Research

We are interested in characterizing how mental phenomena and the physiology of the human body interact, and discovering new ways to modulate the observed interactions.

Our goals are

  1. to identify systemic mechanisms for common mental disorders such as depression, and
  2. to utilize the generated knowledge to develop or optimize treatment applications

We are seeking to achieve our goals by working with different populations ranging from healthy volunteers to individuals affected by common mental disorders. You can find further information on our main projects below.
Kuopio Birth Cohort (KuBiCo): Mental well-being

We run the Mental well-being section of the multidisciplinary KuBiCo Study. As part of this project, we are investigating how a mother's psychological well-being is associated with systemic biomarkers of the mother and the newborn. In the interest of developing new interventions and enhancing long-term individual well-being, we are also seeking to determine how the mother's mental well-being during pregnancy affects the child's health and well-being in the course of her or his development.
Optimizing transcranial electrical stimulation for clinical applications (OptES) study

Transcranial electrical stimulation methods are currently a focus of increasing research interest worldwide. Transcranial electrical stimulation modulates neuronal membrane potentials, inducing a change in the spontaneous tendency for neuronal firing in the cerebral cortex. The OptES Study aims to generate novel information regarding the mechanisms of action of transcranial electrical stimulation, and develop new, better clinical applications for transcranial electrical stimulation. We seek to achieve our objectives through working with both healthy volunteers and patients.