Igor Yakushev

Igor Yakushev is a Privatdozent (PD) and Senior Consultant in Nuclear Medicine at the Technical University of Munich (TUM), Department of Nuclear Medicine. He is the Head of Neuroimaging and a full member of the Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences (GSN), as well as an associate member of MCN. His work bridges clinical nuclear medicine and advanced neuroimaging research, with a focus on understanding cognition in health and disease.

Research Interests: Dr. Yakushev leads the research group multimodal imaging of normal and pathological cognition, centered on brain connectivity. His team employs positron emission tomography (PET), structural and functional MRI, and diffusion-weighted imaging to explore the neural mechanisms underlying cognitive function and decline. A key focus is the integration of molecular imaging into connectomics, notably through the Molecular Connectivity consortium.

The recent publications highlight a strong trend in simultaneous multimodal imaging, particularly PET/fMRI, to dissect neurocognitive networks in dementia and working memory. His work emphasizes the development and application of imaging biomarkers for neurodegenerative disorders, with significant contributions to understanding amyloid dynamics and brain network integrity.

Scientific Awards:

• Featured article in Alzheimer’s & Dementia (2018)

Advising and Grants: Dr. Yakushev actively supervises several students, including Dr. Isabelle Ripp, Yifan Mayr, Shuqi Xie, and Dilara Steenken. While specific grants are not listed, his leadership of a dedicated research group and participation in a major consortium suggest active grant funding in neuroimaging and dementia research.

Labs and Teams: He leads the multimodal imaging of normal and pathological cognition research group and is central to the Molecular Connectivity consortium, which aims to advance the field of molecular connectomics by integrating PET with other neuroimaging modalities.