Mapping the networks of the human brain
The AMICO Lab develops network science and connectomics methods to understand how brain connectivity shapes cognition, behaviour and disease.
The AMICO Lab develops network science and connectomics methods to understand how brain connectivity shapes cognition, behaviour and disease.
Research
Brain connectomics models the brain as a network: structural connections from diffusion MRI, functional connections from fMRI, MEG, EEG and other modalities. We develop new mathematical methods to extract the information hidden in these networks — from shared principles of brain organisation to the fingerprint of a single brain.
What makes each connectome unique — identifying individuals from their functional connectivity across tasks, modalities and states of consciousness.
Beyond pairwise connections: topological and simplicial signatures of brain function, and what they add to task decoding and behaviour.
Applying network models to stroke, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's disease, anaesthesia and psychedelics.
…and these are just the main threads. Sleep, attention, brain communication, new mathematics for connectomes — the network keeps growing. See our publications for the full picture.
Explainer
No two brains are wired alike. Just as your fingertip identifies you, your functional connectome — the pattern of connections between your brain's regions — is unique enough to pick you out of a crowd. This idea, brain fingerprinting, runs through much of our work: from what makes a connectome identifiable, to how disease, anaesthesia and psychedelics reshape it. Enrico explains it all in four minutes.
Selected work
A few representative papers — click any figure to read the full article.
Unmixing the psychedelic connectome: brain network traits of psilocybin. K. P. Bhavaraju et al. — Network Neuroscience
Spatially localized fMRI metrics as predictive and highly distinct state-independent fingerprints. D. I. Larabi, M. Gell, E. Amico, S. B. Eickhoff, K. R. Patil — Imaging Neuroscience
Appropriate null models for testing the effect of the head model on MEG functional connectivity fingerprinting. M. Schelfhout et al. — Brain Topography
The blueprint of human functional architecture shifts from cognition to anatomy during perturbations of consciousness. A. I. Luppi et al. — bioRxiv (preprint)
Patient-specific functional networks track early cognitive alterations and minor hallucinations in Parkinson's disease. S. Stampacchia et al. — Nature Mental Health
News
New in Imaging Neuroscience: Spatially localized fMRI metrics as predictive and highly distinct state-independent fingerprints, with Daouia Larabi, Martin Gell, Simon Eickhoff and Kaustubh Patil. Congrats, Daouia!
Two new preprints on bioRxiv: higher-order topology of naturalistic emotion (Zaffina et al., with Giovanni Petri's group) and connectome fingerprints after stroke (Santoro et al.).
Unmixing the psychedelic connectome: brain network traits of psilocybin is now out in its final form in Network Neuroscience. Congrats to Krishna Bhavaraju!
Welcome to Miguel Alburo, who joins the lab this month!
Welcome to Andrea Caporali, visiting PhD student from the De Pasquale Lab, with us for six months!
New preprint: Social brain fingerprinting — unique functional connectomes underpin interpersonal behaviours in non-autistic and autistic adults. Congrats to Augusto Ielo for leading this work!
Marta Calderon Garcia and Eleanor Docherty join the lab as PhD students — welcome aboard!
Sandra Rodriguez successfully defends her PhD thesis — "Whole lifespan characterization of the neural bases of episodic relational memory retrieval". Congratulations, Dr Rodriguez!
People
Enrico AmicoPrincipal Investigator
Sandra RodriguezPhD student
Emily WilsonPhD student
Eleanor DochertyPhD student
Marta Calderon GarciaPhD student
Peter KissackPhD student
Kaiyi YangPhD student
Ravneet VirdeeTrainee Clinical Scientist
Miguel AlburoPhD studentWhere we are
School of Mathematics & Centre for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham, UK
PhD studentships are available for 2027, and we're always looking for enthusiastic students and postdocs interested in brain networks.