Dr. Hal Blumenfeld

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Yale University
School of Medicine
Medical Studies in Clinical Neuroscience
Director
Yale University
School of Medicine
Neurology
Neurobiology, and Neurosurgery
Associate Professor
Professional Headshot of Hal Blumenfeld

Mailing Address

Neurology LCI 1007
333 Cedar Street
New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8018
United States

Contact Information

Phone: (203) 785-3928
Fax: (203) 737-2538
hal.blumenfeld@yale.edu

Qualifications

M.D., Columbia University, 1992.
Ph.D., Columbia University, Physiology and Cellular Biophysics, 1992.
B.A., Harvard University, Bioelectrical Engineering, 1984.

Expertise and Research Interests

What is the relationship between brain activity and conscious thought? Like other difficult questions in science, a good model system is needed so that this question can be investigated. I have chosen epilepsy as a model system for investigating consciousness, because in epilepsy there is a spectrum of levels of consciousness, which may be explained in terms of different states of brain activity. Ongoing studies in my laboratory include experiments to explore electrophysiologic and network mechanisms common to seizures and other states of impaired consciousness. In particular, we are investigating the role of subcortical structures such as the thalamus and brainstem in the propagation and behavioral manifestations of seizures. Current projects include in vivo and in vitro multimodal electrophysiology and fMRI recordings from animal models of epilepsy, human neuroimaging (fMRI and SPECT) and intracranial EEG studies in relation to behavior during seizures.

Other related themes in my laboratory include:
1. computational methods for neuroimaging data analysis.
2. fundamental relationships between neuroimaging signals and underlying brain physiology.
3. molecular mechanisms of epileptogenesis, and strategies to prevent or cure epilepsy.

Other Expertise

In my earlier work, I investigated cellular mechanisms of synaptic plasticity and the role of neuromodulation in memory and learning using simple in vitro networks of Aplysia neurons. These studies layed the foundation for my current investigations involving larger scale networks that also show plastic changes and memory effects.

I have recently completed a textbook of neuroanatomy titled "Neuroanatomy Through Clinical Cases" published by Sinauer Assoc., Publ. http://www.neuroexam.com/43.html
Teaching activities include serving as Director of Medical Studies in Clinical Neuroscience at Yale School of Medicine.

Future Research

New directions for my laboratory during the coming years include the use of the latest advances in neuroimaging techniques to investigate seizure networks in humans and animal models, virtual reality behavioral testing during seizures, and molecular techniques to prevent epileptogenesis.

Keywords

COS Keywords:

Animal Models, Bioelectric Phenomena, Biophysics, Convulsive Disorders, Electrophysiology, Epilepsy, Internal Medicine, MRI, Neurobiology, Neurology, Neurophysiology, Physiology, Sleep Studies.

Additional Terms:

Absence Seizures, Animal Models, Attention, Childhood Absence Epilepsy, Consciousness, Corticothalamic, Driving Safety, EEG, Epilepsy, Epileptogenesis, FMRI, Functional MRI, Genralized Tonic-clonic Seizures, Grand Mal, Networks, Petit Mal, Reticular Formation, SPECT, Seizures, Sleep, Sodium Channels, Temporal Lobe Epilepsy, Thalamocortical, Thalamus.

Languages

(Reading, Writing, Speaking)

Hebrew: (Fluent, Fluent, Fluent)
Spanish: (Fluent, Fluent, Fluent)

Memberships

American Academy of Neurology
American Association for the Advancement of Science
American Clinical Neurophysiology Society
American Epilepsy Society
Society for Neuroscience

Honors and Awards

2007, The Francis Gilman Blake Award, Yale University, School of Medicine
2005, John N. Whitaker Visiting Professorship, American Neurological Association
2005, Dreifuss-Penry Epilepsy Research Award, American Academy of Neurology
2000, Curing Epilepsy-Focus on the Future, Junior Investigator Travel Fellowship, NIH
1999, Young Investigator Award, American Epilepsy Society
1996, Top Scholar Fellow, Ortho-McNeil
1992, Lamport Award for Biomedical Research,
1992, Medical School Honors Society, Alpha Omega Alpha
1990, Dean's Day Award for Medical Student Research, Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons
1984-1992, Medical Scientist Training Program Fellowship,
1984, John Harvard Scholarship - Highest Academic Honors, Harvard University

Previous Positions

1996-1998, Fellow, Yale University, School of Medicine, Epilepsy
1993-1996, Resident, Massachusetts General Hospital, Neurology
1992-1993, Intern, Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center, Internal Medicine

Funding Received

  • Donaghue Foundation: Investigator Award, 2007 to 2012.
  • National Institutes of Health (NIH): RO1: Functional Neuroimaging in Childhood Absence Epilepsy, 2006 to 2010.
  • National Institutes of Health (NIH): R01: Neuronal firing and neuroimaging in spike-wave seizures, 2004 to 2008.
  • Patterson Trust: Research Award, 2002 to 2004.
  • Epilepsy Foundation of America: Junior Investigator Award, 2001 to 2002.
  • Charles A. Dana Foundation: Clinical Hypotheses in Neuroscience Award, 2000 to 2002.
  • National Institutes of Health (NIH): K08 Award, 1998 to 2003.
  • Pfizer: Fellowship, 1998 to 2001.

Publications

  • Motelow JE, Blumenfeld H (2009) Functional neuroimaging of spike-wave seizures., Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.), 489, 189-209 Abstract
  • Englot DJ, Mishra AM, Mansuripur PK, Herman P, Hyder F, Blumenfeld H (Sep 2008) Remote effects of focal hippocampal seizures on the rat neocortex., The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience, 28 (36), 9066-81 Abstract
  • Schridde U, Khubchandani M, Motelow JE, Sanganahalli BG, Hyder F, Blumenfeld H (Aug 2008) Negative BOLD with large increases in neuronal activity., Cerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991), 18 (8), 1814-27 Abstract
  • Blumenfeld H, Lampert A, Klein JP, Mission J, Chen MC, Rivera M, Dib-Hajj S, Brennan AR, Hains BC, Waxman SG (Jul 2008) Role of hippocampal sodium channel Nav1.6 in kindling epileptogenesis., Epilepsia Abstract
  • Buch K, Blumenfeld H, Spencer S, Novotny E, Zubal IG (Mar 2008) Evaluating the accuracy of perfusion/metabolism (SPET/PET) ratio in seizure localization., European journal of nuclear medicine and molecular imaging, 35 (3), 579-88 Abstract
  • Blumenfeld H, Klein JP, Schridde U, Vestal M, Rice T, Khera DS, Bashyal C, Giblin K, Paul-Laughinghouse C, Wang F, Phadke A, Mission J, Agarwal RK, Englot DJ, Motelow J, Nersesyan H, Waxman SG, Levin AR (Mar 2008) Early treatment suppresses the development of spike-wave epilepsy in a rat model., Epilepsia, 49 (3), 400-9 Abstract
  • Maandag NJ, Coman D, Sanganahalli BG, Herman P, Smith AJ, Blumenfeld H, Shulman RG, Hyder F (Dec 2007) Energetics of neuronal signaling and fMRI activity., Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 104 (51), 20546-51 Abstract
  • Enev M, McNally KA, Varghese G, Zubal IG, Ostroff RB, Blumenfeld H (Feb 2007) Imaging onset and propagation of ECT-induced seizures., Epilepsia, 48 (2), 238-44 Abstract
  • Blumenfeld H, Rivera M, Vasquez JG, Shah A, Ismail D, Enev M, Zaveri HP (Feb 2007) Neocortical and thalamic spread of amygdala kindled seizures., Epilepsia, 48 (2), 254-62 Abstract
  • Blumenfeld H (2007) Functional MRI studies of animal models in epilepsy., Epilepsia, 48 Suppl 4, 18-26 Abstract
  • Kida I, Smith AJ, Blumenfeld H, Behar KL, Hyder F (Jan 2006) Lamotrigine suppresses neurophysiological responses to somatosensory stimulation in the rodent., NeuroImage, 29 (1), 216-24 Abstract
  • McNally KA, Paige AL, Varghese G, Zhang H, Novotny EJ Jr, Spencer SS, Zubal IG, Blumenfeld H (Sep 2005) Localizing value of ictal-interictal SPECT analyzed by SPM (ISAS), Epilepsia, 46 (9), 1450-64
  • Blumenfeld H (2005) Cellular and network mechanisms of spike-wave seizures., Epilepsia, 46 Suppl 9, 21-33 Abstract
  • Blumenfeld H (2005) Consciousness and epilepsy: why are patients with absence seizures absent?, Progress in brain research, 150, 271-86 Abstract
  • Blumenfeld H, Rivera M, McNally KA, Davis K, Spencer DD, Spencer SS (Sep 2004) Ictal neocortical slowing in temporal lobe epilepsy, Neurology, 63 (6), 1015-21
  • Nersesyan H, Herman P, Erdogan E, Hyder F, Blumenfeld H (Sep 2004) Relative changes in cerebral blood flow and neuronal activity in local microdomains during generalized seizures, Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism : Official Journal of the International Society of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism, 24 (9), 1057-68
  • Blumenfeld H, McNally KA, Vanderhill SD, Paige AL, Chung R, Davis K, Norden AD, Stokking R, Studholme C, Novotny EJ Jr, Zubal IG, Spencer SS (Aug 2004) Positive and negative network correlations in temporal lobe epilepsy, Cerebral Cortex (new York, N.y. : 1991), 14 (8), 892-902
  • Nersesyan H, Hyder F, Rothman DL, Blumenfeld H (Jun 2004) Dynamic fMRI and EEG recordings during spike-wave seizures and generalized tonic-clonic seizures in WAG/Rij rats, Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism : Official Journal of the International Society of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism, 24 (6), 589-99
  • Klein JP, Khera DS, Nersesyan H, Kimchi EY, Waxman SG, Blumenfeld H (Mar 2004) Dysregulation of sodium channel expression in cortical neurons in a rodent model of absence epilepsy, Brain Research, 1000 (1-2), 102-9
  • Blumenfeld H, Taylor J (Oct 2003) Why do seizures cause loss of consciousness?, The Neuroscientist : a Review Journal Bringing Neurobiology, Neurology and Psychiatry, 9 (5), 301-10
  • Blumenfeld H, Westerveld M, Ostroff RB, Vanderhill SD, Freeman J, Necochea A, Uranga P, Tanhehco T, Smith A, Seibyl JP, Stokking R, Studholme C, Spencer SS, Zubal IG (Aug 2003) Selective frontal, parietal, and temporal networks in generalized seizures, Neuroimage, 19 (4), 1556-66
  • Blumenfeld H, McNally KA, Ostroff RB, Zubal IG (July 2003) Targeted prefrontal cortical activation with bifrontal ECT, Psychiatry Research, 123 (3), 165-70
  • Weisman D, Hisama FM, Waxman SG, Blumenfeld H (Jun 2003) Going deep to cut the link: cortical disconnection syndrome caused by a thalamic lesion, Neurology, 60 (11), 1865-6
  • Blumenfeld H (2003) From molecules to networks: cortical/subcortical interactions in the pathophysiology of idiopathic generalized epilepsy, Epilepsia, 44 Suppl 2, 7-15
  • Smith AJ, Blumenfeld H, Behar KL, Rothman DL, Shulman RG, Hyder F, Cerebral energetics and spiking frequency: the neurophysiological basis of fMRI, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America., 99(16), 10765-70, Aug 2002
  • Zaatreh MM, Spencer DD, Thompson JL, Blumenfeld H, Novotny EJ, Mattson RH, Spencer SS (Jul 2002) Frontal lobe tumoral epilepsy: clinical, neurophysiologic features and predictors of surgical outcome, Epilepsia, 43 (7), 727-33
  • Chang DJ, Zubal IG, Gottschalk C, Necochea A, Stokking R, Studholme C, Corsi M, Slawski J, Spencer SS, Blumenfeld H (Jan 2002) Comparison of statistical parametric mapping and SPECT difference imaging in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy, Epilepsia, 43 (1), 68-74
  • Norden AD, Blumenfeld H (2002) The Role of Subcortical Structures in Human Epilepsy, Epilepsy and Behavior, 3, 219-231
  • Blumenfeld H (January 2002) The thalamus and seizures, Archives of Neurology, 59 (1), 135-7
  • Blumenfeld H, Neuroanatomy through Clinical Cases, Sinauer Assoc Publ, 2001
  • Blumenfeld H, McCormick DA (July 2000) Corticothalamic inputs control the pattern of activity generated in thalamocortical networks, Journal of Neuroscience, 20 (13), 5153-62
  • Shapiro BE, Soto O, Shafqat S, Blumenfeld H (January 1997) Adult botulism, Muscle and Nerve, 20 (1), 100-2
  • Kalkanis SN, Blumenfeld H, Sherman JC, Krebs DE, Irizarry MC, Parker SW, Cosgrove GR (August 1996) Delayed complications thirty-six years after hemispherectomy: a case report, Epilepsia, 37 (8), 758-62
  • Blumenfeld H, Cha JH, Cudkowicz ME (February 1996) Trimethoprim and sulfonamide-associated meningoencephalitis with MRI correlates, Neurology, 46 (2), 556-8
  • Eliot LS, Kandel ER, Siegelbaum SA, Blumenfeld H (February 1993) Imaging terminals of Aplysia sensory neurons demonstrates role of enhanced Ca2 influx in presynaptic facilitation, Nature, 361 (6413), 634-7
  • Blumenfeld H, Zablow L, Sabatini B (October 1992) Evaluation of cellular mechanisms for modulation of calcium transients using a mathematical model of fura-2 Ca2 imaging in Aplysia sensory neurons, Biophysical Journal, 63 (4), 1146-64
  • Blumenfeld H, Spira ME, Kandel ER, Siegelbaum SA (October 1990) Facilitatory and inhibitory transmitters modulate calcium influx during action potentials in aplysia sensory neurons, Neuron, 5 (4), 487-99
  • Castellucci VF, Blumenfeld H, Goelet P, Kandel ER (January 1989) Inhibitor of protein synthesis blocks long-term behavioral sensitization in the isolated gill-withdrawal reflex of Aplysia, Journal of Neurobiology, 20 (1), 1-9
  • Castellucci VF, Frost WN, Goelet P, Montarolo PG, Schacher S, Morgan JA, Blumenfeld H, Kandel ER (1986) Cell and molecular analysis of long-term sensitization in Aplysia, Journal de Physiologie, 81 (4), 349-57
  • Guffanti AA, Blumenfeld H, Krulwich TA (August 1981) ATP synthesis by an uncoupler-resistant mutant of Bacillus megaterium, Journal of Biological Chemistry, 256 (16), 8416-21

Profile Details

Last Updated: 11/21/2008

COS Expertise ID #912320
Reference this profile directly: http://myprofile.cos.com/halblumenfeld