Your Fantastic Mind
A partnership between Emory and Georgia Public Broadcasting (GPB). Support provided by Southern Company Charitable Foundation.
Episode 12
Epilepsy took away Ja'lisa Thomas' ability to work, drive, and live independently. A radical new treatment delivered at Emory Brain Health Center gave Ja'Lisa her life back, and allowed neuroscientists to peer into the inner workings of how memories are saved. CLICK ON VIDEO BELOW TO VIEW THE FULL EPISODE
12 | Controlling Epilepsy, Boosting Memories
Robert Gross and Jon Willie, neurosurgery; Cory Inman, neuroscience
Dr. Robert Gross, MBNA Bowman Chair and Professor of Emory's Department of Neurosurgery, uses laser ablation to control epileptic seizures.
While there is no cure for epilepsy, doctors and researchers at Emory are controlling the seizures with a relatively new technique that has dramatically changed patient outcomes.
Epilepsy is characterized by recurrent seizures. Robert Gross, an Emory neurosurgeon, says that “seizures are caused by an abnormal occurrence of electrical activity and can lead to behavioral manifestations.”
In the case of Ja’lisa Thomas, one of Gross’ patients, the seizures made it impossible for her to have a job or to drive. Thomas tried multiple medications to control her seizures but none of them seemed to help.
Only the areas of the patient's brain that show seizure activity are targeted by the laser ablation procedure.
Only the areas of the patient's brain that show seizure activity are targeted by the laser ablation procedure.
That’s where Gross and the neurosurgery team at Emory came in. After video-monitoring Thomas’ seizures to locate the areas of the brain where they were occurring, Gross used his laser ablation technique to physically destroy the seizure-causing brain tissue. But how can areas of the brain be safely destroyed?
“There’s this concept that there are large regions of the brain that are doing nothing,” says Gross. “It’s not so much that they are doing nothing. It's more that when we take them out, we don’t necessarily see the effect on someone’s function—either because it’s below the level of detection or there is some level of redundancy and ways in which the person can compensate.”
In Thomas’ case, laser ablation surgery was a success. She has been seizure-free for 8 months.
Patients like Ja’lisa Thomas can help researchers discover how the brain retains memories. Neurosurgeon Jon Willie and cognitive neuroscientist Cory Inman are part of a clinical research study to better understand how memories are retained.
Since Thomas already had electrodes placed in her brain, Willie and Inman were able to monitor her while she plays video-game-like activities.
Dr. Jon Willie, an Emory neurosurgeon and brain researcher, seeks to develop novel interventional therapies for neurological disorders.
Dr. Jon Willie, an Emory neurosurgeon and brain researcher, seeks to develop novel interventional therapies for neurological disorders.
Dr. Jon Willie, Emory neurosurgeon and assistant professor of neurosurgery, is director of the Laboratory for Behavioral Neuromodulation.
“A lot of epilepsy occurs in networks related to memory, so this gives us an opportunity to study these networks by asking the patients to remember things,” says Willie.
Willie and Inman do this by firing electrical impulses into the amygdala.
Emory post-doctoral fellow Cory Inman is studying enhancement of memory through brain stimulation.
“The amygdala is kind of like the brain’s 'save' button. We are showing that we can enhance memory the next day, which has never been shown in any other study of memory enhancement before,” says Inman.
For more information about the Brain Health Center at Emory, call Emory HealthConnection, 404-778-7777, or visit Emory Brain Health Center’s website.
Dr. Robert Gross, MBNA Bowman Chair and Professor of Emory's Department of Neurosurgery, uses laser ablation to control epileptic seizures.
Dr. Robert Gross, MBNA Bowman Chair and Professor of Emory's Department of Neurosurgery, uses laser ablation to control epileptic seizures.
Emory post-doctoral fellow Cory Inman is studying enhancement of memory through brain stimulation.
Emory post-doctoral fellow Cory Inman is studying enhancement of memory through brain stimulation.
Dr. Jon Willie, Emory neurosurgeon and assistant professor of neurosurgery, is director of the Laboratory for Behavioral Neuromodulation.
Dr. Jon Willie, Emory neurosurgeon and assistant professor of neurosurgery, is director of the Laboratory for Behavioral Neuromodulation.
Brain Research at Emory
As one of the nation’s premier research universities, Emory is a leader in education, discovery, and patient care related to the neurosciences. Faculty scholars, scientists, physicians, and clinicians throughout the university and Emory Healthcare collaborate on advancing knowledge associated with the brain and brain health.
The Emory Brain Health Center combines neurology, neurosurgery, psychiatry and behavioral sciences, rehabilitation medicine, and sleep medicine in a unique, integrated approach.
Researchers are predicting, preventing, treating, and curing diseases and disorders of the brain and addressing the growing global crisis associated with some of the most common ones.
Emory’s neuroethics program explores the evolving ethical, legal, and social impact of the neurosciences, while the Yerkes National Primate Research Center conducts essential basic science and translational research to advance scientific understanding and to improve the health and well-being of humans and nonhuman primates.
Emory’s comprehensive, multidisciplinary approach is transforming the world’s understanding of the vast frontiers of the brain, harnessing imagination and discovery to address 21st-century challenges.
A partnership between Emory and Georgia Public Broadcasting (GPB). Support provided by Southern Company Charitable Foundation.
Keep up with the latest brain health news and read more stories about people helped by Emory's research exploring the Frontiers of the Brain.
Keep up with the latest brain health news and read more stories about people helped by Emory's research exploring the Frontiers of the Brain.
Keep up with the latest brain health news and read more stories about people helped by Emory's research exploring the Frontiers of the Brain.
Want to know more?
Please visit Emory's Frontiers of the Brain website, the Emory News Center, and Emory University.
