Arno Villringer Explained

Arno Villringer
Birth Place:Germany
Field:Medicine, neurology, stroke research, brain plasticity
Work Institution:Max Planck Institute (professor, director), University of Leipzig (Professor), Charité - Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (Honorary professor)
Prizes:Pater Leander Fischer Award, German Society of Laser Medicine (2005), endowed professorship (by Deutsche Forschungs Gemeinschaft) at Charité – Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (1996), Gerhard Hess Award, DFG (1993), DFG foreign exchange scholarship (1986)

Arno Villringer (born 1958, Schopfheim, Germany) is a Director at the Department of Neurology [1] at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences[2] in Leipzig, Germany; Director of the Department of Cognitive Neurology at University of Leipzig Medical Center;[3] and Academic Director of the Berlin School of Mind and Brain [4] and the Mind&Brain Institute,[5] Berlin. He holds a full professorship at University of Leipzig and an honorary professorship at Charité, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. From July 2022 to June 2025 he is the Chairperson of the Human Sciences Section of the Max Planck Society.[6]

Academic career and achievements

Arno Villringer studied medicine at the University of Freiburg (German: Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg) from 1977 to 1984, graduating with a Doctor of Medicine (summa cum laude) higher degree in 1984. After a fellowship at the Magnetic Resonance Imaging Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital at Harvard Medical School in 1985, he worked in Munich, Germany, becoming a board certified neurologist in 1992, and gaining his professorial degree (Habilitation) at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich in 1994.[7] From 1993 to 2007, he worked at the Department of Neurology at the Charité, Berlin, first as a consultant, and later as head of the Department of Neurology at the Benjamin Franklin Campus. Since 2006 he has been Academic Director of the Berlin School of Mind and Brain [4] and the Mind&Brain institute (since 2010),[5] since 2007 he has been Director of the Department of Neurology at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Leipzig, Germany,[1] and director of the Department of Cognitive Neurology at the University of Leipzig Medical Center.[7]

Research foci

Research interests

Arno Villringer is the author of more than 600 academic articles (as of 2022) with more than >56000 citations, and an h-index of 116 (Google Scholar, August 2022) [8]

Pioneering work

Perfusion imaging

Arno Villringer pioneered magnetic resonance perfusion imaging of the brain by demonstrating that susceptibility contrast agents such as GdDTPA may be employed in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).[9] The susceptibility-based contrast mechanism later became relevant for the Blood Oxygenation Level Dependent (BOLD) signal in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).

Optical imaging

In 1993, Villringer showed feasibility of noninvasive functional near-infrared spectroscopy and imaging (fNIRS, fNIRI) of the human brain[10] [11] followed by > 50 publications establishing /validating fNIRS.Physiology empowered brain imaging: Since 1992 his research focus has been on neurophysiological mechanisms underlying brain function and plasticity, using multi-modal brain imaging, e.g., signatures of neuronal inhibition in functional brain imaging,[12] [13] combined fNIRS/fMRI to establish relationship between BOLD and deoxy-Hb concentration in fMRI,[14] combined EEG/fMRI to show fMRI correlates of background rhythms [15] [16] and simultaneously assess neuronal spiking and fMRI.[17]

Brain plasticity, development of vascular risk factors, stroke

Villringer currently pursues the hypothesis that (maladaptive) brain plasticity is crucial for the development of vascular risk factors leading to stroke and for the (lack of) recovery after stroke, and that brain plasticity can be beneficially modified. For this purpose, he employs multi-modal brain imaging to understand basic neurophysiological mechanisms underlying human brain plasticity in cortical and subcortical brain areas, and their interaction. Behavioral correlates include sensorimotor function, reaction to stress, and emotions. The clinical applications are (i) prevention of vascular risk factors (obesity, hypertension) and subsequent stroke, and (ii) recovery after stroke.

Expert activities/board memberships

Sources:[7]

Memberships in scientific arganizations

Awards

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Department of Neurology .
  2. Web site: Home .
  3. Web site: Unser Team .
  4. Web site: Berlin School of Mind and Brain: Bodies and committees .
  5. Web site: Berlin School of Mind and Brain: MindBrainBody Institute .
  6. Web site: The Human Sciences Section .
  7. Web site: Curriculum Vitae .
  8. Web site: Arno Villringer .
  9. Dynamic imaging with lanthanide chelates in normal brain: Contrast due to magnetic susceptibility effects . 10.1002/mrm.1910060205 . 1988 . Villringer . Arno . Rosen . Bruce R. . Belliveau . John W. . Ackerman . Jerome L. . Lauffer . Randall B. . Buxton . Richard B. . Chao . Yong-Sheng . Wedeenand . Van J. . Brady . Thomas J. . Magnetic Resonance in Medicine . 6 . 2 . 164–174 . 3367774 . 41228095 .
  10. Near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS): A new tool to study hemodynamic changes during activation of brain function in human adults . 10.1016/0304-3940(93)90181-j . 1993 . Villringer . A. . Planck . J. . Hock . C. . Schleinkofer . L. . Dirnagl . U. . Neuroscience Letters . 154 . 1–2 . 101–104 . 8361619 . 45676442 .
  11. 10.1016/s0166-2236(97)01132-6 . Non-invasive optical spectroscopy and imaging of human brain function . 1997 . Villringer . A. . Chance . B. . Trends in Neurosciences . 20 . 10 . 435–442 . 9347608 . 18077839 . free .
  12. 10.1097/00004647-200007000-00010 . Saccadic Suppression Induces Focal Hypooxygenation in the Occipital Cortex . 2000 . Wenzel . Rüdiger . Wobst . Petra . Heekeren . Hauke H. . Kwong . Kenneth K. . Brandt . Stephan A. . Kohl . Matthias . Obrig . Hellmuth . Dirnagl . Ulrich . Villringer . Arno . Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow & Metabolism . 20 . 7 . 1103–1110 . 10908044 . 33827135 . free .
  13. Imperceptible Stimuli and Sensory Processing Impediment . 10.1126/science.1080806 . 2003 . Blankenburg . Felix . Taskin . Birol . Ruben . Jan . Moosmann . Matthias . Ritter . Petra . Curio . Gabriel . Villringer . Arno . Science . 299 . 5614 . 1864 . 12649475 . 33732258 .
  14. 10.1097/00004647-199609000-00006 . Simultaneous Recording of Cerebral Blood Oxygenation Changes during Human Brain Activation by Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Near-Infrared Spectroscopy . 1996 . Kleinschmidt . Andreas . Obrig . Hellmuth . Requardt . Martin . Merboldt . Klaus-Dietmar . Dirnagl . Ulrich . Villringer . Arno . Frahm . Jens . Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow & Metabolism . 16 . 5 . 817–826 . 8784226 . 10720551 . free .
  15. Correlates of alpha rhythm in functional magnetic resonance imaging and near infrared spectroscopy . 10.1016/s1053-8119(03)00344-6 . 2003 . Moosmann . Matthias . Ritter . Petra . Krastel . Ina . Brink . Andrea . Thees . Sebastian . Blankenburg . Felix . Taskin . Birol . Obrig . Hellmuth . Villringer . Arno . NeuroImage . 20 . 1 . 145–158 . 14527577 . 39614622 .
  16. Rolandic alpha and beta EEG rhythms' strengths are inversely related to fMRI-BOLD signal in primary somatosensory and motor cortex . 10.1002/hbm.20585 . 2009 . Ritter . Petra . Moosmann . Matthias . Villringer . Arno . Human Brain Mapping . 30 . 4 . 1168–1187 . 18465747 . 6870597 .
  17. High-frequency (600 Hz) population spikes in human EEG delineate thalamic and cortical fMRI activation sites . 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2008.05.026 . 2008 . Ritter . Petra . Freyer . Frank . Curio . Gabriel . Villringer . Arno . NeuroImage . 42 . 2 . 483–490 . 18586526 . 25810037 .
  18. Web site: Kompetenznetz Schlaganfall | Competence Network Stroke .
  19. Web site: Arno Villringer | International Max Planck Research School on the Life Course .
  20. Web site: About the Centre .
  21. Web site: Structure - NeuroCure | Cluster of Excellence .
  22. Web site: SFB 1052 Mechanismen der Adipositas - Sfb1052 Mechanismen der Adipositas. www.sfb1052.de.
  23. Web site: Home .
  24. Web site: Imprs Comp2Psych .
  25. Web site: Berlin School of Mind and Brain: RTG 2386 .
  26. Web site: People .
  27. Pater-Leander-Fischer-Preis der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Lasermedizin an Berliner Neurologen (Pater Leander Fischer Award for Berlin neurologists) Web site: IDW press release.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Arno Villringer".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.