Research

My name is Cassandra Sampaio Baptista: I am a neuroscientist here in the School of Psychology & Neuroscience using a multidisciplinary approach to investigate functional and structural plasticity, from the cellular level to systems level, in healthy and clinical populations such as stroke survivors. I particularly focus on white matter (myelin) plasticity.

Our group research focuses on brain plasticity in response to experiences such as skill learning or rehabilitation during adulthood. We aim to harness brain plasticity to improve learning, rehabilitation and promote healthy aging.

We use behavioural interventions and techniques that modulate brain activity to assess their effects on brain structure and function. For instance, we are currently using neurofeedback fMRI to investigate how modulation of brain activity can lead to brain changes and behavioural improvements as a potential adjunct rehabilitation therapy for stroke survivors.

Further, we are using preclinical magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) as a translational tool in conjunction with established cellular techniques to investigate the underlying cellular mechanisms of brain plasticity. We have made important contributions to the field of white matter and myelin plasticity, demonstrating that myelin plays an overlooked role in motor learning.

I welcome inquiries from prospective students and postdocs who may be interested in joining my group.

Biography

I graduated with a Msc and Dphil (PhD) in Neuroscience at the University of Oxford, and joined the University of Glasgow as a Lecturer in 2020.