Guest Lecture by Emily B.J. Coffey and Giovanni BeltrameThe Portiloop: a deep-learning based real-time system for closed-loop brain stimulation
Closed-loop brain stimulation refers to capturing neurophysiological measures such as electroencephalography (EEG), quickly identifying neural events of interest, and producing auditory, magnetic or electrical stimulation so as to interact with brain processes precisely. It is a promising new method for fundamental neuroscience and perhaps for clinical applications such as restoring degraded memory function; however, existing tools are expensive, cumbersome, and offer limited experimental flexibility. In a neuroscience-engineering collaboration, we have created the Portiloop, a deep learning-based, portable and low-cost closed-loop stimulation system able to target specific brain oscillations with auditory or other forms of brain stimulation. Software and plans are available to the community as an open science initiative to encourage further development and advance closed-loop neuroscience research.
In the first part of our talk, Prof. Giovanni Beltrame (Computer engineering, Polytechnique Montréal), will describe the development of the Portiloop, its technical capabilities, and its validation on a challenging test case of real-time sleep spindle detection, with results comparable to off-line expert performance on the Massive Online Data Annotation spindle dataset (MODA; group consensus). He will also describe recent developments that allow for personalized stimulation, adapted to an individual’s unique neural patterns.
In the second part of our talk, Prof. Emily Coffey (Neuroscience, Concordia University) will describe our recent applications in closed-loop auditory stimulation of sleep spindles in human subjects, including neurophysiological evoked reactions and consequences for human memory consolidation. Finally, she will outline some future directions for deepening our understanding of the roles of specific neural oscillations in cognition for research and therapeutic applications.
Short biographies:
Prof. Emily B.J. Coffey is Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at Concordia University in Montreal, Canada, and is currently a Visiting Professor at the University of Freiburg (September 2024-August 2025). Her lab’s research focuses on function and mechanisms of neuroplasticity within the human auditory system, from a cognitive neuroscience perspective. She uses a variety of neuroimaging techniques and machine learning-based analytic tools to study the neural bases of auditory processing, hearing-in-noise, musician advantages, and deficits in aging, and their relation to training. The lab is combining these areas with new techniques that can causally influence sleep-dependent memory consolidation, such as closed-loop auditory stimulation. Ultimately, her goals are to understand how training and sleep interventions can maintain and improve auditory cognitive function and quality of life.
Giovanni Beltrame obtained his Ph.D. in Computer Engineering from Politecnico di Milano, in 2006 after which he worked as microelectronics engineer at the European Space Agency on a number of projects spanning from radiation-tolerant systems to computer-aided design. In 2010 he moved to Montreal, Canada where he is currently Professor at Polytechnique Montreal with the Computer and Software Engineering Department. Dr. Beltrame directs the MIST Lab, with more than 20 students and postdocs under his supervision. He has completed several projects in collaboration with industry and government agencies in the area of robotics, disaster response, and space exploration. He and his team participated in several field missions with ESA, CSA, and NASA (BRAILLE, PANAGAEA-X, and IGLUNA among others). His research interests include modeling and design of embedded systems, artificial intelligence, and robotics.
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