NIBS Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation

Research lines of the group documented by publications in the period 2019-2023 

• Exploration of human behavior and underlying cognitive and affective processes through behavioral methods and neurostimulation, combined with electrophysiological and functional imaging techniques. 
• Study of brain plasticity, connectivity, and oscillatory activity and their relevance to behavior 
• Development and application of new non-invasive neurostimulation methods for basic, translational, and clinical research. 

Head:

Alessio Avenanti, Full Professor

ERC Sectors  

• SH4_2 Personality and social cognition; emotion  
• SH4_4 Neuropsychology  
• SH4_5 Attention, perception, action, consciousness 
• LS5_9 Neural basis of cognition  
• LS5_10 Ageing of the nervous system  
• LS5_16 Systems and computational neuroscience  
• LS5_17 Imaging in neuroscience 

Scientific Disciplinary Sector: M-PSI/02 

Selected publications of the group for the period 2019-2023

1. Borgomaneri S, Zanon M, Di Luzio P, Cataneo A, Arcara G, Romei V, Tamietto M, Avenanti A (2023). Increasing associative plasticity in temporo-occipital back-projections improves visual perception of emotions. Nature Communications 14,5720. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-41058-3
2. Turrini S, Bevacqua N, Cataneo A, Chiappini E, Fiori F, Battaglia S, Romei V, Avenanti A (2023). Neurophysiological markers of premotor-motor network plasticity predict motor performance in young and older adults. Biomedicines 11, 1464. https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines11051464
3. Turrini S, Bevacqua N, Cataneo A, Chiappini E, Fiori F, Candidi M, Avenanti A (2023). Transcranial cortico-cortical paired associative stimulation (ccPAS) over ventral premotor-motor pathways enhances action performance and corticomotor excitability in young adults more than in elderly adults. Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience 15, 1119508. | https://doi.org/10.3389/fnagi.2023.1119508
4. Patri JF, Cavallo A, Pullari K, Soriano M, Valente M, Koul A, Avenanti A, Panzeri S, Becchio C (2020). Transient disruption of the inferior parietal lobule impairs the ability to attribute intention to action. Current Biology 30, 4594-4605. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2020.08.104
5. Decroix J, Borgomaneri S, Kalenine S, Avenanti A (2020). State-dependent TMS of inferior frontal and parietal cortex highlights integration of motor acts and functional goals during action recognition. Cortex 132, 51-62. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2020.08.004
6. Chiappini E, Borgomaneri S, Marangon M, Turrini S, Romei V, Avenanti A (2020). Driving associative plasticity in premotor-motor connections though a novel paired associative stimulation based on long-latency cortico-cortical interactions. Brain Stimulation 5, 1461-1463. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.brs.2020.08.003

Funding for the period 2019-2023 

International Projects 

• 2023. Imminent Research grant Translated (PI: AA). 
• 2022 Grant, Bial Foundation, Portogallo. Prot. n° 304/22; years: 2022-2026 (PI: AA). 
• 2022 Grant, Bial Foundation, Portogallo. Prot. n° 033/22; years: 2022-2026 (PI: SB). 
• 2018 Grant, Bial Foundation, Portogallo. Prot. n° 298/16; years: 2019-2023 (PI: AA). 
• 2016 Grant, Bial Foundation, Portogallo. Prot. n° 298/16; periodo 2017-2019 (PI: SB; Co-PI: AA). 
• Research Grant 2014, Cogito Foundation, Svizzera. Prot. n° 14-139-R; years: 2014-2019 (PI: AA). 

 National Projects 

• PRIN 2022, MUR, Italy. Prot. n° 2022NEE53Z; years: 2023-2025 (PI: AA) 
• Bando FISM 2022, Associazione Italiana Sclerosi Multipla. Italy. Prot. n° 2022/R-Single/071; years: 2023-2025 (PI: AA) 
• Partenariati Estesi PNRR, Neuroscienze e neurofarmacologia, MUR, Italy. Prot. n° PE0000006 – MNESYS; years: 2022-2025 (Co-PI: AA). 
• Fondazione del Monte di Bologna e Ravenna, Italy. Prot. n° 1402bis/2021; years: 2021-2024 (PI: AA). 
• Bando Ricerca Finalizzata 2019, Ministero della Salute. Prot. n° RF-2019-12368598; years: 2019-2022 (Co-PI: AA) 
• Bando Giovani Ricercatori 2018, Ministero della Salute. Prot. n° GR-2018-12365733; years: 2019-2022 (Local coordinator: SB) 
• PRIN 2017, MIUR, Italy. Prot. n° 2017N7WCLP; years: 2019-2021 (Local coordinator: AA). 
• Fondazione del Monte di Bologna e Ravenna, Italy. Prot. n° 339bis/2017; years: 2017-2020 (PI: AA). 

Active National and International Collaborations 2019-2023 

International collaborations 

• de Vega M, & Vitale F, Universidad de la Laguna (Spain) 
• Fracasso A, University of Glasgow (UK) 
• Kalénine S & Decroix J, Université de Lille (France) 
• Keysers C & Gazzola V, Netherland Institute of Neuroscience (Netherland) 
• Lucero B, & Saracini C, Universidad Católica del Maule (Chile) 
• Meconi F, University of Birmingham (UK) 
• Nitsche MA & Salehinejad MA, Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors (Germany) 
• Santarnecchi E, Harvard University (USA) 
• Silvanto J, University of Surrey (UK) 
• Tidoni E, University of Hull (UK) 

National collaborations 

• Aglioti SM, Bevacqua N & Candidi M, Sapienza Università di Roma 
• Arcara G, IRCCS San Camillo 
• Avanzino L & Botta A, Università di Genova  
• Becchio C & Panzeri S, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia 
• Sessa P, Università di Padova 
• Tamietto M, Università di Torino 
• Vicario CM, Università di Messina 
• Zanon M, Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA) 

 Unibo collaborations 

• Tessari A, & Costa M, Dipartimento PSI, SSD M-PSI/01 
• Ciaramelli E, di Pellegrino G, & Romei V, Dipartimento PSI, SSD M-PSI/02 
• Benassi MG, Dipartimento PSI, SSD M-PSI/03 
• Fino E, Menegatti M & Rubini M, Dipartimento PSI, SSD M-PSI/05 
• Breviglieri R, Bosco A, & Fattori P, Dipartimento DIBINEM, SSD BIO/09 
• Russo M & Spinolo N, Dipartimento DIT, SSD L-LIN/07 

Editorial activities in the period 2019-2023 

• Cognitive Affective and Behavioral Neuroscience (Alessio Avenanti is consulting editor), 
• Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience (Alessio Avenanti is guest associate editor) 
• Frontiers in Human Neuroscience (Alessio Avenanti is guest associate editor) 
• Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience (Sara Borgomaneri is a reviewing editor) 
• PLoS ONE (Alessio Avenanti is section editor and academic editor), 
• Scientific Reports (Alessio Avenanti is an editorial board member) 
• Brain Sciences (Alessio Avenanti and Sara Borgomaneri are associate editors) 

Fellow in scientific academies and / or executive committees of scientific associations for the period 2019-2023 

Vice President of the Italian Society of Psychophysiology and Cognitive Neuroscience (SIPF) (Alessio Avenanti) 

President of the International Advisory Board and Honorary Member of the Instituto Universitario de Neurociencia Universidad de La Laguna (Alessio Avenanti) 

Member of the International Advisory Board of the BrainLat Institute Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez (Alessio Avenanti)