Dr. Martin McKeown

Professor

Neurology

Current Research Focus

The overarching goal of Dr. McKeown’s research is to investigate novel ways to treat symptoms of Parkinson’s disease using non-invasive, non-pharmacological technology. Specifically, Dr. McKeown’s team are interested in better understanding brain connectivity and network dynamics and extrapolating work from related disciplines such as Alzheimer’s disease and Multiple Sclerosis to investigate whether tools originally developed for other pathological diseases are also useful in PD. In addition, the team focuses on utilizing portable and wearable technologies to record and collect research data and to ultimately provide a means of home-based symptom management.

Example Project

 Dynamic striatal/cerebellar interactions in Parkinson's Disease Parkinson's disease (PD) has been considered a "classic" basal ganglia disease, and dominant models of the last two decades have examined the role of altered basal ganglia function in PD. However, it is becoming increasingly clear that solely focusing on abnormal basal ganglia function cannot explain many disease features that are vitally important to those affected: the significant variability in the progression of the disease, why PD subjects with tremor tend to have a more benign prognosis and reduced motor complications of treatment, and why tremor often does not respond to dopaminergic therapy. This work proposes to answer these questions by investigating the complementary role the cerebellum plays in PD. By using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and manual tracking tasks, we will determine how cerebellar function becomes altered when the basal ganglia are affected by PD. In addition to explaining many features of PD, this work may spawn new rehabilitation strategies, and provide novel targets for future drug therapies. 

Research Keywords

Basal Ganglia, Cerebellum, Functional MRI, Parkinson’s Disease, Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Electroencephalography, Electromyography, Electrodermal Activity, Kinematics and Posturography

Research Areas
  • Basal Ganglia
  • Cerebellum
  • Electrodermal Activity
  • Electroencephalography
  • Electromyography
  • fMRI
  • Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging
  • Kinematics and Posturography
  • Parkinson's

First Nations land acknowledegement

We acknowledge that the UBC Point Grey campus is situated on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm.

Biomedical Imaging and Artificial Intelligence

2222 Health Sciences Mall
Vancouver, BC Canada V6T 1Z3

Research Excellence Clusters at UBC Vancouver is a joint initiative of the Provost and Vice-President, Academic, UBC Vancouver and the Vice-President, Research and Innovation. Funding support for the clusters is provided by Academic Excellence Funds – UBC Vancouver.

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