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Spotlight on Research: Charlotte Rae

Posted on 2 June 2015

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Charlotte is a Research Fellow at the University of Sussex involved in brain scanning studies to better understand TS.

Name

Charlotte Rae

Position

Research Fellow

Where are you doing your research?

University of Sussex 

What is the topic of your research?

I investigate how movements are controlled in the brain, and how this might be different in people with TS. I use brain scanning techniques, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), to research how brain activity and structure might contribute to symptoms like tics. We are also interested in the role that anxiety might play in movement control, and how this could be a factor in tics.

How will this help people with TS?

We still don’t fully understand the brain basis of TS. We need to know more about the neural factors that contribute to TS, in order to design more effective treatments for symptoms like tics. We hope that by increasing our knowledge about the neuroscience of TS, in the future we can design treatments that are better tailored to individual people.

What stage of the research are you at?

This study is now closed.  You can read a summary about the findings of the study here (http://www.sussex.ac.uk/actioncontrolstudy).

What will happen next in the study?

After we have collected all our brain scans, we will analyse them to find out how the different areas of the brain are working together to control movements. We will look at whether there are differences in this between people with TS and people who do not have TS (controls). We will also look at whether related symptoms such as anxiety play a role in how the brain controls movement in TS.

Why do you want to be a researcher?

It’s very exciting to be able to research the human brain. It’s brilliant we can use scanning like MRI to see the brains of real, living people – completely safely. Ultimately, if we can use this to find out more about conditions like TS, we can hopefully develop better treatments. It’s great to be part of pushing the boundaries on what we understand about the brain and on what we understand about Tourette Syndrome.

STUDY NOW CLOSED please contact Dr Charlotte Rae 01273 873787

You can read an update on the study progress and analysis here


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Spotlight on Research: Charlotte Rae

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