).
Collaboration to the international projects: Belgian Science Policy Office, Grant IAP P6/29 (2007-2011) and Grant IAP P7/11 (2012-2017); European Commission, Grant Cogsystems FP7-250013 (2010-2015).
PARTECIPATION TO INTERNATIONAL ADVANCED SCHOOL
Jan 2011: FENS-IBRO-Hertie Winter School “The system neuroscience of primate hand
function: models, mechanisms, rehabilitation and mirror systems”.
INVITED TALKS AND CONFERENCE TALKS
2012: “Mirror neurons: electrophysiological and connectional studies”. 21/05/2012 Humanitas, International Medical School, Rozzano, Milano, Italy.
2011: “Tracing the cortical pathways for action organization: involvement of prefrontal areas 12 and 46”. Primate Neurobiology Meeting, Göttingen, Germany. 21-23/03/2011.
2009: “Network connectivity of two distinct prefrontal areas 45A and 45B”. 28/04/2009 Brain Science Institute, RIKEN, Wako-shi, Saitama, Japan.
2007-2008: “Macaque anterior intraparietal (AIP) area: cortical connections and role in linking perception and action”. 12/11/2007 Kinki University, Osaka-sayama, Japan; 13/11/2007 Laboratory for Cognitive Neuroscience, Osaka University, Osaka, Japan. 14/11/2007 Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.26/04/2008 Tamagawa University, Brain Science Institute, Tokyo, Japan.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Anatomical and functional organization of the cortical and subcortical neural systems involved in the control of goal-directed object-oriented hand actions and in action understanding. Organization of the cortico-cortical connectivity between higher-order visual areas.
PUBLICATIONS
Total number of publications on peer-reviewed international journals: 20.
Publications on peer-reviewed international journals without the PhD supervisor: 4 (marked with asterisk*).
Total number of citations (excluding self citations): 516; (including self citations): 566. [www.scopus.com]
h-index: 12.
Borra E, Gerbella M, Rozzi S, Luppino G. 2013. Projections from caudal ventrolateral prefrontal areas to brainstem preoculomotor structures and to basal ganglia and cerebellar oculomotor loops in the macaque. Cereb. Cortex 2013. doi: 10.1093/cercor/bht265.
Gerbella M, Baccarini M, Borra E, Rozzi S, Luppino G. 2013. Amygdalar connections of the macaque areas 45A and 45B. Brain Struct. Funct. 2013. doi: 10.1007/s00429-013-0538-2.
Borra E, Gerbella M, Rozzi S, Tonelli S, Luppino G. 2012. Projections to the superior colliculus from inferior parietal, ventral premotor, and ventrolateral prefrontal areas involved in controlling goal-directed hand actions in the macaque. Cereb. Cortex 2012. doi: 10.1093/cercor/bhs392.
*Ichinohe N, Borra E, Rockland K. 2012. Distinct feedforward and intrinsic neurons in posterior inferotemporal cortex revealed by in vivo connection imaging. Sci. Rep. 2:934.
Gerbella M, Borra E, Rozzi S, Tonelli S, Luppino G. 2013. Connectional heterogeneity of the ventral part of the macaque area 46. Cereb. Cortex 23:967-87.
Borra E, Gerbella M, Rozzi S, Luppino G. 2011. Anatomical evidence for the involvement of the macaque ventrolateral prefrontal area 12r in controlling goal-directed actions. J. Neurosci. 31:12351-63.
*Borra E, Rockland KS. 2011. Projections to early visual areas V1 and V2 in the calcarine fissure from parietal association areas in the macaque. Front. Neuroanat. 5:35.
Nelissen K, Borra E, Gerbella M, Rozzi S, Luppino G, Vanduffel W, Rizzolatti G, Orban GA. 2011. Action observation circuits in the macaque monkey cortex. J. Neurosci. 31:3743-56.
Gerbella M, Belmalih A, Borra E, Rozzi S, Luppino G. 2011. Cortical connections of the anterior (F5a) subdivision of the macaque ventral premotor area F5. Brain Struct. Funct. 216:43-65.
Contini M, Borra E, Gerbella M, Rozzi S, Luppino G. 2010. Thalamic projections to the macaque caudal ventrolateral prefrontal areas 45A and 45B. Eur.J. Neurosci. 32:1337-53.
Borra E, Belmalih A, Gerbella M, Rozzi S, Luppino G. 2010. Projections of the hand field of the macaque ventral premotor area F5 to the brainstem and spinal cord. J. Comp. Neurol. 518: 2570-2591.
*Borra E, Ichinohe N, Sato T, Tanifuji M, Rockland KS. 2010. Cortical connections to area TE in monkey: hybrid modular and distributed organization. Cereb. Cortex 20:257-270.
Gerbella M, Belmalih A, Borra E, Rozzi S, Luppino G. 2010. Cortical connections of the macaque caudal ventrolateral prefrontal areas 45A and 45B. Cereb. Cortex 20:141-168.
Belmalih A, Borra E, Contini M, Gerbella M, Rozzi S, Luppino G. 2009. Multimodal architectonic subdivision of the rostral part (area F5) of the macaque ventral premotor cortex. J. Comp. Neurol. 512:183-217.
Borra E, Belmalih A, Calzavara R, Gerbella M, Murata A, Rozzi S, Luppino G. 2008. Cortical connections of the macaque anterior intraparietal (AIP) area. Cereb. Cortex 18:1094-1111.
Belmalih A, Borra E, Contini M, Gerbella M, Rozzi S, Luppino G. 2007. A multiarchitectonic approach for the definition of functionally distinct areas and domains in the monkey frontal lobe. J. Anat. 211:199-211.
Gerbella M, Belmalih A, Borra E, Rozzi S, Luppino G. 2007. Multimodal architectonic subdivision of the caudal ventrolateral prefrontal cortex of the macaque monkey. Brain Struct. Funct. 212:269-301.
Gregoriou GG, Borra E, Matelli M, Luppino G. 2006. Architectonic organization of the inferior parietal convexity of the macaque monkey. J. Comp. Neurol. 496:422-451.
Rozzi S, Calzavara R, Belmalih A, Borra E, Gregoriou GG, Matelli M, Luppino G. 2006. Cortical connections of the inferior parietal cortical convexity of the macaque monkey. Cereb. Cortex 16:1389-1417.
*Fumarola C, La Monica S, Alfieri RR, Borra E, Guidotti GG. 2005. Cell size reduction induced by inhibition of the mTOR/S6K-signaling pathway protects Jurkat cells from apoptosis. Cell Death Differ. 12:1344-1357.
RECENT ABSTRACTS (International Conferences)
Luppino G, Gerbella M, Rozzi S and Borra E. 2014. Involvement of the macaque prefrontal area 46d in a cortical network for controlling visually guided reaching-grasping movements. Federation of European Neuroscience Societies (FENS) Forum, 2014. Italy, IT. Milan, 5-9 July 2014.
Gerbella M, Borra E, Rozzi S and Luppino G. 2013. Connectional evidence for multiple basal ganglia grasping loops in the macaque monkey. Program No. 270.24. 2013 Neuroscience Meeting Planner.San Diego, CA. Society for Neuroscience (SfN) 2013. Online.
Borra E, Gerbella M, Rozzi S, Tonelli S and Luppino G. 2012. Corticotectal projections from ventral premotor, inferior parietal, and ventrolateral prefrontal areas involved in controlling goal-directed hand actions in the macaque monkey. Program No. 185.10. 2012 Neuroscience Meeting Planner. New Orleans, LA. Society for Neuroscience (SfN) 2012. Online.
Luppino G, Gerbella M, Rozzi S, Tonelli S and Borra E. 2012. Projections to the brainstem from the macaque caudal ventrolateral prefrontal cortex. Program No. 371.04. 2012 Neuroscience Meeting Planner. New Orleans, LA. Society for Neuroscience (SfN) 2012. Online.
Gerbella M, Borra E, Rozzi S, Tonelli S and Luppino G. 2012. Cortical connections of architectonically distinct areas of the macaque frontal operculum. Federation of European Neuroscience Societies (FENS) Forum, 2012. Barcelona, SP. Program No. 038.13
Gerbella M, Borra E, Rozzi S, Tonelli S and Luppino G. 2011. Topographic organization of the parietal connections of the macaque ventral area 46. Program No. 914.09. 2011 Neuroscience Meeting Planner. Washington, DC. Society for Neuroscience (SfN) 2011. Online.
Borra E, Gerbella M, Rozzi S and Luppino G. 2010. Cortical connections of the ventrolateral prefrontal area 12r of the macaque monkey. Program No. 201.5. 2010. Neuroscience Meeting Planner. San Diego, CA. Society for Neuroscience (SfN) 2010. Online.
Stefano Francione
Neurologist, Epilepsy and Parkinson Surgery Center, Niguarda Hospital, Milan, Italy
Born in 1963; he followed classical studies in Genova before going to the medical Faculty in the same town.
After the medical Degree, in 1988, he started the specification in Clinical Neurophysiology, always in Genova, and completed it in 1991.
Immediately after the specification he joined Claudio Munari and his newly formed Epilepsy Surgery team in Grenoble, France, where he spent the following 3 years. During the period in Grenoble he got completely absorbed in Epilepsy Surgery and became a specialist in the pre-surgical diagnosis of partial epileptic patients paying particular attention to all the non-invasive pre-surgical diagnostic techniques and in SEEG as the main invasive diagnostic methodology. In 1996, after a 2 years period in Genova where he set up a Video-EEG monitoring laboratory, he definitively joined the Claudio Munari Epilepsy Surgery Centre in Milano where is still working.
In Milano he continued his activity in Epilepsy Surgery dealing with all the aspects of the presurgical diagnosis and deepening his expertise also in functional neuroimaging aspects.
Beside his clinical activity he contributed to many scientific publications in the field and played also an important role in multiple, Italian and international, didactical initiatives.
Phillipe Kahane, MD, PhD
Neurologist and Neurophysiologist, the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire (CHU), Grenoble, France
Born in 1962, and he is a neurologist and neurophysiologist, Hospital Practitioner and University Professor at the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire (CHU) and Université Joseph Fourier, Grenoble, France. He is the Director of the Hospitalo-Universitary Federation of Neurosciences of Grenoble CHU.
From 1990 to 1997, he has been trained by Pr C. Munari for presurgical evaluation of drug-resistant partial epilepsies. Since 1998, he has been responsible for the clinical epileptology program and the presurgical assessment of epilepsy at the Neurology & Psychiatry Department of the Grenoble CHU. Since 2005, he is responsible of the clinical research program in epilepsy within the Grenoble Institute of Neurosciences (GIN INSERM U836-UJF, team#9, dir. A. Depaulis).
He is acknowledged as one of the international experts on presurgical assessment of epilepsy in children and adults, and has participated to the development, first in France (since 1996) and then in Europe (since 2003), of a multidisciplinary network for the assessment of epilepsy surgery in children. He is heading the Neurophysiology Task Force of the ILAE since 2014.
His area of research covers various fields in epileptology and physiology in humans, including the characterization of epileptogenic networks using intracerebral (SEEG) recordings and stimulation, the assessment of physiological networks by analysing SEEG oscillatory responses to different cognitive, sensorial and motor tasks, and the implementation of novel surgical therapies such as deep brain stimulation. He has developed fruitful collaborations with various French research units of the INSERM, CNRS and CEA, and he was awarded a “Contrat d’Interface pour Hospitalier” by INSERM to promote clinical translational research (2012-2017).
He is Associate Editor of the international journal Epileptic Disorders, and is a member of the Editorial board of Epilepsia and NCCN Neurophysiologie Clinique/Clinical Neurophysiology. He is President of the Scientific Council of the French Foundation for Brain Research, and he belongs to the Scientific Councils of the French Neurophysiology Society, French Foundation for Research on Epilepsy, and French League Against Epilepsy. He is co-responsible of graduate medical education at the Faculty of Medicine of Grenoble, is a member of the Pedagogic Council of the DIU d’Epileptologie and DIU de Neurophysiologie Clinique, and is co-director of the annual European and North-American SEEG Training Courses.
He is author or co-author of 159 articles in international journals indexed in Medline (ISI-h index = 32), and has been invited to give conferences in 168 international seminars and meetings.
Francesco Cardinale, MD
Neurosurgeon, Epilepsy and Parkinson Surgery Center, Niguarda Hospital, Milan, Italy
Francesco Cardinale, MD, serves as a neurosurgeon at the Epilepsy and Parkinson Surgery Center, Niguarda Hospital, Milan, Italy. The Center is dedicated to the memory of his founder, Claudio Munari, who learned the principles of epilepsy surgery and StereoElectroEncephaloGraphy (SEEG) directly from Jean Talairach and Jean Bancaud at Hopital St. Anne in Paris, France. The strength of the Milan center, thanks to the genius of prof. Munari, lies in the multidisciplinarity of the team: neurologists, neurophysiologists, neurosurgeons, neuroradiologists, pathologists, neuropsychologists, psychiatrists, anesthesiologists, physicists and engineers truly work together under the direction of Prof. Giorgio Lo Russo.
Dr. Cardinale activity focuses on stereotactic methodology for implanting intracerebral electrodes to perform StereoEEG monitoring, and on brain resective surgery. In the SEEG field, Dr. Cardinale efforts have been mainly aimed at updating the original Talairach methodology according to newly available technologies. He developed an original technique to perform 3D Cone-Beam Computed Tomography Digital Subtraction Angiography (3D CBCT DSA). He also integrated the use of the Neuromate, a stereotactic robotic assistant, in the Milan SEEG workflow.
Dr. Cardinale is key opinion leader to Renishaw mayfield, the manufacturer of the robot, and he’s finalizing with the company the development of a brand new frame-less and touch-less registration tool.
Dr. Cardinale research focuses mainly on advanced neuroimaging processing for surgical planning. Indeed, he introduced the use of many software tools in the Milan SEEG workflow for planning the intracerebral trajectories. This workflow is not only aimed at ameliorating the implantation of intracerebral multilead electrodes, but provides multimodal scenes that are very helpful for the interpretation of SEEG recordings and for the planning of brain resections. More than 50 visitors went to Niguarda Hospital to attend to the SEEG implantations and to discuss this original workflow. The neuroimage research activity is aimed not only at surgical planning, but also at studying morphometric properties of cerebral cortex and focal cortical dysplasias (FCD). Dr. Cardinale has published some papers on this topics 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9and some others will come in the next future, especially in the field of advanced image detection of subtle FCDs. Going back to clinical applications, these studies allowed to perform successful surgery in very eloquent brain regions.
Moreover, Dr. Cardinale has learned the basic principles of deep brain stimulation for movement disorders from Prof Alim Louis Benabid, the inventor of this technique and the father of the Neuromate.
Finally, Dr Cardinale got a PhD in Biomedical Statistics: the knowledge of advanced multivariate techniques, such as the fitting of mixed effects linear models and generalized linear models, were fundamental for the published studies and are at the basis of the research activity.
1 Cardinale F, Pero G, Quilici L, Piano M, Colombo P, Moscato A, Castana L, Casaceli G, Fuschillo D, Gennari L, Cenzato M, Lo Russo G, Cossu M: Cerebral angiography for multimodal surgical planning in epilepsy surgery: description of a new three-dimensional technique and literature review. World Neurosurg, 2015. Doi: 10.1016/j.wneu.2015.03.028.
2 Cardinale F, Chinnici G, Bramerio M, Mai R, Sartori I, Cossu M, Lo Russo G, Castana L, Colombo N, Caborni C, De Momi E, Ferrigno G: Validation of FreeSurfer-Estimated Brain Cortical Thickness: Comparison with Histologic Measurements. Neuroinformatics 12:535–42, 2014.
3 Cardinale F, Cossu M, Castana L, Casaceli G, Schiariti MP, Miserocchi A, Fuschillo D, Moscato A, Caborni C, Arnulfo G, Lo Russo G: Stereoelectroencephalography: surgical methodology, safety, and stereotactic application accuracy in 500 procedures.
Neurosurgery 72(3):353–66; discussion 366, 2013.
4 Cardinale F, Miserocchi A, Moscato A, Cossu M, Castana L, Schiariti MP, Gozzo F, Pero G, Quilici L, Citterio A, Minella M, Torresin A, Lo Russo G: Talairach Methodology in the Multimodal Imaging and Robotics Era. In: Scarabin J-M, editor. Stereotaxy and Epilepsy Surgery. Montrouge: John Libbey Eurotext; 2012. p. 245–72.
5 Cossu M, Lo Russo G, Francione S, Mai R, Nobili L, Sartori I, Tassi L, Citterio A, Colombo N, Bramerio M, Galli C, Castana L, Cardinale F: Epilepsy surgery in children: results and predictors of outcome on seizures. Epilepsia 49(1):65–72, 2008.
6 Nobili L, Cardinale F, Magliola U, Cicolin A, Didato G, Bramerio M, Fuschillo D, Spreafico R, Mai R, Sartori I, Francione S, Lo Russo G, Castana L, Tassi L, Cossu M: Taylor’s focal cortical dysplasia increases the risk of sleep-related epilepsy. Epilepsia 50(12):2599–604, 2009.
7 Cossu M, Cardinale F, Castana L, Nobili L, Sartori I, Lo Russo G: Stereo-EEG in children. Childs Nerv Syst 22(8):766–78, 2006.
8 Cossu M, Cardinale F, Castana L, Citterio A, Francione S, Tassi L, Benabid AL, Lo Russo G: Stereoelectroencephalography in the Presurgical Evaluation of Focal Epilepsy: A Retrospective Analysis of 215 Procedures. Neurosurgery 57(4):706–18, 2005.
9 Cossu M, Cardinale F, Colombo N, Mai R, Nobili L, Sartori I, Lo Russo G: Stereoelectroencephalography in the presurgical evaluation of children with drug-resistant focal epilepsy. J Neurosurg Pediatr 103(4 Suppl):333–43, 2005.
Naotaka Usui MD
Head Neurosurgeon, National Epilepsy Center, Shizuoka Institute of Epilepsy and Neurological Disorders, shizuoka, Japan
886 Urushiyama, Aoi-Ku, Shizuoka 420-8688, Japan
E-mail: n-usui@shizuokamind.org
T E L: 81-54-245-5446, FAX: 81-54-247-9781
Place of Birth: Nagoya, Japan
Date of Birth: February 9, 1969
EDUCATION
1987-1993 Nagoya University School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan
1999-2004 Graduate student at neurosurgery
Nagoya University School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan
2001-2002 Research fellow
Department of Neurology, Section of epilepsy and sleep disorders, Cleveland Clinic
Foundation, Ohio, USA
POST-GRADUATE TRAINING
1993-1997 Resident, Neurosurgery
Yokkaichi Municipal Hospital, Yokkaichi, Japan
1997-1999 Resident
National Epilepsy Center, Shizuoka Higashi Hospital, Shizuoka, Japan
HOSPITAL APPOINTMENT
2004- present Neurosurgery
National Epilepsy Center, Shizuoka Institute of Epilepsy and Neurological disorders
BOARD CERTIFICATION
Japanese Board of Neurosurgery
Japanese Board of Clinical Epileptology
PUBLICATIONS (including only papers as a principle and/or corresponding author)
Usui N, Mihara T, Baba K, Matsuda K, Tottori T, Umeoka S, et al. Posterior cortex epilepsy secondary to ulegyria: is it a surgically remediable syndrome? Epilepsia 2008; 49(12): 1998-2007.
Usui N, Kotagal P, Matsumoto R, Kellinghaus C, Luders HO. Focal semiologic and electroencephalographic features in patients with juvenile myoclonic epilepsy. Epilepsia 2005; 46(10): 1668-1676.
Usui N, Maesawa S, Kajita Y, Endo O, Takebayashi S, Yoshida J. Suppression of secondary generalization of limbic seizures by stimulation of subthalamic nucleus in rats. J Neurosurg 2005; 102(6): 1122-1129.
Usui N, Terada K, Baba K, Matsuda K, Tottori T, Umeoka S, et al. Extraoperative functional mapping of motor areas in epileptic patients by high-frequency cortical stimulation. J Neurosurg 2008; 109(4): 605-14.
Usui N, Terada K, Baba K, Matsuda K, Nakamura F, Usui K, et al. Very high frequency oscillations (over 1000 Hz) in human epilepsy. Clin Neurophysiol 2010; 121(11): 1825-31.
Usui N, Terada K, Baba K, Matsuda K, Nakamura F, Usui K, et al. Clinical significance of ictal high frequency oscillations in medial temporal lobe epilepsy. Clin Neurophysiol 2011; 122(9): 1693-700.
Usui N, Baba K, Matsuda K, Tottori T, Terada K, Usui K, et al. Mesial temporal lobe epilepsy with no specific histological abnormality: a distinct surgically remediable syndrome. Epilepsy Behav 2013; 29(3): 542-7.
Usui N, Mihara T, Baba K, Matsuda K, Tottori T, Umeoka S, et al. Intracranial EEG findings in patients with lesional lateral temporal lobe epilepsy. Epilepsy Res 2008; 78(1): 82-91.
Usui N, Mihara T, Baba K, Matsuda K, Tottori T, Umeoka S, et al. Versive seizures in occipital lobe epilepsy: Lateralizing value and pathophysiology. Epilepsy Res 2011; 97(1-2): 157-61.
Du XP, Usui N, Terada K, Baba K, Matsuda K, Tottori T, et al. Semiological and electroencephalographic features of epilepsy with amygdalar lesion. Epilepsy Res 2015; 111: 45-53.
Usui N, Mihara T, Baba K, Matsuda K, Tottori T, Umeoka S, et al. Early seizure propagation from the occipital lobe to medial temporal structures and its surgical implication. Epileptic Disorders 2008; 10(4): 260-5.
Usui N, Kajita Y, Maesawa S, Endo O, Takebayashi S, Yoshida J. Pilomotor seizure in mesial temporal lobe epilepsy: A case confirmed by intracranial EEG. Seizure 2005; 14(4): 288-291.
Usui N, Matsuda K, Mihara T, Tottori T, Ohtsubo T, Baba K, et al. MRI of cortical dysplasia-correlation with pathological findings. Neuroradiology 2001; 43: 830-837.
Young-Min Shon, MD, PhD
Director, Nologist, the Comprehensive Epilepsy Section, Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, the Catholic University, Seoul, Korea.
Dr. Shon is a professor of Neurology and Director of the Comprehensive Epilepsy Section in Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, The Catholic University of Korea. Dr. Shon’s professional goal is to derive new treatments (invasive and non-invasive brain stimulation) for previously untreatable seizure disorders. In addition, he has a great interest in the cognition of patients with epilepsy and neuroimaging analysis from microstructural (diffusion tensor imaging) or functional imaging (fMRI) of epilepsy population.
He is author or co-author of over 60 peer-reviewed publications in medical journals, two books on epilepsy.
Education & Training
M.D: Seoul National University (1993)
Ph.D: Sungkyunkwan University (2006)
Medical Officer (a lieutent): Korean Army, Red-Cross Hospital of Incheon, Korea (1994 - 1997)
Resident: Samsung Medical Center, Neurology (1997 -2001)
Fellow: Samsung Medical Center, Epilepsy (2001 - 2002)
St. Mary’s Hospital, The Catholic University of Korea; Epilepsy(2002 - 2003)
Board Certification Neurology Board Certified (2001)
Positions
Instructor: St. Mary’s Hospital, Epilepsy (2005 - 2009)
Assistant professor: St. Mary’s Hospital, Epilepsy (2005 - 2009)
Asssociate professor: St. Mary’s Hospital, Epilepsy (2009 - 2015)
Professor: Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, Epilepsy & Sleep (2015 ~)
Honors and Recognition
He frequently speaks at national or international conferences on subjects related to seizure disorders, has been served on the editorial board of Journal of Epilepsy Research, the main journal of Korean Epilepsy society (KES). He has won research awards from National Research Foundation of Korea and the National Institutes of Health. He currently serves on the Academy Board of KES and Korean Society of Clinical Neuorphysiology (KSCN).
Xingzhou (Sinclair)
FAMILY NAME: Liu
POSITION: Professor and Director, Epilepsy Center, Guangdong Sanjiu Brain Hospital, Jinan University
Professor, South China Normal University
EDUCAITON
Postgraduate study, Master of Science, Peking Union Medical College, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, P.R. China, 1979-1982.
University study, School of Medicine, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China, 1973-1977.
POSTGRADUATE MEDICAL TRAINING
Honorary Associate Neurologist, Clinical Neurology and Neurophysiology, The Department of Neurology, Prince Henry and Prince of Wales Hospital, New South Wales University (Sydney), Australia, Jul 1986-Jul 1987 (with Professors James Lance and David Burke).
Long Term Course of Geriatrics and Gerontology, The International Institute of Age and Aging and University of Malta, United Nations Population Foundation, United Nations Development Program, Sept 1990-Jul 1991.
Senior visiting scholar, Clinical Neurophysiology, UCLA Medical Center, Seizure Disorders Center, Clinical Neurophysiology August-November, 2002.
Senior Visiting Scholar, Clinical Neurophysiology, Neuromuscular Disease Center and Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins Medical Institute, October-November 2002.
FACULTY APPOINTMENTS
Professor and Director, Epilepsy Center, Guangdong Sanjiu Brain Hospital, Jinan University, 2014 to Present.
Professor of Neuropsychology, South China Normal University, 2014 to Present.
Professor of Neurology, Beijing Sanbo Brain Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, P. R. China, 2004 to 2013.
Professor of Neurology, Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Peking University, Beijing, P. R. China, 2000-2004.
Professor of Neurology, Postgraduate School, Peking Union Medical College, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, P. R. China, 1998-2004.
Associate Professor of Neurology, Department of Neurology, Peking Union Medical College, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, P. R. China, 1991-1994.
Associate Neurologist, Department of Neurology, Peking Union Medical College, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, P. R. China, 1985-1991.
EDITORIAL BOARDS
Journal of Epileptology
Chinese Journal of Practical Internal Medicine
Journal of China-Japan Friendship Hospital
Chinese Medical Association, EEG Subcommittee Beijing
China Electromyography and Clinical Neurophysiology Committee
Chinese Association Against Epilepsy