Elekta Neuromag®, the world-leading equipment for non-invasive measurement of brain activity using magnetoencephalography (MEG) technology has been ordered by the Moscow Municipal University of Psychology and Education (Moscow, Russia) and the University of Trento (Trento, Italy).
MEG is a powerful tool for studying normal brain function and brain disorders. Elekta Neuromag is the world’s most advanced and most used MEG system, providing real-time mapping of brain activity by non-invasively measuring the magnetic fields produced by the brain. Electrical activity in neurons in the brain produce magnetic fields that pass through brain tissue and the skull, which can then be recorded outside the head using Elekta Neuromag.
The first whole-head MEG in Russia, neuroscientists and those in related fields at the Moscow Municipal University of Psychology and Education, plan to use Elekta Neuromag for clinically oriented research applications, such as autism in children. The University also plans to employ MEG technology for cognitive neuroscience and neuropsychology research such as the study of human emotion and brain abnormalities.
“We are extremely excited about our upcoming installation,” says Professor Tatiana Stroganova, the Head of the Developmental Psychophysiology Department. “We plan to use the MEG extensively to study temporal dynamics of cortical networks underlying normal and aberrant brain organization of perception, attention and emotion.”
Dedicated to brain and cognitive neuroscience research, a large group of researchers at the University of Trento’s Center of Mind/Brain Sciences (CIMeC) plan to use Elekta Neuromag to explore various fields of neuroscience such as sensory processing, attention and action control, language, formation of concepts and cognitive development.
The University of Trento has recruited physicians from Italy and elsewhere in Europe, including Dr. Christoph Braun, former head of the MEG-Center at the Eberhard Karls University Tübingen (Tübingen, Germany).
“The addition of Elekta Neuromag will complement already established methods such as 4T functional magnetic resonance tomography (fMRT), transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) as well as multi-channel EEG – thus contributing to the advancement of our understanding of the brain,” says Dr. Braun.
The University’s MEG-lab is situated in the Italian countryside. “Not only is our MEG-lab optimally located for brain activity measurement, but patients also have an opportunity to enjoy a beautiful view of the Alps,” continues Braun.
“The acquisition of Elekta Neuromag by two prominent European Universities is a major opportunity for Elekta to work with Europe’s top scientists in this field,” says Stephen Otto, Chairman of Elekta’s Neuromag Business. “We look forward to working with the Moscow Municipal University of Psychology and Education and the University of Trento and hope the MEG systems will provide valuable information to each of their respective programs.”