PROJECT: JTC2024 - Brain-Body: BB-REBUS

Body perceptions (BP) are mediated by neural representations influenced via a brain-body bidirectional flow of multisensory signals. Disruptions in this brain-body interaction, as in stroke (STK, focal lesion), spinal cord injuries (SCI, disconnection), or multiple sclerosis (MS, degeneration) can alter BP. Unlike motor functions, BP alterations are often overlooked in patients. BB-REBUS addresses this gap by investigating BP alterations across disorders, establishing a framework for assessment, monitoring, and rehabilitation. Explicit broad characterization (WP1), deep phenotyping (WP2), and machine learning analyses (WP3) are combined to understand brain-body interplays underlying BP alterations. STK, SCI and MS patients undergo broad BP characterization through questionnaires, lesion analyses, and resting-state EEG (WP1). Patients with reported BP alterations are deeply evaluated in motor abilities, daily activities, and interoceptive sensitivity (WP2). A model of commonalities and differences in BP alterations across pathologies is obtained (WP3). The results provide a comprehensive understanding of BP alterations among STK, SCI, and MS patients, covering prevalence, evolution, sensory-motor-cognitive-neural factors to be disseminated through new educational courses for health professionals and patient-oriented-seminars. This knowledge inspires future personalized rehabilitative interventions and is scalable to other pathologies affecting sensorimotor abilities and BP.