Current Projects

Exploring How Sensory Entrainment Shapes Brain Rhythms and Cognitive Processes

Our brain produces rhythmic patterns of electrical activity as we think, remember, and interact with the world around us. During aging and in neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease, some of these rhythms may change. This raises an important question: can supporting or reshaping these brain rhythms also influence cognitive function? We use EEG to track brain activity while investigating how non-invasive neuromodulation approaches can affect brain rhythms and cognition. We are particularly interested in whether specific oscillatory patterns can be modulated through external stimulation, and how these changes relate to memory, attention, and other cognitive processes. In the long term, our goal is to contribute to the development of personalized, easy-to-apply neuromodulation approaches that build on the brain’s own electrical dynamics. This line of work funded by The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkiye (TÜBİTAK) 1001 The Scientific and Technological Research Projects Funding Program and 2247-A National Outstanding Researchers Program.

Past Projects

Emotional Processes Evaluation in Dementia: an EEG-Brain Dynamics Analysis

Integrity of facial emotion recognition is critical to maintain social functioning. Unfortunately, like other aspects of sensory and cognitive processes, the ability to process emotional facial expressions is affected by physiological and pathological aging. This study aimed to investigate alterations in event-related EEG dynamics during processing of different emotional facial expressions in individuals with different neurocognitive disorders. This project funded by The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye (TÜBİTAK) and French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2509 Bilateral Cooperation (Bosphorus) Program.

Personalizing Brain Stimulation to Explore Athletic Performance

Athletic performance depends on much more than muscle strength and physical training. The brain plays a central role in movement, timing, attention, balance, and the rapid decisions athletes make during performance. We asked whether brain stimulation could be personalized in the same way that training is tailored to individual athletes. We explored whether non-invasive brain stimulation could be adapted to an athlete’s own brain rhythms. Using EEG, we identified individual patterns of brain activity and applied transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) to target these rhythms. Focusing on volleyball players, we examined how personalized stimulation affected brain activity as well as different aspects of motor and athletic performance. By bringing together EEG, brain stimulation, and sports science, the project aimed to better understand how individual brain dynamics contribute to athletic performance and whether personalized neuromodulation could offer new ways of supporting motor function. This project funded by The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkiye (TÜBİTAK) 1001 The Scientific and Technological Research Projects Funding Program.

Development of a Sensory Entrainment-Integrated Cognitive Game Kit to Improve Cognitive Functions in Alzheimer’s Disease 

In addition to ongoing pharmacological treatments for Alzheimer’s disease (AD), preventive approaches capable of halting disease progression are of particular importance. This project aimed to develop a digital application that can monitor cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s and different types of dementia, incorporating sensory-stimulation and digital cognitive games with clinically proven efficacy using EEG findings. This project funded by The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkiye (TÜBİTAK) 1505 Universtity-Industry Collobaration Support Program.

Potential Biomarkers of Cognitive Processes from Mild Cognitive Impairment to Dementia in Parkinson’s Disease

Identifying potential biomarkers for Parkinson’s dementia is crucial for understanding the cognitive impairments observed in Parkinson’s patients and for investigating the efficacy of various therapeutic approaches used to treat the disease. This project aimed to examine the Electroencephalography (EEG) responses—recorded during cognitive tasks—of Parkinson’s patients without dementia, those with mild cognitive impairment, those with dementia, and healthy controls, by integrating these data with neuropsychological assessments and structural Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). The study has clearly identified markers associated with cognitive decline in Parkinson’s disease and contributed to the literature through a holistic approach encompassing behavioral, structural, and functional aspects. This project funded by The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkiye (TÜBİTAK) 1001 The Scientific and Technological Research Projects Funding Program.

Recognition of Emotional Facial Expressions in Alzheimer’s Disease

The recognition of facial expressions is one of the essential abilities of the human brain, and the correct identification of facial expressions is important for human social life. The literature has shown that the recognition of facial expressions could be impaired even with healthy aging, and it could be even worse in Alzheimer’s Disease. The identification and recognition of a facial expression might be represented by event-related brain oscillations. This study aimed to analyze EEG event-related oscillations and determine the electrophysiological indicators of impaired facial expression recognition in AD patients. This project funded Turkish Academy of Sciences (TÜBA) The Young Scientists Award Programme (GEBIP).