Dosenbach Lab Studies the Underestimated Cerebellum

The lab of Nico U. Dosenbach, MD, PhD, associate professor of neurology and radiology, discussed their recent research into the cerebellum with NPR on “All Things Considered.” Their findings indicate that the cerebellum plays a more prominent role in the brain than just sensory-motor function, such as it monitoring brain functions and optimizing areas that are doing work.

The lab used a special type of MRI to study the brain wiring of 10 people, quantifying the various connections between the cerebellum and other brain areas. They found that just 20% of the cerebellum was dedicated to areas involved in physical motion, while 80% was dedicated to areas involved in functions such as abstract thinking, planning, emotion, memory and language. Their findings were published in Neuron.

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