Quito Brain and Behavior Laboratory

Yesterday I gave a presentation at the inaugural Brain Meeting of the Quito Brain and Behavior lab. The presentation was on neurocognitive function and socioeconomic status. Not everybody’s cup of tea, but it attracted about 20 academics from various fields. That was what we wanted, there are lots of people here who want to do some brain based research, and the monthly Brain Meetings are a way to get them together. Hopefully, this will encourage research and collaborations. The meetings will be held at 4pm every first Tuesday of the month during the teaching semesters.

The advertising poster for the inaugural Brain Meeting of the new lab. 

The Brain Meetings are organized by the Quito Brain and Behavior lab, which is being set up at Universidad San Francisco de Quito by me and Dr. Ana F. Trueba, a psychophysiologist. With her interest and expertise, and my background in neuropsychology and psychopathology, we are forming an international class research group on brain sciences. We both have a lot of experience in running projects, and publishing data in international journals, so forming the lab is helping us to extend this. In addition we have a paid research assistant and several graduate and undergraduate volunteers who are gaining research experience in the lab. Recently an expert in genetics and cognitive neuroscience also joined the group. 

We currently have two projects running, one on predication of academic performance with neuropsychological tests, and the other a validation study on various tests of premorbid function. We are also developing a new battery of cognitive tests that could be used in various clinical studies, for example to measure cognitive decline in dementia. The development of these tests is important because there are currently few assessment tools that are validated for use in Ecuador. By producing our own, we can facilitate future research. We also have studies planned on the role of cortisol and inflammation markers in sub-clinical psychopathology, and some experimental studies of the effects of the hormone and neuromodulator oxytocin. As more collaborators join us, the number and range of projects will increase.

The lab houses a reasonable neuropsychological test library, in fact possibly the biggest in Ecuador. This includes several commercial tests (such as Wechsler tests, Delis Kaplan Executive Function System) as well as many more experimental tests. In addition, we already have some physiological recording equipment, and the university is in the process of buying eye-tracking systems, which will be used in neuromarketing research. So there is plenty of potential. The next Brain Meeting will be held on March 3rd at 4pm at Universidad San Francisco de Quito.