This page is still developing and is not complete yet. For a full list of my publications please see my Google Scholar.
Here you will find information about the research publications I’ve been involved with. Throughout my research, I’ve had the opportunity to work on many interesting projects that have enriched my understanding and paved the path towards my successful scientific career. I’m proud to showcase my hard work with the list of publications below. You can also check my google scholar for more references Google Scholar.
A network model of deep brain stimulation (2021)
AmirAli Farokhniaee* and Madeleine M. Lowery “Cortical Network Effects of Subthalamic Deep Brain Stimulation in a Thalamo-Cortical Microcircuit Model”. Journal of Neural Engineering, DOI: 10.1088/1741-2552/abee50
This is my major work in the lab of Prof. Lowery. We designed a multi-layer thalamo-cortical network of Izhikevich neurons, based on the most recent neurophysiological and computational studies that was capable of replicating experimental recordings of parkinsonian rats, and rodents and human, in parts. This model is beneficial to study network effects of DBS and testing different hypotheses of DBS mechanisms of action and pathways that contribute to its therapeutic effects. We performed both temporal and spectral analyse of the thalamo-cortical neural network and the coherence and synchronization analysis leading to formation of excited and inhibited clusters of cortical pyramidal neurons. We also identified the optimum levels of stimulation at both intensity and frequency domains that suppress the exaggerated beta activity in primary motor cortex.
Synaptic suppression and its contribution to deep brain stimulation mechanisms of action (2019)
AmirAli Farokhniaee and Cameron C. McIntyre* “Theoretical Principles of Deep Brain Stimulation Induced Synaptic Suppression”, Brain Stimulation. DOI: 10.1016/j.brs.2019.07.005
This paper reports my major achievements during my first postdoc in the lab of Prof. McIntyre that covers an overall understanding of glutamatergic synapses in the cortex and their contribution to the cortical neuron firing patterns during DBS. We were able to model the firing pattern of M1 cortical neurons recorded during 1 minute of DBS in a parkinsonian monkey (recorded in another lab), by the computational modelling of LIF neurons as Stein’s model. Based on these results we proposed a novel DBS pattern with less stimulation time periods that enhances the battery life of the implanted device for DBS and probably less side effects for the PD patients.
Arnold tongues for Izhikevich neurons (2017)
AmirAli Farokhniaee* and Edward W. Large “Mode-locking behavior of Izhikevich neurons under periodic external forcing”, Physical Review E. DOI: 10.1103/Phys-RevE.95.062414
This paper reports my major computational achievements during my PhD studies. It explains the single neuron responses to periodical stimuli and how their response gets temporally locked (phase-locked) to the stimulus, depending on the amplitude and frequency. This is a very basic phenomenon that manifests in many parts of the brain.
- Read it here.
A Canonical Model of Wilson-Cowan type mean field models (2020)
AmirAli Farokhniaee*, Felix V. Almonte, Susanne Yelin and Edward W. Large “Entrainment of Weakly Coupled Canonical Oscillators with Applications in Gradient Frequency Neural Networks Using Approximating Analytical Methods”, Mathematics. DOI: 10.3390/math8081312
This paper contains my major achievements in the theoretical aspects of my Ph.D. studies. This work reports implementation of normal form theory on Wilson-Cowan type neuronal populations to obtain a canonical model, which eases the synchronization analysis of WC type models.
- Read it here.
Initiation and Propagation of DBS-induced action potentials via cortical pyramidal neurons (2018)
Ross W. Anderson, AmirAli Farokhniaee, Kabilar Gunalan, Bryan Howell, Cameron C. McIntyre* “Action potential initiation, propagation, and cortical invasion in the hyperdirect pathway during subthalamic deep brain stimulation”, Brain Stimulation. DOI: 10.1016/j.brs.2018.05.008
I was involved in this project during my postdoc research in the lab of Prof. McIntyre by evaluating the synaptic depletions induced by DBS to synaptic terminals of a pyramidal model neuron in layer 5 of the cortex, investigating the hypothesis that synaptic suppression has a major contribution to the network effects of DBS.