Dr Davinia Fernández-Espejo PhD

School of Psychology
Associate Professor

Contact details

Email: d.fernandez-espejo@bham.ac.uk

Address: School of Psychology
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT
UK

Davinia Fernández-Espejo’s main goal is to understand how the brain supports consciousness and what goes wrong for patients to become entirely unaware after severe brain injury. She uses techniques such as MRI (structural and functional), tDCS, and behavioural approaches in both healthy volunteers and patients with a disorder of consciousness to test hypotheses about the role of different brain structures in the clinical deficits they present. This research is directly translated into the development of diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers to be used in clinical settings, as well as the development of novel treatment approaches.

Qualifications

PhD in Biomedicine (Universitat de Barcelona)
MSc in Neuroscience (Universitat de Barcelona)

Teaching

Most recently, Dr Fernández-Espejo has been Module Leader for Applications of Brain Imaging in Cognitive Neuroscience

Publications

Highlight publications

Calzolari, S, Jalali, R & Fernández-Espejo, D 2023, 'Characterising stationary and dynamic effective connectivity changes in the motor network during and after tDCS', NeuroImage, vol. 269, 119915. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2023.119915

Norton, L, Kazazian, K, Gofton, T, Debicki, D, Fernandez-Espejo, D, Peelle, J, Thenayan, EA, Young, GB & Owen, AM 2022, 'Functional neuroimaging as an assessment tool in critically ill patients', Annals of Neurology. https://doi.org/10.1002/ana.26530

Calzolari, S, Boneva, S & Fernández-Espejo, D 2022, 'Investigating the shift between externally and internally oriented cognition: a novel task-switching paradigm', Neuroscience of Consciousness, vol. 2022, no. 1, niac016. https://doi.org/10.1093/nc/niac016

Aloi, D, Jalali, R, Tilsley, P, Miall, RC & Fernández-Espejo, D 2022, 'tDCS modulates effective connectivity during motor command following; a potential therapeutic target for disorders of consciousness', NeuroImage, vol. 247, 118781. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.118781

Fernandez-Espejo, D, Rossit, S & Owen, A 2015, 'A Thalamocortical Mechanism for the Absence of Overt Motor Behavior in Covertly Aware Patients', JAMA Neurology. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamaneurol.2015.2614

Recent publications

Article

Edlow, BL, Boerwinkle, VL, Annen, J, Boly, M, Gosseries, O, Laureys, S, Mukherjee, P, Puybasset, L, Stevens, RD, Threlkeld, ZD, Newcombe, VFJ, Fernandez-Espejo, D & Curing Coma Campaign and its Contributing Members 2023, 'Common Data Elements for Disorders of Consciousness: Recommendations from the Working Group on Neuroimaging', Neurocritical Care. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12028-023-01794-2

Aloi, D, Jalali, R, Calzolari, S, Lafanechere, M, Miall, RC & Fernández-Espejo, D 2023, 'Multi-session tDCS paired with passive mobilisation of the thumb modulates thalamo-cortical coupling during command following in the healthy brain', NeuroImage, vol. 274, 120145. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2023.120145

Norton, L, Graham, M, Kazazian, K, Gofton, T, Weijer, C, Debicki, D, Fernandez-Espejo, D, Al Thenayan, E & Owen, AM 2023, 'Use of functional magnetic resonance imaging to assess cognition and consciousness in severe Guillain-Barré syndrome', International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology, vol. 23, no. 2, 100347. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijchp.2022.100347

Coulborn, S & Fernández-Espejo, D 2022, 'Prefrontal tDCS is unable to modulate mind wandering propensity or underlying functional or effective brain connectivity', Scientific Reports, vol. 12, no. 1, 18021. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-22893-8

Coulborn, S, Taylor, C, Naci, L, Owen, AM & Fernández-Espejo, D 2021, 'Disruptions in effective connectivity within and between default mode network and anterior forebrain mesocircuit in prolonged disorders of consciousness', Brain Sciences, vol. 11, no. 6, 749. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11060749

Coulborn, S, Bowman, H, Miall, RC & Fernández-Espejo, D 2020, 'Effect of tDCS Over the Right Inferior Parietal Lobule on Mind-Wandering Propensity', Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, vol. 14, 230. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2020.00230