Ben Julian A. Palanca, MD, PhD

Research Description:
Ben Julian A. Palanca M.D., Ph.D.
660 South Euclid Avenue
Campus Box 8054
St. Louis, Missouri 63110-1093
(314) 362-1196
palancab@anest.wustl.edu
Dr. Palanca is interested in characterizing the mechanisms whereby anesthetic agents alter
intracortical and subcortical neural networks and impair cognitive processes to generate
unconsciousness. The question of how anesthetic agents induce reversible states of
unconsciousness is of central importance in the science of anesthesiology. The answers to this
question have obvious importance for understanding the neural circuitry underlying cognitive
function and developing safer and better approaches to administering and monitoring general
anesthesia.
In 2010, Dr. Palanca was awarded a two year Mentored Research Training Grant from the
Foundation for Anesthesia Education and Research (FAER) to investigate the neural correlates
of anesthetic-induced unconsciousness in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and
electroencephalography (EEG) signals. This project combines his background in primate
neurophysiology and clinical anesthesiology with training in EEG and fMRI toward the conduct
of translational research studies involving anesthetized human volunteers. He will assess the
states of cortical connectivity at anesthetic gas concentrations flanking the important point of
loss of responsiveness. As different brain monitors designed for preventing unintended return of
consciousness function via analysis of either spontaneous or evoked neural activity, he will
assess cortical connectivity both in the context of a resting state and in the context of individuals
performing a task. This project should clarify the relationships among networks of critical
cortical and subcortical areas, impairment of cognitive functions induced by anesthetics, and
surface electrical activity.
Publications:
PEER REVIEWED PUBLICATIONS
Kertai, M.D., Pal, N., Palanca, B.J.A., Lin, N., Searleman, S.A., Zhang, L., Burnside, B.A.,
Finkel, K.J., Avidan, M.S; on behalf of the B-Unaware Study Group. Association of
perioperative risk factors and cumulative duration of low bispectral index with intermediateterm
mortality following cardiac surgery in the B-Unaware Trial. Anesthesiology. 2010:
112(5).
Palanca, B.J.A., DeAngelis, G.C. Does neuronal synchrony underlie visual feature grouping?
Neuron. 2005: 46(2): 333-46.

Palanca, B.J.A., DeAngelis, G.C. Macaque middle temporal neurons signal depth in the absence
of motion. J. Neurosci. 2003; 23(20):7647-58.
Potter, A.J., Gollahon, K.A., Palanca B.J., Harbert, M.J., Choi, Y.M., Moskovitz, A.H., Potter,
J.D., Rabinovitch, P.S. Flow cytometric analysis of cell cycle phase specificity of DNA
damage induced by radiation. Carcinogenesis 2002; 23(3): 389-401.
Brown, M.G., Scalzo, A.A., Stone L.R., Clark P.Y., Du Y., Palanca B., Yokoyama W.M.
Natural killer gene complex (Nkc) allelic variability in inbred mice: evidence for Nkc
haplotypes. Immunogenetics 2001; 53(7): 584-91.
Xu, C., Mao, D., Holers, V.M., Palanca, B., Cheng, A.M., Molina, H. A critical role for murine
complement regulator crry in fetomaternal tolerance. Science 2000; 287(5452): 498-501.
Glogovac, J.K., Pierce, R., Palanca, B.J.A., Rabinovitch, P.S. Cytokeratin immunoflourescence
in DNA analysis of paraffin extracted cells. Clin. Immunol. Newsletter 1996; 16(12): 157-61.
NON-PEER REVIEWED PUBLICATIONS
Avidan, M.S., Palanca, B.J., Glick, D., Jacobsohn, E., Villafranca A., O’Connor, M., Mashour,
G.A., and Study Group BAG-RECALL. Protocol for the BAG-RECALL Clinical Trial: A
prospective, multi-center, randomized, controlled trial to determine whether a bispectral indexguided
protocol is superior to an anesthesia gas-guided protocol in reducing intraoperative
awareness with explicit recall in high risk surgical patients. BMC Anesthesiol. 2009: 9(1): 8.
Palanca, B.J.A., Mashour, G.A., and Avidan M.S. Processed EEG in depth of anesthesia
monitoring: controversies and future prospects. Curr Opin Anaesthesiol. 2009: 22(5): 553-9.
BOOKS AND BOOK CHAPTERS
Palanca, B.J.A., Searleman, A, and Avidan, M.S. “Current Controversies in Intraoperative
Awareness II.” Consciousness, Awareness, and Anesthesia. Ed. George A. Mashour.
Cambridge University. 2010.
Palanca, B.J.A. Neuronal synchrony fails as a general mechanism underlying feature binding.
Doctoral Dissertation. 2005
Research Team:
Marcus Raichle, M.D., Primary Mentor
Evan Kharasch, M.D., Ph.D., Secondary Mentor
Jane Blood, R.N., Nurse Coordinator
Alex Evers, M.S., Collaborator

Michael Avidan, M.B.B.Ch., Collaborator
Biyu He, Ph.D., Collaborator
Eric Leuthardt, M.D., Collaborator
Optional Page - Honors and awards:
2010 - Mentored Research Training Grant, Foundation for Anesthesia Education and Research
(FAER)
2010 - Postdoctoral Scholar, Washington University Clinical Research Training Center (K30)
2010 - Election to Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society, Washington University Chapter
2007 - Foundation for Anesthesia Education and Research (FAER) Scholar Award
2001-2003 - National Eye Institute Vision Sciences Predoctoral Training Grant
1997 - University of Washington President’s Medal (most distinguished record at graduation)
1996 - Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship for Excellence in Education
1996 - Election to Washington Alpha Chapter, Phi Beta Kappa
1996 - Howard Hughes Undergraduate Summer Research Internship
1995 - University of Washington Junior Medal for High Scholarship
1995 - University of Washington Undergraduate Research Stipend
1994 - National Academy of Science, Space, and Technology Scholarship