Research Partnerships

Robarts ResearchDedicated to mapping the mind from single neurons to the brain as a whole, researchers at The Brain and Mind Institute collaborate with multiple faculties at Western, Robarts Research Institute in the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry and benefits from strong links with clinicians and clinical scientists at London Health Sciences Centre.

As one of North America’s foremost laboratories for cognitive neuroscience research, the Institute harnesses the collective knowledge of top scientists in areas such as biophysics, psychology, psychiatry, artificial intelligence, computational theory and physiology. These researchers are clarifying how the brain turns intention and thought into action.

The Brain and Mind Institute is the leading Canadian centre for advanced imaging technology and houses neuroimaging, neurophysiology and behavioural testing resources that provide advanced capabilities for scanning and interpreting the brain. In 2008, the group acquired a 7 Tesla magnet, the highest field human magnetic resonance imaging device in Canada, and one of only a dozen such machines in the world.

Centre for Functional and Metabolic Mapping

Part of the contributions made by Robarts to the The Brain and Mind Institute involves the Centre for Functional and Metabolic Mapping (CFMM).

The CFMM, housed in the A.M. Cuddy Wing at the Robarts Research Institute, utilizes state-of-the-art 3T whole-body, 7T head and 31 cm 9.4T horizontal MR imaging systems to investigate in-vivo studies of brain structure and function. This includes the assessment of brain metabolism and physiology, cognitive function and vascular dynamics, not only in normal and research patient populations, but also in in-vitro and animal models using a variety of advanced nuclear magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy techniques.

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