My primary interest focuses on the anatomical substrates of cognition and emotion. In my Laboratory for Neuroanatomy and Cerebellar Neurobiology we use the methods of systems neuroscience, and we uphold the mission of the Massachusetts General Hospital by incorporating patient care and teaching into our research program.
My work pioneered the role of the cerebellum in cognition and emotion, and together with my collaborators I continue to evaluate the clinical features and neuroanatomical and functional substrates of the cerebellar cognitive affective syndrome. Our methods include tract tracing studies in animals of pathways that link cerebellum with the cerebral cortex; neurological and neuropsychological studies of cognition and emotion in patients with cerebellar diseases; and structural (MRI) and functional imaging (PET and fMRI) of the cerebellum to better understand the organization of the human cerebellum and the consequences of cerebellar damage on higher order behaviors.
In addition to cerebellar connections with cerebral cortex, we are interested in the connections of different cortical association areas with each other, with subcortical structures such as thalamus and basal ganglia, and the organization of the white matter tracts that link different brain regions. Our tract tracing studies in animals provided new insights into cerebral white matter pathways, and we are using new MRI approaches (diffusion spectrum imaging – DSI) to study these pathways and connections in the whole brain – in animals and humans. This work has potential to shed new light on cerebral and cerebellar systems affected by many diseases, from the ataxias to autism, schizophrenia and depression. We complement these anatomical investigations by studying patients with lesions in these areas (thalamus, pons, and cerebral white matter, as well as cerebellum) to better understand these presentations, and to facilitate improved diagnosis, management, and counseling.
Clinical Research
The Massachusetts General Hospital Ataxia Unit is the clinical arm of the Laboratory for Neuroanatomy and Cerebellar Neurobiology. It is widely recognized as a premier center in the country for the evaluation and management of patients with cerebellar disorders, including spinocerebellar ataxias, Friedreich’s ataxia, multiple system atrophy - cerebellar type, sporadic ataxia, and cerebellar malformations resulting in motor and cognitive developmental delay. Clinical and translational research programs are directed at better diagnosing, understanding, and treating patients with cerebellar disorders, and collaborations with local and national investigators help advance these goals.
Collaboration
Our collaborators play an essential role in fulfilling our mission. At the Massachusetts General Hospital these include investigators and clinicians in the following areas:
- Athinoula Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging
- Center for Morphometric Analysis
- Psychology Assessment Center
- Cognitive/Behavioral Neurology Unit
- Pediatric Neurogenetics Laboratory
- Department of Neuropathology
- Stroke Service
- Clinical Trials Unit
- MassGeneral Institute for Neurodegenerative Disease (MIND)
- Broad Center at Harvard Medical School and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Drug Discovery program of the Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School
- Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (Physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy)
- Neuro-otology and Vestibular Clinical Laboratories
We also collaborate closely with neuroscientists in the Boston University Laboratory for Anatomy and Neurobiology, the New England Regional Primate Center, the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center for Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation, the University of Lausanne, Switzerland, and previously with the McConnell Brain Imaging Center at the Montreal Neurological Institute and the Laboratory for Neuroimaging at UCLA.
Teaching
Education is central to our mission. The clinical insights and results of our research efforts are shared in teaching sessions with medical students who rotate through Mass General wards on the neurology clerkships, as well as with undergraduate and graduate students locally and nationally.
Patient out-reach is a central part of our clinical mission, and a driving force in our research efforts. Dr. Schmahmann is a member of the Medical Advisory Board of the National Ataxia Foundation, and the Medical Advisor to its New England Ataxia Support Group.
The Laboratory has been funded by the National Institutes of Health for the development of the MRI Cerebellar Atlas, anatomical studies of the corticopontine projections in animals, and studies of motor and cognitive effects of cerebellar strokes in patients; by the McDonnell-Pew Foundations for behavioral and anatomical studies in animals; the Birmingham Foundation; the Massachusetts General Hospital Executive Committee on Research for anatomical as well as clinical studies; and philanthropic gifts from patients and their families.