Speaker
Kai Miller
Date
Location
University of Houston
Abstract
Brain networks can be explored by delivering brief pulses of electrical current in one area while measuring
responses in other areas. If we focus on a single brain site and observe the average effect of stimulating each
of many other brain sites, visually apparent motifs in the temporal response shape emerge from adjacent
stimulation sites. We describe and illustrate a data-driven approach to determine characteristic
spatiotemporal structure in these response shapes, summarized by a set of unique “basis profile curves”
(BPCs). Each BPC may be mapped back to underlying anatomy in a natural way, quantifying projection
strength from each stimulation site using simple metrics. This framework enables straightforward
interpretation of single-pulse brain stimulation data and can be applied generically to explore the diverse
milieu of interactions that comprise the connectome. We then apply this framework to measurements from
the motor cortex, to disentangle connections with the primary motor (pre-central) area. Using BPCs,
movement-related changes over a wide distribution on the brain surface are shown to be comprised of
several sub-domains of different interaction types.
responses in other areas. If we focus on a single brain site and observe the average effect of stimulating each
of many other brain sites, visually apparent motifs in the temporal response shape emerge from adjacent
stimulation sites. We describe and illustrate a data-driven approach to determine characteristic
spatiotemporal structure in these response shapes, summarized by a set of unique “basis profile curves”
(BPCs). Each BPC may be mapped back to underlying anatomy in a natural way, quantifying projection
strength from each stimulation site using simple metrics. This framework enables straightforward
interpretation of single-pulse brain stimulation data and can be applied generically to explore the diverse
milieu of interactions that comprise the connectome. We then apply this framework to measurements from
the motor cortex, to disentangle connections with the primary motor (pre-central) area. Using BPCs,
movement-related changes over a wide distribution on the brain surface are shown to be comprised of
several sub-domains of different interaction types.