Prof. Alan Pradip Jasanoff

Professor of Nuclear Science and Engineering, Biological Engineering, and Brain and Cognitive Sciences
Associate Member, McGovern Institute
Co-Director, MIT Center for Neurobiological Engineering

Primary DLC

Department of Biological Engineering

MIT Room: 16-561

Areas of Interest and Expertise

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
Single Neuron Imaging
Neural Networks
Vision
Imaging of Behavioral Correlates
Contrast Agents for Functional Imaging

Research Summary

Dr. Jasanoff's laboratory is developing a new generation of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) methods to study the neural mechanisms of behavior. Our principal focus is on the design and application of new contrast agents that may help define spatiotemporal patterns of neural activity with far better precision and resolution than current techniques allow. Experiments using the new agents will combine the specificity of cellular neuroimaging with the whole brain coverage and noninvasiveness of conventional fMRI. Introduction of these technologies will have far-reaching consequences in neuroscience, because the new imaging methods will be applicable to studies of any neural system in vivo. Our own goal is to use the methods to build explanatory models of neural network function in animals, with current emphasis on brain circuitry involved in instrumental learning behavior.

Recent Work