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Michael Fox

Michael Fox

@foxmdphd.bsky.social

2.1K followers 91 following 35 posts

Raymond D. Adams Endowed Chair and Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School / Mass General Brigham; Director of the Center for Brain Circuit Therapeutics @braincircuits.bsky.social

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Michael Fox @foxmdphd.bsky.social · Nov 16

Excited to join Bluesky!
I’m an engineer, neurologist, and neuroscientist interested in causal mapping of neurological and psychiatric symptoms to human brain circuits to identify therapeutic targets for neuromodulation. #DBS, #TMS

Reposted by Michael H. Fox

Isaiah Kletenik @isaiahneuro.bsky.social · 10d

Can a brain injury make someone lose their imagination?

We describe rare cases of acquired aphantasia, people who lost the ability to visually imagine after a stroke or other brain injury. Now published in Cortex 🧠 @braincircuits.bsky.social

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Lesions Causing Aphantasia are Connected to the Fusiform Imagery Node

The absence of visual mental imagery, called aphantasia, occurs congenitally in up to 3% of the general population, but the brain regions responsible …

www.sciencedirect.com

Reposted by Michael H. Fox

David L Perez MD, MMSc @davidlewisperez.bsky.social · 11d

One week away from launching our 2nd annual @harvardmed.bsky.social course Brain Medicine: Integrating the Clinical Neurosciences. On demand viewing for 30 days. Nearly 150 people registered. Join us! @jrbneuropsiq.bsky.social @foxmdphd.bsky.social

learn.hms.harvard.edu/programs/bra...

Brain Medicine: Integrating the Clinical Neurosciences | Harvard Medical School Professional, Corporate, and Continuing Education

Explore cutting-edge advances in brain medicine with this interdisciplinary course designed to equip clinicians with integrated tools for assessing and managing complex brain disorders, featuring expe...

learn.hms.harvard.edu

Reposted by Richard E. Lenski, Rita Rubin, Michael H. Fox , and 1 more Richard E. Lenski, Rita Rubin, Michael H. Fox, Ruairidh Milne

Eric Topol @erictopol.bsky.social · 18d

The Shingles vaccine has outperformed all expectations. Why?
erictopol.substack.com/p/spotlight-...

Reposted by Ian Miles, Michael H. Fox, Karen O’Leary

Eric Topol @erictopol.bsky.social · 19d

The Shingles vaccine and reduction of dementia: a new natural experiment from Canada replicated 3 others and adds to this week's link to slowing of biological aging.
erictopol.substack.com/p/spotlight-...

Spotlight on the Shingles Vaccine—Again!

Two new studies add to a remarkable body of evidence for benefit

erictopol.substack.com

Michael Fox @foxmdphd.bsky.social · 21d

My understanding is that DIANA was a single paper, by a single group, that multiple groups then failed to replicate. In contrast, lesion network mapping is >200 papers by multiple groups, that a single group has reportedly failed to replicate.

Michael Fox @foxmdphd.bsky.social · 21d

Thanks Ravi. By “shades of Diana” does that mean you agree with the Van de Huevel critique that the lesion network mapping method is fundamentally flawed?

Michael Fox @foxmdphd.bsky.social · 23d

Thanks to The Transmitter for reaching out to me for comments on this methodological challenge to lesion network mapping. Scientific debate is critical to methodological advancement - so let the debate begin!

www.thetransmitter.org/brain-imagin...

Methodological flaw may upend network mapping tool

The lesion network mapping method, used to identify disease-specific brain networks for clinical stimulation, produces a nearly identical network map for any given condition, according to a new study.

www.thetransmitter.org

Michael Fox @foxmdphd.bsky.social · 23d

Are connectome-based network mapping methods and the >200 papers that have used it invalid?

New paper out in
@NatureNeuro
says YES. nature.com/articles/s41...

I have concerns about this new paper's methods and conclusions, but am biased. What do others think?

Investigating the methodological foundation of lesion network mapping - Nature Neuroscience

The lesion network mapping method links diverse brain lesions to similar functional brain networks, reflecting general brain organization rather than disorder-specific circuits.

Reposted by Michael H. Fox

weigangcui.bsky.social @weigangcui.bsky.social · Jan 6

Check out our new work on the relationship between glioma and system-level functional networks! We identify that nearly all gliomas localize within a common brain functional network, Action-Mode Network (AMN) .

biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.01.05.697608v1

Reposted by Michael H. Fox

Elizabeth Ellis, PhD @elizabethellisphd.bsky.social · Dec 16

New pre-print out now from Dr Daniel Corp, @jjoutsa.bsky.social and @foxmdphd.bsky.social ‘Mapping the neuroanatomy of dystonia using causal brain lesions’ !! www.medrxiv.org/content/10.6...
We map networks for the different dystonias, showing significant differences, somatotopy...and much more!!

Mapping the Neuroanatomy of Dystonia Using Causal Brain Lesions

Dystonia is one of the most prevalent movement disorders, but its neural substrates have remained enigmatic despite decades of research. Brain lesions leading to dystonia offer unique causal inference...

www.medrxiv.org

Reposted by Michael H. Fox

Baller Lab @ballerlab.bsky.social · Dec 3

Excited to share that our new review, "Depression as a disease of white matter network disruption: Learning from Multiple Sclerosis," is out now in Biological Psychiatry! We propose MS as a powerful model for studying how white matter network changes contribute to depression.

Depression as a disease of white matter network disruption: Learning from Multiple Sclerosis

Depression is a common and debilitating psychiatric disorder that is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality. For nearly 40 years, scientists have attempted to localize depression in the b...

www.biologicalpsychiatryjournal.com

Reposted by Michael H. Fox

Michael Okun @michaelokun.bsky.social · Nov 29

What is the burden in the US of Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and other diseases? Spoiler alert: there are surges beyond the pure numbers and we need to raise awareness for the increases in both disability and burden. Parkinson disease has shown the largest growth in burden on society.
cutt.ly/xtyUtS0D

Reposted by Michael H. Fox

BD² @bipolardiscoveries.org · Nov 19

🧪 Research Spotlight: Ziad Nahas, MD, MSCR, is studying how brain networks regulate mood in #BipolarDisorder & how instability drives shifts between depression & mania with PACE

👉 Goal: Test if targeting networks can improve mood & reveal mechanisms behind switches.

🔗 bit.ly/4gTbBwU

Reposted by Michael H. Fox

Andrew Reid @reid-lab.org · Nov 6

This is 🤯

All publicly available. Looks like an amazing new histology-based human probabilistic atlas and parcellation tool.

#neuroskyence #mri #brainmapping

A probabilistic histological atlas of the human brain for MRI segmentation | Nature share.google/5AD0iW7pxgb4...

A probabilistic histological atlas of the human brain for MRI segmentation - Nature

NextBrain is an open source, probabilistic atlas of the entire human brain, assembled using artificial-intelligence-enabled registration and segmentation methods to reconstruct the multimodal serial h...

Reposted by Michael H. Fox

BD² @bipolardiscoveries.org · Nov 5

🧪 Research Spotlight: Michael Fox, MD, PhD (@foxmdphd.bsky.social) of Mass General Brigham (@mgbresearch.bsky.social) will map brain circuits driving symptoms in #BipolarDisorder

👉 Goal: Go beyond imaging correlations to identify the circuits causing symptoms.

🔗 bit.ly/4gTbBwU

Reposted by Michael H. Fox

Andreas Horn @andreashorn.org · Oct 30

Nice case report led by Ben Shofty's team adding prospective evidence for tract based reprogramming in deep brain stimulation for obsessive compulsive disorder out in @biologicalpsych.bsky.social:

www.biologicalpsychiatryjournal.com/article/S000...

🧵

Michael Fox @foxmdphd.bsky.social · Oct 28

Can we identify brain circuit targets to treat symptoms of bipolar disorder? Thanks to funding from @bipolardiscoveries.org our team @braincircuits.bsky.social will be working hard to find out! Honored to be one of these excellent teams.
www.news-medical.net/news/2025102...

BD² expands global effort to examine the key mechanisms of bipolar disorder

Today, BD², or Breakthrough Discoveries for thriving with Bipolar Disorder, announced its third round of Discovery Research grants, totaling nearly $18 million – expanding a comprehensive global effor...

www.news-medical.net

Reposted by Michael H. Fox

Eric Topol @erictopol.bsky.social · Oct 21

From a new @thelancet.com article today entitled "Health care in the USA: money has become the mission" www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...

Reposted by Jennifer Bussell, Michael H. Fox

Sarah Heilbronner @srheilbronner.bsky.social · Oct 21

Suzanne Haber was just elected to the National Academy of Medicine! Her work on the organization of the cortex and basal ganglia has had a huge impact. Please take the opportunity to congratulate her the next time you see her. www.urmc.rochester.edu/news/story/u...

University of Rochester Neurobiologist Suzanne Haber Elected to National Academy of Medicine

An internationally recognized scientist, her work has transformed our understanding of the brain networks that play a central role in many mental health disorders, including obsessive compulsive disor...

www.urmc.rochester.edu

Reposted by Michael H. Fox

Brain @brain1878.bsky.social · Oct 7

Pruckner et al. show that the structural effects of neurosurgery extend beyond the resected tissue into connected networks through transneuronal degeneration. They were able to reliably predict these changes from preoperative MRI. tinyurl.com/a6rxvbey

Reposted by Michael H. Fox

Andreas Horn @andreashorn.org · Oct 1

Fantastic talk by Joe Taylor on the „philosophers scan“ and how imaging can help neuromodulation at the Brainclinics TMS Masterclass in Nijmegen!

Reposted by Michael H. Fox

Michael Okun @michaelokun.bsky.social · Sep 29

Could the Parkinson’s drug levodopa prime the brain to respond better to intensive rehabilitation following a stroke or injury? Enter the idea: Let’s give dopamine pills after a stroke? Spoiler alert: This new large, randomized trial published in JAMA revealed no added benefit in recovery.

Michael Fox @foxmdphd.bsky.social · Sep 25

Honored to moderate a panel on noninvasive mapping of human brain circuits at MGB Neuroscience Day.
Great insights from @anastasiayendiki.bsky.social
@mghmartinos.bsky.social, @fredschaper.bsky.social
@braincircuits.bsky.social, Alex Golby and Pravan Nanda @mgbneurosurgres.bsky.social.

Reposted by Michael H. Fox

Michael Okun @michaelokun.bsky.social · Sep 23

Boom: The results of the ADAPT-PD personalized brain stimulation trial showed promise for treating Parkinson’s. First longer-term results for adaptive DBS in PD. Adaptive stimulation automatically adjusts in real time to a person’s brain signals. @parkinsondotorg.bsky.social

Reposted by Michael H. Fox

Michael Okun @michaelokun.bsky.social · Sep 21

What is the update for skin biopsies to differentiate Parkinson's vs. MSA? Spoiler alert: under confocal microscope, skin biopsies look different in PD vs MSA. Donadio and colleagues describe in a new paper in Brain the uses of intraneural phosphorylated α-synuclein. @parkinsondotorg.bsky.social

Reposted by Michael H. Fox

Brain @brain1878.bsky.social · Sep 19

Mongay-Ochoa et al. review advanced methods for mapping brain connections and identify common topographical patterns of pathology spread across different neurological disorders, including MS, AD and PD. tinyurl.com/3sz8ayup

Michael Fox @foxmdphd.bsky.social · Sep 5

Can connectomic DBS go beyond where to stimulate to inform who and when? Great discussion @dbsthinktank.bsky.social with @rolstonjohn.bsky.social @julianneumann.bsky.social suggest yes! @braincircuits.bsky.social

Reposted by Michael H. Fox

Andreas Horn @andreashorn.org · Sep 3

In #DeepBrainStimulation

the two major developments across the last decade have been

1. Adaptive DBS and
2. Connectomic DBS

In a @natrevneurol.nature.com article with @julianneumann.bsky.social, we ask:

Could the two be united into a common framework?

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

A 🧵

Reposted by Nicholas A. Christakis, Michael H. Fox, Ruairidh Milne

Eric Topol @erictopol.bsky.social · Sep 2

A nasal spray reduced the risk of Covid infections in a double blind, placebo controlled randomized trial
jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...

Reposted by Kim L. Scheppele, Lisa W. Fazio, Michael Barnett , and 7 more Kim L. Scheppele, Lisa W. Fazio, Michael Barnett, Daniel Kim, Jesse H. Kroll, John R. Hutchinson, Michael H. Fox, Dawn J. Wright, Robert C. Richards, Timothy D. McBride

Dr. David Miller 🏳️‍🌈 @davidimiller.bsky.social · Sep 1

🧪 And House appropriators say: no cuts to NIH budget!

House subcommittee version just came out (link below). Holds NIH flat at $48 billion.

To be clear: this is far from over. But a good sign that science still matters across both sides of aisle.

YOUR VOICE MATTERS!!