Peka Christova, PhD
Physicist, Minneapolis VA Medical CenterVA Medical Center (VAMC)

Publications

Pages: 1March 2024 through December 2017 • 2September 2017 through January 2000 • 3January 2000 through January 1990
  1. Subcortical brain atrophy in Gulf War IllnessGulf War Illness (GWI)Shortly after the Gulf War (1990-91), veterans started to report a variety of health problems that began during, or soon after returning from, deployment, prompting investigation into the epidemiology and etiology of the complaints. Those investigations revealed that diffuse symptoms such as fatigue, musculoskeletal pain, mood and neurocognitive complaints, gastrointestinal problems, and rashes were most commonly reported. The constellation of symptoms, now commonly referred to as Gulf War Illness (GWI), has affected a substantial number of Gulf War veterans. Several population-based studies have demonstrated that these symptoms occur at significantly higher rates in deployed Gulf War veterans relative to their nondeployed peers and other veterans, raising the issue about possible in-theater exposures and stress as contributing factors. However, these symptoms are also present in non-deployed military personnel, leading some to suspect other causes, including reactions to vaccine adjuvants. In summary, GWI is now a recognized constellation of symptoms of unclear etiology, also co-occurring with psychiatric disorders. Experimental Brain Research (2017, September) Christova P, James L, Engdahl B, Lewis S, Carpenter A, & Georgopoulos AP
  2. Neural mechanisms underlying the exploration of small city maps using magnetoencephalography Experimental Brain Research (2015, November) Sakellaridi S, Christova P, Christopoulos V, Leuthold A, Peponis J, & Georgopoulos AP
  3. Diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder (Post-traumatic Stress DisorderPost-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)A complex psychiatric syndrome that develops in response to trauma exposure. Individuals with PTSD experience intrusive recollections or reexperiencing of the traumatic event, avoidance of trauma reminders, emotional numbing, and hyperarousal. In addition, PTSD is associated with high rates of concomitant physical and mental health problems, increased health care use, and impairment in social and occupational functioning. Almost 7% of the general population and up to 30% of veterans meet lifetime criteria for PTSD. Indeed, PTSD is one of the most common psychiatric disorders, representing a significant and costly public health concern.) based on correlations of prewhitened Functional Magnetic Resonance ImagingFunctional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)A functional neuroimaging procedure using MRI technology that measures brain activity by detecting changes associated with blood flow. This technique relies on the fact that cerebral blood flow and neuronal activation are coupled. When an area of the brain is in use, blood flow to that region also increases.[citation needed] The primary form of fMRI uses the blood-oxygen-level dependent (BOLD) contrast, discovered by Seiji Ogawa. This is a type of specialized brain and body scan used to map neural activity in the brain or spinal cord of humans or other animals by imaging the change in blood flow (hemodynamic response) related to energy use by brain cells. Since the early 1990s, fMRI has come to dominate brain mapping research because it does not require people to undergo shots, surgery, or to ingest substances, or be exposed to ionising radiation, etc. data: outcomes and areas involved Experimental Brain Research (2015, September) Christova P, James L, Engdahl B, Lewis S, & Georgopoulos AP
  4. Cognitive mechanisms underlying instructed choice exploration of small city maps Frontiers in Neuroscience (2015, March) Sakellaridi S, Christova P, Christopoulos V, Vialard A, Peponis J, & Georgopoulos AP
  5. Innovations in Resting-state fMRIFunctional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)A functional neuroimaging procedure using MRI technology that measures brain activity by detecting changes associated with blood flow. This technique relies on the fact that cerebral blood flow and neuronal activation are coupled. When an area of the brain is in use, blood flow to that region also increases.[citation needed] The primary form of fMRI uses the blood-oxygen-level dependent (BOLD) contrast, discovered by Seiji Ogawa. This is a type of specialized brain and body scan used to map neural activity in the brain or spinal cord of humans or other animals by imaging the change in blood flow (hemodynamic response) related to energy use by brain cells. Since the early 1990s, fMRI has come to dominate brain mapping research because it does not require people to undergo shots, surgery, or to ingest substances, or be exposed to ionising radiation, etc. and Magnetoencephalography Magnetoencephalography (MEG)A noninvasive technique that detects magnetic fields above the surface of the head produced by postsynaptic potentials in the brain. Asian Journal of Physics (2014, January) Christova P
  6. Exploring small city maps Experimental Brain Research (2012, November) Christova P, Scoppa M, Peponis J, & Georgopoulos AP
  7. A compact and realistic cerebral cortical layout derived from prewhitened resting-state fMRIFunctional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)A functional neuroimaging procedure using MRI technology that measures brain activity by detecting changes associated with blood flow. This technique relies on the fact that cerebral blood flow and neuronal activation are coupled. When an area of the brain is in use, blood flow to that region also increases.[citation needed] The primary form of fMRI uses the blood-oxygen-level dependent (BOLD) contrast, discovered by Seiji Ogawa. This is a type of specialized brain and body scan used to map neural activity in the brain or spinal cord of humans or other animals by imaging the change in blood flow (hemodynamic response) related to energy use by brain cells. Since the early 1990s, fMRI has come to dominate brain mapping research because it does not require people to undergo shots, surgery, or to ingest substances, or be exposed to ionising radiation, etc. time series: Cherniak's adjacency rule, size law, and metamodule grouping upheld Frontiers in Neuroanatomy (2012, September) Lewis S, Christova P, Jerde T, & Georgopoulos AP
  8. True associations between resting fMRIFunctional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)A functional neuroimaging procedure using MRI technology that measures brain activity by detecting changes associated with blood flow. This technique relies on the fact that cerebral blood flow and neuronal activation are coupled. When an area of the brain is in use, blood flow to that region also increases.[citation needed] The primary form of fMRI uses the blood-oxygen-level dependent (BOLD) contrast, discovered by Seiji Ogawa. This is a type of specialized brain and body scan used to map neural activity in the brain or spinal cord of humans or other animals by imaging the change in blood flow (hemodynamic response) related to energy use by brain cells. Since the early 1990s, fMRI has come to dominate brain mapping research because it does not require people to undergo shots, surgery, or to ingest substances, or be exposed to ionising radiation, etc. time series based on innovations Journal of Neural Engineering (2011, June) Christova P, Lewis S, Jerde T, Lynch J, & Georgopoulos AP
  9. Application of Branched Electrodes for Stable, Selective Recording Single Motor-Unit Discharges in Humans Biomedical Engineering (2009, August) Kossev A, & Christova P
  10. A voxel-by-voxel parametric fMRIFunctional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)A functional neuroimaging procedure using MRI technology that measures brain activity by detecting changes associated with blood flow. This technique relies on the fact that cerebral blood flow and neuronal activation are coupled. When an area of the brain is in use, blood flow to that region also increases.[citation needed] The primary form of fMRI uses the blood-oxygen-level dependent (BOLD) contrast, discovered by Seiji Ogawa. This is a type of specialized brain and body scan used to map neural activity in the brain or spinal cord of humans or other animals by imaging the change in blood flow (hemodynamic response) related to energy use by brain cells. Since the early 1990s, fMRI has come to dominate brain mapping research because it does not require people to undergo shots, surgery, or to ingest substances, or be exposed to ionising radiation, etc. study of motor mental rotation: hemispheric specialization and gender differences in neural processing efficiency Experimental Brain Research (2008, July) Christova P, Lewis S, Tagaris GA, Ugurbil K, & Georgopoulos AP
  11. Impaired Eye Movements in Presymptomatic Spinocerebellar Ataxia Type 6 Archives of Neurology (2008, April) Christova P, Anderson JH, & Gomez CM
  12. Novel CACNA1A mutation causes febrile episodic ataxia with interictal cerebellar deficits Annals of Neurology (2003, October) Subramony SH, Schott KS, Raike RS, Callahan J, Langford LR, Christova P, Anderson JH, & Gomez CM
  13. Spinocerebellar Ataxia in Monozygotic Twins Archives of Neurology (2002, December) Anderson JH, Christova P, Xie TD, Schott KS, Ward K, & Gomez CM
  14. The vestibulo-ocular reflex and velocity storage in spinocerebellar ataxia 8 Archives Italiennes de Biologie (2002, October) Anderson JH, Yavuz MC, Kazar BM, Christova P, & Gomez CM
  15. Eye position feedback in a model of the vestibulo-ocular reflex for spino-cerebellar ataxia 6 2001 Conference Proceedings of the 23rd Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (2001, October) Anderson JH, Yavuz MC, Kazar BM, Christova P, & Gomez CM
  16. Human motor unit recruitment and derecruitment during long lasting intermittent contractions Journal of Electromyography and Kinesiology (2001, June) Christova P, & Kossev A
  17. Human motor unit activity during concentric and eccentric movements Electromyography and Clinical Neurophysiology (2000, September) Christova P, & Kossev A
  18. Surface EMG Changes during Sustained Submaximal High Voluntary Contractions Comptes Rendus de l'Academie Bulgare des Sciencesi (2000, January) Kristev I, Christova P, Chichov V, & Kossev A
  19. Surface EMG Changes during Sustained Maximal Contraction Efforts Comptes Rendus de l'Academie Bulgare des Sciencesi (2000, January) Kristev I, Christova P, Chichov V, & Kossev A
  20. Modulation of single motor unit discharge pattern during the premovement period Biomed Techn (2000, January) Christova L, Wolf W, Dimitrova M, Christova P, & Kossev A