A Grey Matter

You probably have heard of a pacemaker – a small device which is implanted in the chest to help control the heartbeat for people living with heart conditions. But did you know similar technology is being used to treat several brain disorders?Today we are joined by Professor Peter Silburn AM, neurologist, researcher and pioneer in deep brain stimulation (DBS). DBS technology delivers a continuous electrical impulse to targeted regions of the brain to treat many disorders, such as Parkinson's disease and obsessive compulsion disorder (OCD).

In recent years, we've seen a growing number of sportspeople speak out about their experiences of head injuries, and concussions are forcing more and more athletes to take a break from or cut short their sporting careers.  And research on the brains of former athletes is raising awareness of the long-term neurological damage that can be caused by repeated, apparently minor knocks to the head.  Associate Professor  Fatima Nasrallah is currently spearheading a ground-breaking study here at the Queensland Brain Institute, investigating the long-term effects of concussion on the brain.  

People living with dementia often have disturbed sleep – even years prior to experiencing any other symptoms.  Unfortunately, as is the case with many risk factors, we don't know whether this is a cause or a symptom, and it could in fact be both.  Professor Elizabeth Coulson specialises in dementia research here at the Queensland Brain Institute and she's heading up a team who are looking into the connection between sleep apnoea and dementia risks. 

The development of the brain is a fascinating process, with complex brain connections being made rapidly as a foetus grows inside its mother's womb.Darryl Eyles, Professor of neurobiology, is studying how known risk factors for certain mental disorders can change the way the brain develops.In this episode we explore how the developing brain can adapt to risk factors for mental health disorders and why sometimes it can't compensate.

How can you study the human brain at the cell level, when you can't get inside to see these tiny processes in action? Well, you build your own brain in a dish of course! Organoids, or mini brains, are an exciting new area of neuroscience an have many applications, including personalised medicine. We talk to Professor Enrst Wolvetang, who's using this cutting-edge research to understand how brains are made.

In this episode, we examine consciousness – what is it, when does it begin, and how might sleep and dreams be the key to answering these questions. Professor Bruno van Swinderen sheds more light on this fascinating topic.

Queensland Chief Scientist, Professor Hugh Possingham and Queensland Brain Institute Director, Professor Pankaj Sah talk about the lessons we can learn from conservation science and neuroscience, how to influence decision-makers, and why maths is so important!CREDITSProduced,  hosted and edited by Carolyn Barry

When we pay attention to something, our minds are selectively concentrating on a discrete piece of information, while choosing to ignore other perceivable elements. Dr Anthony Harris is an ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award Fellow at the Queensland Brain Institute and an expert on human attention. He discusses what goes on in the brain when we are giving something our full attention, and breaks down whether or not multitasking is a myth.

Almost 500,000 Australians have some kind of dementia, the most common form of which is Alzheimer's disease. Currently, there is no cure, and only one drug was recently approved for treatment. Researchers here at the Queensland Brain Institute are working on an ultrasound treatment that may offer the best chance to hit the damaged neurons and slow the progression of this terrible disease. We talk to QBI's Professor Jurgen Gotz about this cutting-edge technology.CREDITHosted, produced and edited by Carolyn Barry

Artist Sam Leach's work focuses on a connection between science and art, in a more modern twist. He uses AI to compose art that he then paints. It's a blending of two fields in a similar way that researchers are blending machine learning and neuroscience, to push the limits of AI. We talk also talk to neuroscientist Emeritus Professor Srini Srinivasan, whose work inspired Sam.CREDITHosted, produced and edited by Carolyn Barry

How do you make sure clinical treatment of people with brain injury, diseases and disorders is best informed by neuroscience? This is where the worlds of neuroscience and psychology collide. In this episode, we talk to Professor Gail Robinson, clinical neurospsychologist at the Queensland Brain Institute.

Paralysed people walking again and direct brain to brain communication aren't just ideas in the realm of science fiction. We hear from Dr Lilach Avitan, a Computational Neuroscientist at UQ's Queensland Brain Institute who investigates how our brain processes information in order to understand normal and abnormal brain function. We chat about her start in the Israeli air force, the so called ‘Jennifer Aniston neuron', how to build more intelligent computing devices and brain-machine interfaces.

The brain is one of the most complex things that scientists study, with trillions of connections between brain cells responsible for our thoughts and actions and baseline functions. You'd think that if you zoom down and look into the cells and how they talk to each other, that things would be simpler but that's not the case. Down at the nanoscale level of the brain is an entire tiny intricate world going on. In this episode, we talk to Dr Victor Anggono, who is trying to make sense of this world.CREDITHosted, produced and edited by Carolyn Barry

More and more we are finding out about the peculiar symptoms of coronavirus that make it such a nasty bug. Many of these symptoms, especially those with a long tail of illness seem to point to effects on the nervous system: the loss of smell, dizziness, confusion, strokes, muscle weakness, fatigue. New research born out of collaborations with virologists and neuroscience here at QBI has shown that coronavirus has co-opted a clever entry mechanism to get into cells - including neurons. In this episode, we do a zoom chat to virologist Dr Giuseppe Balistreri and neuroscientists Prof Fred Meunier and Dr Merja Joensuu about this new research.CREDITHosted, produced and edited by Carolyn Barry

Did you know? Humans are pretty average when it comes to seeing the visual world compared to many other animals with much smaller brains. Or that octopuses are essentially colourblind? And that there's really no such thing as colour?We talk to visual ecologist Professor Justin Marshall about the fascinating world of animal vision.CREDITHosted, produced and edited by Carolyn Barry

At the very earliest stages of life, how do stem cells know how to turn into the right cells at the right time and go to the right places. Just a few cells create the billions of brain cells we have. In this episode, we talk to Professor Helen Cooper, Deputy Director of Research at the Queensland Brain Institute. She studies the complex world of the signalling pathways that stem cells use to turn into neurons - and what happens when this goes wrong.CREDITHosted, produced and edited by Carolyn Barry1

How do birds and bees fly in groups without colliding? or know how to navigate straight to a food source? And how do you train a bee to fly down a tunnel? Studying these tiny insects can give us insight, not only into how our brains work, but also how we might enhance aircraft navigation.CREDITHosted by Donna Lu, edited by Carolyn Barry

We chat to neuroscientist Dr Susannah Tye from UQ's Queensland Brain Institute, who investigates new therapies for treatment-resistant depression, about the signs and symptoms, causes and treatments of this common mental health disorder.

You either know someone who's had a mental health disorder or you've had that challenge yourself. We know so much more about the science of mental health than ever before, but there's still so much to learn. Neuroscientists are doing their part to unlock the mysteries of why people get mental health disorders and how they develop.CREDITHosted, produced and edited by Carolyn Barry

We spend approximately a third of our lives asleep: that's roughly 25 years we could spend awake and running around being productive, and yet evolution has guided us to spend hours every night in our most vulnerable state – unconscious and unaware. It's an easy question to ask: what's the point?CREDITHosted, produced and edited by Carolyn Barry

Who would have thought the humble zebrafish might hold the key to understanding our own brain, including conditions such as autism spectrum disorder? We talk to Associate Professor Ethan Scott who leads the Neural Circuits and Behaviour laboratory at QBI. Ethan is interested in understanding the biology behind developmental mental disorders such as autism spectrum disorder.

We talk to Professor Massimo Hilliard and Dr Steven Zuryn about the importance of fundamental science – what it is and why it is critical for generating discoveries that may have huge impacts to your health. Both researchers use roundworms to tackle some big problems in neuroscience. They study the basics of how cells in the brain and nervous system work in a simple animal to gain insights into how our brains work.CREDITHosted, produced and edited by Carolyn Barry

We all have our own ways of pursuing pleasure: some of us exercise; some of us love gaming; some of us can't resist another bit of chocolate. But what happens when our ability to manage the pursuit of pleasure goes wrong? In this episode of A Grey Matter, we talked to QBI's Dr James Kesby about the brain's reward mechanism – the dopamine system – and how faults in this mechanism can cause disorders such as depression and addiction.

John Quinn was diagnosed with early-onset dementia in his late 50s. Despite falling into a deep depression after his initial diagnosis, John is now a strong advocate for greater dementia awareness and research. In this episode of A Grey Matter, we hear from John and his partner Glenys, on their shared experience of living with John's dementia. They are embarking on a four-day trek across Tasmania this October to raise vital funds for dementia research here at QBI.

We hear from Rebecca Sharrock, one of 60 people in the world known to have highly superior autobiographical memory. Becky remembers a vast amount of her lived experiences – from her earliest birthdays to what she had to breakfast on this day five years ago. In this episode we hear from her, her mother Janet, and Associate Professor Gail Robinson from UQ Psychology.

We all know what it feels like to have a bad night's sleep - and feel tired and irritable the next day. Sleep plays such an important role in recharging our minds and bodies – but what if, no matter how much sleep you had, you didn't wake rejuvenated the next day? In this episode, we're taking sleep disorders – everything from sleepwalking to problems getting to sleep in the first place. We'll hear from Declan, a 24-year-old man with narcolepsy, and Dr Chelsie Rohrscheib, a sleep researcher at UQ's Queensland Brain Institute.

What's going on in the brain when someone creates new music? Musical improvisation is a skill that draws on many parts of the brain and is also related to creativity in other domains. In this episode of A Grey Matter, we speak to legendary jazz pianist Jason Rebello and UQ neuroscientist Professor Geoff Goodhill to explore the science behind musical creativity.  Jason Rebello is a leading jazz pianist from the UK, who spent 10 years touring the world first with Sting and then Jeff Beck. He recorded three albums with Sting and has also recorded many of his own, including the 2016 solo project, Held.

Tennis is not usually a sport you'd associate with concussion, but for Casey Dellacqua, head injury hits close to home. The former dual Olympian, World No. 26 singles and World No. 3 doubles player suffered a concussion during a match in October 2015, which put her out of action for almost a year. She shares her experiences in this episode of A Grey Matter. And we talk with Dr Fatima Nasrallah, who studies traumatic brain injury.

Autism is a condition that affects a person's ability to interact socially and relate to the world around them. The degree to which a person is affected ranges across a wide spectrum, from severe difficulties in communicating to mild symptoms. Mia Langguth, a researcher at QBI, works part-time as a carer for Chris, a 24-year-old man with autism. She became a disability support worker almost by chance, but it's a job that has shaped the direction of her career.

Why and how do we sleep and what is consciousness? Are all animals that sleep by definition conscious when they are awake? Associate Professor Bruno van Swinderen studies fruit flies and has recently published research which shows that flies have distinct sleep stages. General anaesthetics extinguish consciousness in humans, but how do they really work? His research shows that common mechanisms might be involved in all animals. What do sleep and general anaesthesia together tell us about how the brain works?

When it comes to self-improvement, there's no shortage of books, tips, websites and online articles, particularly when it comes to boosting memory or brain power. The search term “hack your brain” turns up more than 7 million hits on Google. In this episode, we're talking about brain stimulation – using external devices involving magnetic fields and electricity to zap the brain. In recent years, a market of do-it-yourself devices has developed, promising products that can deliver a – quote unquote – “instant boost” to memory or attention. But the safety of these devices is another question, as is whether they even work.

We all know what it feels like after a bad night's sleep – you're tired, sluggish, and it's hard to concentrate. Lack of sleep can have lasting effects on the mind and body. So why is sleep so important?Dr Leonie Kirszenblat talks from a scientific and personal perspective about sleep deprivation and what happens to the brain when we don't get enough.

Sallyanne Atkinson AO, Chair of QBI's Advisory Board, talks to Ita Buttrose AO OBE, about her experience caring for her father, who had dementia. Ita is a national ambassador for Dementia Australia (formerly Alzheimer's Australia.

We have about 100 billion neurons in the brain, which contains a lot of information and processing power for a computer to try to emulate. So, how does AI work? Just how close are we to creating human-like computers, or even bionic body parts?

We talk to neurosurgeon and researcher Professor Peter Silburn about OCD and how deep brain stimulation, like in Parkinson's disease, could help those with the most severe form of the disorder.

QBI researchers are doing all they can to understand and develop new treatments for dementia. In this episode, Dr Gerhard Leinenga explains the different types of dementia, whether it's possible to reduce the risk of getting it, and exciting QBI research that has reduced the symptoms of Alzheimer's in animal models.CREDITHosted by Donna LuProduced by Jessica McGaw

"At 31, my mother had a stroke which happened in an instant, and whose effect will span her entire life."  Zoe McDonald interviews her mother, Dr Lavinia Codd, who is a stroke survivor and now stroke researcher at the Queensland Brain Institute. Zoe was just two at the time and she talks with her mother about the impact the stroke had on their family.CREDITProduced by Jessica McGaw

We talk to Dr Dhanisha Jhaveri about the biological foundations of depression and anxiety. Two key structures, the hippocampus and the amygdala are integral to memory and emotions, respectively, and Dr Jhaveri studies how these function normally in order to understand what might happen when things go wrong.CREDITHosted by Donna LuProduced by Jessica McGaw

Dr Bianca Di Wit, from the Department of Cognitive Science at Macquarie University in Sydney talks gaming - of the neuro kind. Just what is this new field of neurogaming and how can it be used for learning? Can playing games make us more intelligent?CREDIT Hosted by Donna Lu Produced by Jessica McGaw

"Anxiety is often something that you can't even attach to something. It's just almost an existential feeling of dread or fear." Mia Freedman is the founder and director of the Mamamia Women's Network and seems to have it all together. But here she talks openly about her personal struggle with anxiety, how she was convinced she had a non-existent cancer, and when her world came tumbling down.CREDIT Hosted by Donna Lu Produced by Jessica McGaw

Sleep. We all need it, but are we getting enough? How much sleep do we need to function on a day to day basis without feeling fatigued or irritable? What are the side effects of sleep deprivation? It is sleep awareness week and to get all the important answers we are talking to Dr Chelsie Rohrscheib, Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Cognitive and Behavioural Lab of Associate Professor Bruno Van Swinderen at the Queensland Brain Institute.CREDIT Hosted by Donna Lu Produced by Jessica McGaw

What is basic/fundamental science? Dr Steven Zuryn explains the slow burn of basic science, how it is the building block for many of our current scientific endeavours and that it has the ability to help affect generations to come.CREDITHosted by Donna LuProduced by Jessica McGaw

Most of what we know about neuroscience has been worked out from research on animals in the sea. One of those things is vision. Professor Justin Marshall talks about how important sea creatures are to our understanding of neuroscience, particularly vision. And Dr Fanny De Busserolles tells us what we can learn about vision from the creatures that inhabit the deep, dark depths of the oceans.CREDITHosted by Donna LuProduced by Jessica McGaw

What does the science say when it comes to healthy ageing? In this episode of A Grey Matter we speak to pioneering neuroscientist Professor Perry Bartlett about healthy ageing and how the brain regenerates itself.CREDITHosted by Donna LuProduced by Jessica McGaw

In this special edition of a A Grey Matter we talk with Rachel Corbett, who shares her personal experience with dementia and its harrowing effect on her family.CREDIT Hosted by Donna Lu Produced by Jessica McGaw

What is autism exactly, what causes it and why are diagnoses on the rise? We talk to international autism expert Professor Elliott Sherr, from Neurology and Pediatrics at the Institute of Human Genetics, University of California, San Francisco to find out more.CREDIT Hosted by Donna Lu Produced by Jessica McGaw

We talk to three of our female researchers about their passions and experiences in neuroscience - Dr Mia Schaumberg (how excercise affects cognition), Dr Xiaoying Cui (Schizophrenia), and Dr Chelsie Rohrscheib (sleep models in fruit flies)

Glioblastoma is the most aggressive cancer originating in the brain, and it affects people of all ages. Dr Jens Bunt, a scientist in the Brain Disorders and Development lab at QBI, is researching to find a cure. In this episode, he explains what brain cancer is and how tumours occur. A Grey Matter is the Queensland Brain Institute's podcast about neuroscience. CREDITHosted by Donna Lu & Jessica McGawProduced by Jessica McGaw

To mark Mental Health Week, we meet Dr Marta Garrido. Marta is a laboratory leader at QBI, and recently won a highly competitive UQ Research award for her work in schizophrenia. She's researching ways to use brain imaging to identify the onset of schizophrenia as soon as possible, to provide that all-important early intervention. But to understand how the brain works in people at risk of schizophrenia, Dr Garrido says we need to stop thinking of people as mentally healthy or mentally ill. Instead, we need to think of it as a spectrum.CREDITHosted by Kirsten MacGregorProduced by Jessica McGaw & Donna Lu

In a calendar full of awareness weeks and days, the need for a Schizophrenia Awareness Week remains paramount. Despite affecting more than 21 million people worldwide, schizophrenia is one of the most misunderstood disorders in the broader community, and one of the most puzzling for neuroscientists.  QBI's Dr James Kesby recently received a $300,000 Advance Queensland Research Fellowship to research how the disorder develops, but also to bridge the divide between the lab and the clinic. CREDITHosted by Kirsten MacGregor Produced and edited by Donna Lu. 

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is an increasingly common procedure for neurological disorders, including Parkinson's disease. This week's episode of A Grey Matter features Professor Peter Silburn, Director of the Queensland Brain Institute's Asia-Pacific Centre for Neuromodulation. Professor Silburn is a neurologist and world expert in DBS. He and neurosurgeon Associate Professor Terry Coyne have together performed more than 800 DBS procedures. Professor Silburn discusses Parkinson's disease, DBS, and the wonder of the human brain. A Grey Matter is the Queensland Brain Institute's podcast about neuroscience. CREDITHosted by Kirsten MacGregorProduced and edited by Donna Lu