The Brown University cognitive neuroscientist studies how the brain and body interact, with the goal of translating insights into treatments and solutions for patients facing a variety of health challenges.
PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] - What do anxiety, chronic pain, obsessive-compulsive disorder, addictive gambling and chronic fatigue have in common?
That question isn't a brain teaser - although the brain is the focus for neuroscientist Frederike Petzschner, who is actively researching these areas in her lab at Brown University.
The answer, according to Petzschner? Signals from the body influence learning, decision-making and emotion, and in turn, shape overall mental and physical well-being, including for people managing these challenges.
"Human cognition is deeply embodied," Petzschner said. "The way we make decisions, learn and perceive the world depends on continuous feedback from the body - our heart, lungs or gut. In our lab, we study these processes across multiple levels - from basic body perception to applied work on how brain-body interactions contribute to pain and mental illness."
Petzschner, an assistant professor of cognitive and psychological sciences affiliated with Brown's Carney Institute for Brain Science, explores the science of embodied intelligence. Her work sits at the intersection of computational psychiatry and translational science. She uses mathematical models in combination with behavior and brain imaging to understand brain-body and brain-world interactions, with the goals of translating insights into treatments and finding brain-based solutions to improve symptoms.
Take chronic pain - persistent pain lasting more than three months - which is one of the most common and least understood long-term medical conditions of the modern age. Petzschner's team developed a free smartphone app that allows patients to track patterns in their pain, mood and daily activities.
