Adele Diamond
Canada Research Chair in Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience
Tier 1 - 2004-09-01
The University of British Columbia
Health
604-822-7220
adele.diamond@ubc.ca
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Coming to Canada from
University of Massachusetts Medical School, USA
Research involves
Studying the development and nervous system basis of cognitive functions that depend on the prefrontal cortex, and the effects of genetics and the environment on these cognitive functions.
Research relevance
The research is contributing to the prevention and treatment of disorders, such as attention disorders, depression, schizophrenia, and autism.
Gaining Entry to the Brain Via the Front Door
The prefrontal cortex of the brain is devoted to the most complex human abilities. Dysfunction in this area is implicated in many disorders including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), schizophrenia, and autism. ADHD is the most commonly diagnosed neuropsychological disorder of childhood, affecting about 1 in 25 children; schizophrenia and autism afflict hundreds of thousands of Canadians and their families.
Dr. Adele Diamond studies the cognitive abilities that depend on this region of the brain - from their earliest beginnings right on through life. To carry out her studies, she employs a variety of methods including neurocognitive testing, functional neuroimaging, and molecular genetic analyses.
The ability to stop paying attention to, or inhibit, certain stimuli or to resist behaviours allows us a measure of control over our lives. Sometimes, however, we need to pay attention or respond to the very stimuli that we previously needed to ignore. This flexibility - to be able to quickly institute and reverse inhibition - is critically important. As well, the ability to see connections between seemingly unconnected things, the ability to evaluate and re-combine elements in new ways, and the ability to consider something from a fresh perspective, are the very basis of creativity.
As the Canada Research Chair in Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, Dr. Diamond is exploring these cognitive abilities and their fundamental connections to the nervous system. She is trying to find out how they are modulated by genetics and neurochemistry, how they are modified by the environment, and how they can become derailed in certain disorders.
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