Department

Institute

Research Theme Neurons, Circuits and Networks Brains and Machines

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Dr Rafael Romero-Garcia

University Position

Research Associate

Interests

I?m a computer science engineer interested in how complex brain networks change across different physiological and pathological conditions. During my PhD in neuroscience at the Pablo de Olavide University (Spain) I analysed cortical network disruption during Mild Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer?s Disease. I am currently working at the Brain Mapping Unit at the University of Cambridge where my main goal is to determine how structural and functional brain connectivity evolves during adolescence. Combining different MRI modalities with cognitive performance data we hope to improve our knowledge of brain development during this critical stage.

Key Publications

Structural similarity networks reveal brain vulnerability in dementia.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/alz.70973
Journal: Alzheimers Dement
E-pub date: 1 Dec 2025
Authors: M Montagnese, A Ebneabbasi, N García-San-Martín, C Pecci-Terroba, R Romero-García, SE Morgan, JH Cole, J Seidlitz, T Rittman, RAI Bethlehem

A deep graph neural network architecture for modelling spatio-temporal dynamics in resting-state functional MRI data.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1016/j.media.2022.102471
Journal: Med Image Anal
E-pub date: 1 Jul 2022
Authors: T Azevedo, A Campbell, R Romero-Garcia, L Passamonti, RAI Bethlehem, P Liò, N Toschi

Sexually divergent development of depression-related brain networks during healthy human adolescence.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abm7825
Journal: Sci Adv
E-pub date: 27 May 2022
Authors: L Dorfschmidt, RA Bethlehem, J Seidlitz, F Váša, SR White, R Romero-García, MG Kitzbichler, AR Aruldass, SE Morgan, IM Goodyer, P Fonagy, PB Jones, RJ Dolan, NSPN Consortium, NA Harrison, PE Vértes, ET Bullmore

Ten simple rules for aspiring graduate students.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1009276
Journal: PLoS Comput Biol
E-pub date: 31 Aug 2021
Authors: AI Luppi, CC Newton, L Folsom, E Galliano, R Romero-Garcia

Cortical patterning of abnormal morphometric similarity in psychosis is associated with brain expression of schizophrenia-related genes.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1820754116
Journal: Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A
E-pub date: 7 May 2019
Authors: SE Morgan, J Seidlitz, KJ Whitaker, R Romero-Garcia, NE Clifton, C Scarpazza, T van Amelsvoort, M Marcelis, J van Os, G Donohoe, D Mothersill, A Corvin, A Pocklington, A Raznahan, P McGuire, PE Vértes, ET Bullmore

Publications

Mapping the Health Burden of Neighbourhood Deprivation: Neurobiological Evidence Across the Life Span

DOI: http://doi.org/10.64898/2026.08.29.26361714
Journal:
E-pub date: 3 Sep 2026
Authors: A Ebneabbasi, V Warrier, M Montagnese, R Romero Garcia, RAI Bethlehem, T Rittman

Polygenic scores for autism are associated with reduced neurite density in adults and children from the general population.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1038/s41380-025-02927-z
Journal: Mol Psychiatry
E-pub date: 31 Aug 2025
Authors: Y Gu, E Maria-Stauffer, SA Bedford, APEX consortium, iPSYCH-autism consortium, R Romero-Garcia, J Grove, AD Børglum, H Martin, S Baron-Cohen, RAI Bethlehem, V Warrier

P11.05.B LONGITUDINAL MODIFICATIONS OF GRADIENTS AND GRAPH-THEORY MEASURES OF FUNCTIONAL MRI CONNECTIVITY IN GLIOMA PATIENTS AS POTENTIAL MARKERS OF POST-SURGICAL LONG-TERM COGNITIVE OUTCOME

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1093/neuonc/noae144.207
Journal: Neuro-Oncology
E-pub date: 17 Oct 2024
Authors: G Sansone, A Poologaindran, R Romero-Garcia, M Mamalakis, R Bethlehem, M Hart, T Santarius, Y Wan, C Li, M Corbetta, Y Erez, SJ Price, J Suckling

24. POLYGENIC SCORES FOR AUTISM ARE ASSOCIATED WITH NEURITE DENSITY IN ADULTS AND CHILDREN FROM THE GENERAL POPULATION

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1016/j.euroneuro.2024.08.138
Journal: European Neuropsychopharmacology
E-pub date: 1 Oct 2024
Authors: Y Gu, E-M Stauffer, S Bedford, R Romero-Garcia, J Grove, A Børglum, H Martin, S Baron-Cohen, R Bethlehem, V Warrier

Atypical Brain Aging and Its Association With Working Memory Performance in Major Depressive Disorder.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1016/j.bpsc.2024.04.008
Journal: Biol Psychiatry Cogn Neurosci Neuroimaging
E-pub date: 31 Aug 2024
Authors: NCW Ho, RAI Bethlehem, J Seidlitz, N Nogovitsyn, P Metzak, PL Ballester, S Hassel, S Rotzinger, J Poppenk, RW Lam, VH Taylor, R Milev, Lifespan Brain Chart Consortium, ET Bullmore, AF Alexander-Bloch, BN Frey, KL Harkness, J Addington, SH Kennedy, K Dunlop

ComBatLS: A location- and scale-preserving method for multi-site image harmonization

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1101/2024.06.21.599875
Journal:
E-pub date: 30 Jul 2024
Authors: M Gardner, RT Shinohara, RAI Bethlehem, R Romero-Garcia, V Warrier, L Dorfschmidt, S Shanmugan, J Seidlitz, A Alexander-Bloch, A Chen

Polygenic scores for autism are associated with neurite density in adults and children from the general population

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1101/2024.04.10.24305539
Journal:
E-pub date: 13 Apr 2024
Authors: Y Gu, E Maria-Stauffer, SA Bedford, R Romero-Garcia, J Grove, AD Børglum, H Martin, S Baron-Cohen, RAI Bethlehem, V Warrier

Brain tumour microstructure is associated with post-surgical cognition.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-55130-5
Journal: Sci Rep
E-pub date: 7 Mar 2024
Authors: M Aznarez-Sanado, R Romero-Garcia, C Li, RC Morris, SJ Price, T Manly, T Santarius, Y Erez, MG Hart, J Suckling

Two human brain systems micro-structurally associated with obesity.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.85175
Journal: Elife
E-pub date: 20 Oct 2023
Authors: MG Kitzbichler, D Martins, RAI Bethlehem, R Dear, R Romero-Garcia, V Warrier, J Seidlitz, O Dipasquale, F Turkheimer, M Cercignani, ET Bullmore, NA Harrison

Robust estimation of cortical similarity networks from brain MRI.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1038/s41593-023-01376-7
Journal: Nat Neurosci
E-pub date: 31 Aug 2023
Authors: I Sebenius, J Seidlitz, V Warrier, RAI Bethlehem, A Alexander-Bloch, TT Mallard, RR Garcia, ET Bullmore, SE Morgan

A longitudinal resource for population neuroscience of school-age children and adolescents in China.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-023-02377-8
Journal: Sci Data
E-pub date: 21 Aug 2023
Authors: X-R Fan, Y-S Wang, D Chang, N Yang, M-J Rong, Z Zhang, Y He, X Hou, Q Zhou, Z-Q Gong, L-Z Cao, H-M Dong, J-J Nie, L-Z Chen, Q Zhang, J-X Zhang, L Zhang, H-J Li, M Bao, A Chen, J Chen, X Chen, J Ding, X Dong, Y Du, C Feng, T Feng, X Fu, L-K Ge, B Hong, X Hu, W Huang, C Jiang, L Li, Q Li, S Li, X Liu, F Mo, J Qiu, X-Q Su, G-X Wei, Y Wu, H Xia, C-G Yan, Z-X Yan, X Yang, W Zhang, K Zhao, L Zhu, Chinese Color Nest Consortium (CCNC), Lifespan Brain Chart Consortium (LBCC), X-N Zuo

Genetic insights into human cortical organization and development through genome-wide analyses of 2,347 neuroimaging phenotypes.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1038/s41588-023-01475-y
Journal: Nature Genetics
E-pub date: 17 Aug 2023
Authors: V Warrier, E-M Stauffer, QQ Huang, EM Wigdor, EAW Slob, J Seidlitz, L Ronan, SL Valk, TT Mallard, AD Grotzinger, R Romero-Garcia, S Baron-Cohen, DH Geschwind, MA Lancaster, GK Murray, MJ Gandal, A Alexander-Bloch, H Won, HC Martin, ET Bullmore, RAI Bethlehem

Intra-operative applications of augmented reality in glioma surgery: a systematic review.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.3389/fsurg.2023.1245851
Journal: Front Surg
E-pub date: 1 Aug 2023
Authors: A Ragnhildstveit, C Li, MH Zimmerman, M Mamalakis, VN Curry, W Holle, N Baig, AK Uğuralp, L Alkhani, Z Oğuz-Uğuralp, R Romero-Garcia, J Suckling

High gamma activity distinguishes frontal cognitive control regions from adjacent cortical networks.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2022.12.007
Journal: Cortex
E-pub date: 1 Feb 2023
Authors: M Assem, MG Hart, P Coelho, R Romero-Garcia, A McDonald, E Woodberry, RC Morris, SJ Price, J Suckling, T Santarius, J Duncan, Y Erez

Tumour-infiltrated cortex participates in large-scale cognitive circuits

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1101/2022.12.19.22283690
Journal:
E-pub date: 21 Dec 2022
Authors: A Mandal, M Assem, R Romero-Garcia, P Coelho, A McDonald, E Woodberry, R Morris, S Price, J Duncan, T Santarius, J Suckling, M Hart, Y Erez

Two human brain systems micro-structurally associated with obesity

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1101/2022.11.25.517981
Journal:
E-pub date: 28 Nov 2022
Authors: M Kitzbichler, D Martins, RAI Bethlehem, R Dear, R Romero-Garcia, V Warrier, J Seidlitz, O Dipasquale, F Turkheimer, M Cercignani, E Bullmore, N Harrison

The impact of the initial COVID-19 outbreak on young adults’ mental health: a longitudinal study of risk and resilience factors.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-21053-2
Journal: Sci Rep
E-pub date: 5 Oct 2022
Authors: A Wiedemann, J Stochl, SAS Neufeld, J Fritz, J Bhatti, RW Hook, NSPN Consortium, IM Goodyer, RJ Dolan, ET Bullmore, SR Chamberlain, P Fonagy, J Perez, PB Jones

Publisher Correction: Brain charts for the human lifespan.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-022-05300-0
Journal: Nature
E-pub date: 1 Oct 2022
Authors: RAI Bethlehem, J Seidlitz, SR White, JW Vogel, KM Anderson, C Adamson, S Adler, GS Alexopoulos, E Anagnostou, A Areces-Gonzalez, DE Astle, B Auyeung, M Ayub, J Bae, G Ball, S Baron-Cohen, R Beare, SA Bedford, V Benegal, F Beyer, J Blangero, M Blesa Cábez, JP Boardman, M Borzage, JF Bosch-Bayard, N Bourke, VD Calhoun, MM Chakravarty, C Chen, C Chertavian, G Chetelat, YS Chong, JH Cole, A Corvin, M Costantino, E Courchesne, F Crivello, VL Cropley, J Crosbie, N Crossley, M Delarue, R Delorme, S Desrivieres, GA Devenyi, MA Di Biase, R Dolan, KA Donald, G Donohoe, K Dunlop, AD Edwards, JT Elison, CT Ellis, JA Elman, L Eyler, DA Fair, E Feczko, PC Fletcher, P Fonagy, CE Franz, L Galan-Garcia, A Gholipour, J Giedd, JH Gilmore, DC Glahn, IM Goodyer, PE Grant, NA Groenewold, FM Gunning, RE Gur, RC Gur, CF Hammill, O Hansson, T Hedden, A Heinz, RN Henson, K Heuer, J Hoare, B Holla, AJ Holmes, R Holt, H Huang, K Im, J Ipser, CR Jack, AP Jackowski, T Jia, KA Johnson, PB Jones, DT Jones, RS Kahn, H Karlsson, L Karlsson, R Kawashima, EA Kelley, S Kern, KW Kim, MG Kitzbichler, WS Kremen, F Lalonde, B Landeau, S Lee, J Lerch, JD Lewis, J Li, W Liao, C Liston, MV Lombardo, J Lv, C Lynch, TT Mallard, M Marcelis, RD Markello, SR Mathias, B Mazoyer, P McGuire, MJ Meaney, A Mechelli, N Medic, B Misic, SE Morgan, D Mothersill, J Nigg, MQW Ong, C Ortinau, R Ossenkoppele, M Ouyang, L Palaniyappan, L Paly, PM Pan, C Pantelis, MM Park, T Paus, Z Pausova, D Paz-Linares, A Pichet Binette, K Pierce, X Qian, J Qiu, A Qiu, A Raznahan, T Rittman, A Rodrigue, CK Rollins, R Romero-Garcia, L Ronan, MD Rosenberg, DH Rowitch, GA Salum, TD Satterthwaite, HL Schaare, RJ Schachar, AP Schultz, G Schumann, M Schöll, D Sharp, RT Shinohara, I Skoog, CD Smyser, RA Sperling, DJ Stein, A Stolicyn, J Suckling, G Sullivan, Y Taki, B Thyreau, R Toro, N Traut, KA Tsvetanov, NB Turk-Browne, JJ Tuulari, C Tzourio, É Vachon-Presseau, MJ Valdes-Sosa, PA Valdes-Sosa, SL Valk, T van Amelsvoort, SN Vandekar, L Vasung, LW Victoria, S Villeneuve, A Villringer, PE Vértes, K Wagstyl, YS Wang, SK Warfield, V Warrier, E Westman, ML Westwater, HC Whalley, AV Witte, N Yang, B Yeo, H Yun, A Zalesky, HJ Zar, A Zettergren, JH Zhou, H Ziauddeen, A Zugman, XN Zuo, 3R-BRAIN, AIBL, Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative, Alzheimer’s Disease Repository Without Borders Investigators, CALM Team, Cam-CAN, CCNP, COBRE, cVEDA, ENIGMA Developmental Brain Age Working Group, Developing Human Connectome Project, FinnBrain, Harvard Aging Brain Study, IMAGEN, KNE96, Mayo Clinic Study of Aging, NSPN, POND, PREVENT-AD Research Group, VETSA, ET Bullmore, AF Alexander-Bloch

Interventional neurorehabilitation for promoting functional recovery post-craniotomy: a proof-of-concept.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-06766-8
Journal: Sci Rep
E-pub date: 23 Feb 2022
Authors: A Poologaindran, C Profyris, IM Young, NB Dadario, SA Ahsan, K Chendeb, RG Briggs, C Teo, R Romero-Garcia, J Suckling, ME Sughrue

Memory recovery in relation to default mode network impairment and neurite density during brain tumor treatment.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.3171/2021.1.JNS203959
Journal: J Neurosurg
E-pub date: 1 Feb 2022
Authors: R Romero-Garcia, J Suckling, M Owen, M Assem, R Sinha, P Coelho, E Woodberry, SJ Price, A Burke, T Santarius, Y Erez, MG Hart

Grey and white matter microstructure is associated with polygenic risk for schizophrenia.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1038/s41380-021-01260-5
Journal: Mol Psychiatry
E-pub date: 1 Dec 2021
Authors: E-M Stauffer, RAI Bethlehem, V Warrier, GK Murray, R Romero-Garcia, J Seidlitz, ET Bullmore

BOLD Coupling between Lesioned and Healthy Brain Is Associated with Glioma Patients’ Recovery.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.3390/cancers13195008
Journal: Cancers (Basel)
E-pub date: 6 Oct 2021
Authors: R Romero-Garcia, MG Hart, RAI Bethlehem, A Mandal, M Assem, B Crespo-Facorro, JM Gorriz, GAA Burke, SJ Price, T Santarius, Y Erez, J Suckling

Decision-making ability, psychopathology, and brain connectivity.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2021.04.019
Journal: Neuron
E-pub date: 16 Jun 2021
Authors: M Moutoussis, B Garzón, S Neufeld, DR Bach, F Rigoli, I Goodyer, E Bullmore, NSPN Consortium, M Guitart-Masip, RJ Dolan

In vivo coupling of dendritic complexity with presynaptic density in primary tauopathies.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2021.01.016
Journal: Neurobiol Aging
E-pub date: 1 May 2021
Authors: E Mak, N Holland, PS Jones, G Savulich, A Low, M Malpetti, SS Kaalund, L Passamonti, T Rittman, R Romero-Garcia, R Manavaki, GB Williams, YT Hong, TD Fryer, FI Aigbirhio, JT O'Brien, JB Rowe

Intraoperative mapping of executive function using electrocorticography for patients with low-grade gliomas.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1007/s00701-020-04646-6
Journal: Acta Neurochir (Wien)
E-pub date: 1 May 2021
Authors: Y Erez, M Assem, P Coelho, R Romero-Garcia, M Owen, A McDonald, E Woodberry, RC Morris, SJ Price, J Suckling, J Duncan, MG Hart, T Santarius

Grey and white matter micro-structure is associated with polygenic risk for schizophrenia

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1101/2021.02.06.21251073
Journal:
E-pub date: 8 Feb 2021
Authors: E-M Stauffer, RAI Bethlehem, V Warrier, G Murray, R Romero-Garcia, J Seidlitz, E Bullmore

Atypical measures of diffusion at the gray-white matter boundary in autism spectrum disorder in adulthood.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/hbm.25237
Journal: Hum Brain Mapp
E-pub date: 1 Feb 2021
Authors: A Bletsch, T Schäfer, C Mann, DS Andrews, E Daly, M Gudbrandsen, ANV Ruigrok, R Dallyn, R Romero-Garcia, M-C Lai, MV Lombardo, MC Craig, J Suckling, ET Bullmore, S Baron-Cohen, MRC AIMS Consortium, DGM Murphy, F Dell'Acqua, C Ecker

Assessment of neuropsychological function in brain tumour treatment: A comparison of traditional neuropsychological assessment with app-based cognitive screening

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1101/2020.06.03.20119255
Journal:
E-pub date: 7 Jun 2020
Authors: R Romero-Garcia, M Owen, A McDonald, E Woodberry, M Assem, P Coelho, R Morris, S Price, T Santarius, J Suckling, T Manly, Y Erez, M Hart

Practical Application of Networks in Neurosurgery: Combined 3-Dimensional Printing, Neuronavigation, and Preoperative Surgical Planning.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1016/j.wneu.2020.01.085
Journal: World Neurosurg
E-pub date: 1 May 2020
Authors: R Romero-Garcia, Y Erez, G Oliver, M Owen, S Merali, A Poologaindran, RC Morris, SJ Price, T Santarius, J Suckling, MG Hart

Practical Application of Networks in Neurosurgery: Combined 3D Printing, Neuronavigation, and Pre-Operative Surgical Planning

DOI: http://doi.org/10.31219/osf.io/cmg7u
Journal:
E-pub date: 15 Nov 2019
Authors: R Romero-Garcia, Y Erez, G Oliver, M Owen, S Merali, A Poologaindran, RC Morris, S Price, T Santarius, J Suckling, M Hart

Disruptive and protective outcomes to memory and attention when treating diffuse glioma

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1101/19008581
Journal:
E-pub date: 10 Oct 2019
Authors: R Romero-Garcia, J Suckling, M Owen, M Assem, R Sinha, P Coelho, E Woodberry, S Price, AGA Burke, T Santarius, Y Erez, M Hart

Global Effects of Focal Brain Tumors on Functional Complexity and Network Robustness: A Prospective Cohort Study.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1093/neuros/nyy378
Journal: Neurosurgery
E-pub date: 1 Jun 2019
Authors: MG Hart, R Romero-Garcia, SJ Price, J Suckling

In vivo coupling of tau pathology and cortical thinning in Alzheimer’s disease.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1016/j.dadm.2018.08.005
Journal: Alzheimers Dement (Amst)
E-pub date: 1 Aug 2018
Authors: E Mak, RAI Bethlehem, R Romero-Garcia, S Cervenka, T Rittman, S Gabel, A Surendranathan, RW Bevan-Jones, L Passamonti, P Vázquez Rodríguez, L Su, R Arnold, GB Williams, YT Hong, TD Fryer, FI Aigbirhio, JB Rowe, JT O'Brien

Intra-cortical myelination during adolescence: linking MRI networks with gene transcription profiles

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1016/s0924-977x(17)31087-8
Journal: European Neuropsychopharmacology
E-pub date: 1 Oct 2017
Authors: K Whitaker, P Vertes, R Romero-Garcia, F Vasa, M Moutoussis, G Prabhu, N Weiskopf, MF Callaghan, K Wagstyl, T Rittman, R Tait, C Ooi, J Suckling, B Inkster, P Fonagy, RJ Dolan, PB Jones, IM Goodyer, ET Bullmore

Structural Covariance Networks in Children with Autism or ADHD.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1093/cercor/bhx135
Journal: Cereb Cortex
E-pub date: 1 Aug 2017
Authors: RAI Bethlehem, R Romero-Garcia, E Mak, ET Bullmore, S Baron-Cohen

Adolescence is Associated with Genomically Patterned Consolidation of the Hubs of the Human Brain Connectome

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsych.2017.02.390
Journal: Biological Psychiatry
E-pub date: 1 May 2017
Authors: K Whitaker, P Vertes, R Romero-Garcia, F Vasa, M Moutoussis, G Prabhub, N Weiskopf, M Callaghan, K Wagstyl, T Rittman, R Tait, C Ooi, J Suckling, B Inkster, P Fonagy, R Dolan, P Jones, I Goodyer, E Bullmore

Structural covariance networks in children with autism or ADHD

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1101/110643
Journal:
E-pub date: 21 Feb 2017
Authors: RAI Bethlehem, R Romero-Garcia, E Mak, ET Bullmore, S Baron-Cohen

Gene transcription profiles associated with inter-modular hubs and connection distance in human functional magnetic resonance imaging networks.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2015.0362
Journal: Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci
E-pub date: 5 Oct 2016
Authors: PE Vértes, T Rittman, KJ Whitaker, R Romero-Garcia, F Váša, MG Kitzbichler, K Wagstyl, P Fonagy, RJ Dolan, PB Jones, IM Goodyer, NSPN Consortium, ET Bullmore

Adolescence is associated with genomically patterned consolidation of the hubs of the human brain connectome.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1601745113
Journal: Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A
E-pub date: 9 Aug 2016
Authors: KJ Whitaker, PE Vértes, R Romero-Garcia, F Váša, M Moutoussis, G Prabhu, N Weiskopf, MF Callaghan, K Wagstyl, T Rittman, R Tait, C Ooi, J Suckling, B Inkster, P Fonagy, RJ Dolan, PB Jones, IM Goodyer, NSPN Consortium, ET Bullmore

Graph theory analysis of complex brain networks: new concepts in brain mapping applied to neurosurgery.

DOI: http://doi.org/10.3171/2015.4.JNS142683
Journal: J Neurosurg
E-pub date: 1 Jun 2016
Authors: MG Hart, RJF Ypma, R Romero-Garcia, SJ Price, J Suckling