The Neurocircuitry of Food Choice in Obesity

Two in three Australians (11.2 million people) are overweight or obese. Obesity is a multifactorial condition, but compelling data shows that the frequent consumption of high-calorie foods (unhealthy food choices) is driving the current obesity epidemic. To date, obesity treatments have not been informed by the brain mechanisms of food choice, and have had limited success. To enable and improve the efficacy of future treatments, this project seeks to characterise the neural circuitry that produces unhealthy food choices in people with obesity using advanced brain connectivity models. We will use a new neuroimaging paradigm of food choice and apply hypothesis-based computational modelling to the human food choice network. A PhD candidate is invited to work on this NHMRC funded project aiming to apply advanced brain connectivity modelling to delineate the neural mechanisms of unhealthy food choices in obesity. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to gain valuable experience and skills in human fMRI experiments and learn a range of complex neuroimaging analysis techniques, including the development of the pre-processing pipeline, first level maps and advanced functional connectivity modelling (dynamic causal modelling). This research will aid in the development of novel treatment approaches for obesity, such as non-invasive brain stimulation, drugs that can act on the pathways that we identify, or cognitive training of food choices.