UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute

Research

Clinical Studies

Education Programs

Clinic

Our Team

Resource Information

Map & Directions

Newsroom & Publications

M.I.N.D. Videos

Calendar & Events

Jobs

Giving to M.I.N.D. Institute

Cognitive Analysis and Brain Imaging Laboratory (CABIL)

BREAKING NEWS
CABIL Team Members
Publications by CABIL Team
Research Projects at CABIL
What Will My Child Experience at CABIL?
Family Meetings
Resources
Directions
Media Coverage of CABIL
Research Tools

The M.I.N.D. Institute's Cognitive Analysis and Brain Imaging Laboratory (CABIL, pronounced "cable") is directed by Dr. Tony J. Simon and funded by the National Institutes of Health. CABIL's mission is to investigate, explain and eventually treat the impairments in cognitive function experienced by children with neurodevelopmental disorders.

The cognitive analysis part of our research involves developing theory-driven experiments that are presented to children as computer games. These experiments test the functioning of specific brain circuits under different conditions and predict characteristic patterns of performance depending on how well the system is functioning. The brain imaging part of our research is achieved using safe, radiation-free neuroimaging methods to characterize the changes in brain development that affect the neural structure, connectivity and function of such children. Knowing how the brains of children with neurodevelopmental disorders differs from those of their typically developing peers helps us to generate possible explanations for the impairments in cognitive function.

The long-term goal of our work is to develop a range of intervention techniques that we hope will reduce or even eliminate many of the cognitive and intellectual difficulties that present challenges to children with neurodevelopmental disorders. To find out more about what an actual CABIL research experience is like, click here.

Currently our research focuses on children with chromosome 22q11.2 deletions (also known as Velocardiofacial or DiGeorge syndromes), and children with Fragile X, Turner or Williams syndromes. To find out more about our research projects, including the opportunity for your child to participate, please click here.

Breaking News

Slides and videos of presentations at the April 27th, 2008 Family Meeting are now available. Click here to find them. Video of the presentations should be available by Mid May.
Tony Simon appointed Associate Editor of American Journal on Mental Retardation
New email address for all contacts about studies. Send email to cabil@ucdmc.ucdavis.edu
Idaho TV Station airs news local family dealing with DS22q11.2 (see Media Coverage Section)

CABIL Team Members

Tony J. Simon, Ph.D. - Director.

Marisol Q. Mendoza, M.A. Study Coordinator — Marisol received her B.A. from Sacramento State, and her M.A. in Sociology from New Mexico State University. Her interests and experience involves health-related research studies. One longitudinal research project that Ms. Mendoza was involved in included women with histories of mental illnesses/disorders, abuse/trauma, and drug and alcohol use/abuse. In 2005, Marisol began her tenure with UC Davis in the Dept. of Nutrition where she coordinated and managed clinical studies from the effects of sugar consumption, to the consumption of soy isoflavones to reduce bone loss in postmenopausal women. Marisol is excited to be working as Clinical Coordinator for all of Dr. Simon's studies and be part of the CABIL team.

Vy Nguyen, B.A. Research Assistant — Born in a refugee center in Sikhiu, Thailand, Vy (pronounced “Vee”) immigrated with his family from Southeast Asia to the Bronx, NY where he spent most of his life. Vy received a B.A. in Biological Basis of Behavior with a minor in Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania. Eventually, if that whole rock star thing doesn't work out, he might just end up becoming a pediatrician. Vy says he’s had the honor of being in Dr. Tony Simon's lab at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia since September 2002 and is proud to continue being a part of the team here at the UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute.

Joel Johnson, M.D. Psychiatry Resident/Research Fellow — Joel earned a degree in biology with a minor in chemistry at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1998, followed by a medical doctorate at the University of California, San Francisco in 2004. He is currently a Psychiatry resident at the University of California, Davis. Joel will be investigating issues related to psychiatric disorders in children with chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome.

Kathy Angkustsiri, M.D. Developmental Pediatrics Fellow — Kathy received her B.A. in psychology with a minor in Human Biology from Stanford University. She attended New York University for her medical training and completed a pediatric residency at Children's Hospital Oakland. Her research interests include dysmorphology in children with autism and other developmental disabilities. Dr. Angkustsiri provides clinical assessments for the chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome children involved in the CABIL research studies.

Zhongle Wu, Ph.D. Postdoctoral Scientist — Zhongle completed an MS and Ph.D in Biomedical Engineering at the lab of Image Science and Technology, Southeast University, in China. He arrived in the USA in late 2005. His research interests include medical imaging analysis, computational neuroanatomy, morphological study of brain structures, whole-brain voxel-based and shape based statistical analysis.

Margie Cabaral, B.S. Junior Specialist — Margie received her degree in Neurobiology, Physiology & Behavior with a minor in Art History from the University of California, Davis in 2007. Margie’s interest in neuroscience began when she volunteered as a P.E. leader for a k-3rd grade special education class in her hometown from 2001-2002. Since then she has volunteered for Salinas Valley Special Olympics and has curated an exhibit at UCD featuring artwork from the M.I.N.D. She has volunteered/worked for the M.I.N.D. for over 2 years and has been a CABIL team member since June 2006.

Alumni and Collaborators

Carrie Bearden, Ph.D. — University of California, Los Angeles

Joel Bish, Ph.D. — Ursinus College

Tracy DeBoer, Ph.D.

James Gee, Ph.D. — University of Pennsylvania

Michele Mazzocco, Ph.D. — Kennedy Krieger Institute

Judith Ross, M.D. — Thomas Jefferson University

Yukari Takarae, Ph.D.

Nicole Tartaglia, M.D.

Publications by CABIL Team

Recent Publications:

Simon, T.J. (2008) A New Account of the Neurocognitive Foundations of Impairments in Space, Time and Number Processing in Children with Chromosome 22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome. Developmental Disabilities Research Reviews. 14, 52-58. Get PDF
Simon, T.J., Takarae, Y., DeBoer, T.L., McDonald-McGinn, D.M., Zackai, E.H., Ross, J.L. (2008) Overlapping Numerical Cognition Impairments In Children With Chromosome 22q11.2 Deletion Or Turner Syndromes. Neuropsychologia, 46, 82-94. Get PDF
DeBoer, T., Wu, Z., Lee., A., Simon, T.J. (2007) Hippocampal volume reduction in children with chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome is associated with cognitive impairment. Behavioral and Brain Functions, 3:54 (23 Oct 2007) Get PDF
Cutler-Landsman, D., Simon, T.J., & Kates, W.R. (2007) Introduction to education and the neurocognitive profile. In Cutler-Landsman, D. (Ed). Practical Handbook for Educating Children with Velo-Cardio-Facial Syndrome and Other Developmental Disabilities. Plural Publishing, San Diego, CA. Get PDF
Bish, J.P., Chiodo, R., Mattei, V., Simon, T.J. (2007) Domain specific attentional impairments in children with chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome. Brain and Cognition. Get PDF
Simon, T.J., Burg-Malki, M., & Gothelf, D. (2007) Cognitive and behavioral characteristics of children with chromosome 22q11.2 deletion. (in press) In M.M.M. Mazzocco & J.L. Ross (Eds.) Neurogenetic Developmental Disorders: Manifestation and Identification in Childhood. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press. Get PDF
Machado, A.M.C., Simon, T.J., Nguyen, V., McDonald-McGinn, D.M., Zackai, E.H., Gee, J.C. Corpus callosum morphology and ventricular size in chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome. (2007) Brain Research Get PDF
Bearden C.E., van Erp, T.G., Dutton, R.A., Tran, H., Zimmerman, L., Sun, D., Geaga, J., Simon, T.J., Glahn, D.C., Emanuel, B.S., Cannon, T.D., Toga, A.W., & Thompson, P.W. (2006) Mapping cortical thickness in children with 22q11.2 deletions. Cerebral Cortex Get PDF
Bish, J.P., Pendyal, A., Ding, L., Ferrante, H., Nguyen, V., McDonald-McGinn, D.M., Zackai, E.H., & Simon, T.J. (2006) Specific cerebellar reductions in children with chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome. Neuroscience Letters. 399, 245-248. Get PDF
Simon TJ, Bish JP, Bearden CE, Ding L, Ferrante S, Nguyen V, Gee JC, McDonald-McGinn DM, Zackai EH, Emanuel BS. (2005) A multilevel analysis of cognitive dysfunction and psychopathology associated with chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome in children. Dev Psychopathol. 2005 Summer;17(3):753-84. Get PDF
Simon, T.J., Ding, L., Bish. J.P., McDonald-McGinn. D., Zackai, E.H., & Gee, J. (2005) Volumetric, connective and morphologic changes in the brains of children with chromosome 22q1 1.2 deletion syndrome: An, integrative study. NeuroImage 25: 1 69-1 80. Get PDF
Simon, T.J., Bearden, C.E., McDonald-McGinn, D., & Zackai, E. (2005) Visuospatial and numerical cognitive deficits in children with Chromosome 22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome. Cortex Get PDF
Bearden, CE., Jawad, A.F., Lynch, D.R., Monterosso, J.R., Sokol, S., McDonald-McGinn, D., Saitta, S., Harris, S., Moss, E.M., Wang, PP., Zackai, E., Emanuel, B.S., & Simon, T.J. (2005) Effects of COMT genotype on behavioral symptomatology in the 22q1 1 .2 deletion syndrome. Child Neuropsychology, 11, 109-117. Get PDF
Bish, J.P., Ferrante, S., McDonald-McGinn, D., Zackai, E.H., & Simon, T.J. (2005) Maladaptive conflict monitoring as evidence for executive dysfunction in children with chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome. Developmental Science Get PDF
Bearden, C.E., Jawad, A.F., Lynch, D.R., Sokol, S., Kanes, S.J., McDonald-McGinn, D., Saitta, S., Harris, S., Moss, E.M., Wang, P.P., Zackai, E., Emanuel, B.S., & Simon, T.J. (2004) Effects of function COMT polymorphism on prefrontal cognitive function in the 22q11.2 deletion syndrome. American Journal of Psychiatry, 161,1700-1702. Get PDF
Bish, J.P., Nguyen, V., Ding, L., Ferrante, S., & Simon, T.J. (2004) Thalamic reductions in children with chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome. NeuroReport, 15, 1413-1415. Get PDF
Simon, T.J., Bearden, C.E., Moss, E.M., McGinn, D.M., Zackai, E, & Wang, P.P. (2002) Cognitive development in VCFS. Progress in Pediatric Cardiology, 15,109-117. Get PDF
Bearden, C.E., Wang, P.P., & Simon, T.J. (2002) Williams Syndrome cognitive profile also characterizes Velocardiofacial/DiGeorge Syndrome. American Journal of Medical Genetics (Neuropsychiatric G enetics), 114, 689-692. Get PDF
Sathian, K., Simon, T.J., Peterson, S., Patel, G., Hoffman, J.M., & Grafton, S.T. (1999) Neural evidence linking object enumeration and visual attention. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience 11, 36-51. Get PDF
Simon, T.J., & Vaishnavi, S. (1996) Subitizing and counting depend on different attentional mechanisms. Evidence from visual enumeration in afterimages. Perception & Psychophysics, 58, 915-926.
Simon, T.J. (1997) Reconceptualizing the origins of number knowledge: A "non-numerical" account. Cognitive Development, 12, 349-372. Get PDF

Research Projects at CABIL

We currently have travel funds to assist families across North America who would like to take part in our research studies. For information please contact the study coordinator, Marisol Mendoza (916) 703-0408 or cabil@ucdmc.ucdavis.edu.

Brain Development and Learning Difficulties in chromosome 22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome (VCFS)

We are carrying out a study on the problems that some children have with math and similar kinds of thinking. The study is funded by the National Institutes of Health, which is the main organization that gives money for research in the USA. Dr. Tony Simon would like to invite your 7 to 14 year old child with chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome (VCFS/DiGeorge) to be part of the study. Many children with chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome score lower on tests of math and similar thinking abilities compared to how they score on tests of verbal abilities. We are studying the brain and how it produces this kind of thinking. Once we know more we hope to find ways to reduce the learning problems that some children have.

Children who take part in the study will play a few computer games, do paper and pencil tests, and have pictures taken of their brain using an MRI machine. MRI scans do not involve any radiation. All of the activities are safe, fun and painless. All testing is for research purposes only, is at no cost to families, and includes a generous thank-you gift for your child. If needed, we have some funds to help you with travel and lodging for your trip to Sacramento. All personal and medical information is kept private and safe. If you and your child would like to take part we will answer all of your questions and give you more information over the phone first. The actual study involves 2 sessions of about 4-5 hours each, including breaks for lunch/snacks.

If you would like to find out more about taking part in the study and helping us learn about mind and brain development in children like your own, please click here.

Brain Development and Learning Difficulties in Fragile X, Turner or Williams Syndrome

We carrying out a study on the problems that some children have with math and similar kinds of thinking. The study is funded by the National Institutes of Health, which is the main organization that gives money for research in the USA. Dr. Tony Simon would like to invite your 7 to 14 year old child with Fragile X, Turner or Williams syndrome to be part of the study. Many children with Fragile X, Turner and Williams syndromes score lower on tests of math and similar thinking abilities compared to how they score on tests of verbal abilities. We are studying the brain and how it produces this kind of thinking. Once we know more we hope to find ways to reduce the learning problems that some children have.

If you would like to find out more about taking part in the study and helping us learn about mind and brain development in children like your own, please click here.

Brain Development and Learning Difficulties in Children with Congenital Heart Disease

We are carrying out a study on the problems that some children have with math and similar kinds of thinking. The study is funded by the National Institutes of Health, which is the main organization that gives money for research in the USA. Dr. Tony Simon would like to invite your 7 to 14 year old child with a surgically repaired congenital heart defect to be part of the study. Many children with congenital heart disease score lower on tests of math and similar thinking abilities compared to how they score on tests of verbal abilities as they develop. We are studying the brain and how it produces this kind of thinking. Once we know more we hope to find ways to reduce the learning problems that some children have.

If you would like to find out more about taking part in the study and helping us learn about mind and brain development in children like your own, please click here.

What Will My Child Experience at CABIL?

Most of our studies involve two visits of about 4-5 hours each. It is a fun and interesting experience and many parents have reported how much their children enjoyed their visit. You will get to see images of your child's brain and your child will receive fun gift cards to stores such as Toys R Us or Best Buy.

During one visit, your child will play several computer games wrapped up in a spaceship travel or some other fun theme. The games are designed to assess certain cognitive abilities, focusing on how your child pays attention, processes spatial relations between objects and can create and use numerical representations. Currently there are three simple types of games your child will play.

In one game, a cartoon character resembling a cute little alien in a spaceship appears on either the bottom or the top half of the computer screen. The alien will have an arrow on his space ship and your child just has to identify which way the alien is pointing. Sometimes the alien will show up alone and sometimes with other aliens, whose spaceships provide helpful or distracting information. Children also see different "cues" before each appearance of the characters. These are little stars that appear for a short time and either help by drawing attention to where the spaceship will appear, or that can distract attention away, making the task harder. Your child has to deal with the cues and focus on the central alien (marked here by a dotted box) in his spaceship to identify its direction. This game tests the functioning of different attention networks in the brain and relates to issues of spatial orienting, readiness for cognitive processing and inhibition of distracting information.

In another game, two bars of different heights will appear on the screen and your child simply has to identify which bar is bigger by pressing one of two buttons on the corresponding side of the bigger bar. In other parts of the experiment, two numbers may appear on the screen and your child's task is to choose which of the two numbers is larger. This game tests systems in the brain that involve the decoding of symbols into the quantities they represent, and the ability to judge the relationship between one quantity and another.

Another game involves using the visual attention and mental planning systems to carry out a counting task. Here your child actually touches a series of dots (multiple yellow "suns" in a blue sky) that appear together on a computer screen. Your child chooses the order (or "search plan") in which to touch each dot until he or she thinks they have all been touched. Then the task is to press on a picture of a "space dog" to tell it that all dots have been touched and counted. Finally, a series of numbers will appear and your child just has to identify how many dots he or she thinks were counted. Most kids really like getting to touch the computer screen in this specially designed task, and they like the little dog icon, which is their "co-pilot" that they can name if they wish. This games tests the application of different parts of the brain that control what is known as the "spatial attention system" and is important for numerical processing. It also tests the planning or "executive" system that manages the search plan with the goal of touching all of the objects in an efficient order and not missing or revisiting any of them. Another version of this game involves counting small green dots on a red background (or tiny aliens seen on a red planet from very far away) and “telling the spaceship captain how many there are” by speaking into a microphone, which is used to control a timer measuring how long each counting effort takes.

After a break, we will travel a short distance to the U.C. Davis Imaging Research Center where your child will be able to experience the "look and feel" of an MRI scanner and to get comfortable with the process. Here, we have a fully equipped simulator that creates the entire experience of our research scans in the MRI scanner. In the simulator, your child practices the version of the experiment video game that we use to actually measure brain function. He or she will also watch part of a movie of their choice while we simulate the structural brain imaging scans. The movie is a great way to help your child lay really still and to distract him or her from the sounds of the scanner. We have an extensive DVD library of movies but your child is encouraged to bring his or her own favorite movie to watch as an "in-flight movie" during the scan if desired. The simulator is used to get the child acclimated to what a real scan will be like. During the simulated scan, the sounds of a real scan are played and the movement of your child's is monitored to help him or her learn how still to lie during the real scan. If there is too much movement, the movie is frozen for a few seconds to indicate that the actual MRI pictures would be "fuzzy" with that amount of motion. The simulated scan is usually fairly short in duration. However, if necessary, your child can stay in for longer to "practice" the scan until he or she is completely comfortable with it and ready to try the real thing. Typically we include a lunch/snack break during the visit.

A child watching a movie in our practice scanner

During the real MRI your child will play the same computer game as they did in the simulated scanner and will get to watch more of the movie. This is achieved with a special visual display system not found in the typical hospital scanner. Most children quite enjoy the adventures of the MRI scan and are distracted by watching their movie. There is no radiation in the MRI scan and the procedure is very safe so long as no metal objects are brought into the scanner room. This is because MRI uses an extremely strong magnetic field, which is NEVER turned off, and so we must screen carefully for metal before carrying out the scan. Unfortunately, metal dental braces disturb the pictures and we cannot scan children when they have braces. You and your child will get to look at the brain images from the scan that very day, and it may be possible to have an image emailed home to you. The study is set up to be fun and engaging, and children typically really enjoy participating. They especially like getting their certificate and gift card at the end of the testing!

For the other visit your child will undergo a neuropsychological evaluation. Your child will spend 4-5 hours, including breaks, with one of the M.I.N.D. Institute psychologists who are very experienced with testing a wide range of children. The evaluation consists of pencil and paper activities that involve puzzles, memory tests and the like. It is similar to school psychology tests and the process is fun and interactive for the child. The neuropsychological testing provides a broad assessment of intellectual and academic abilities using standardized measures that can measure your child's progress against that of the general population of children. In this way, these tests complement the highly specific, experimental and non-standardized experiments (i.e. the computer games) in the lab portion of the study. Some time after the neuropsychological testing is complete you will receive a letter explaining the results and characterizing your child's performance. You may find this useful for your own curiosity or you may choose to share this information with your child's school.

An important new addition to our program now that we are at the M.I.N.D. Institute is the opportunity for your child to have a clinical evaluation completed by a specially trained pediatrician. The length of the evaluation, written report (if any), and degree of follow-up will depend on your medical insurance, but we should be able to provide at least a basic consultation for every child. The option to enroll in medication trials with follow-up testing is also likely to be available.