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Updated: May 29, 2026

Serial Two-Photon Tomography of the Whole Marmoset Brain for Neuroanatomical Analyses
Published on: January 17, 2025
Functional connectivity between anatomically unconnected areas is shaped by collective network-level effects in the
Yusuke Adachi1, Takahiro Osada, Olaf Sporns
1Department of Physiology, The University of Tokyo School of Medicine, Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan.
Functional connectivity (FC) in the primate neocortex, measured by blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) signals, is influenced by network-level architecture, not just direct anatomical connections. This suggests collective network effects shape brain communication.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Systems Neuroscience
- Computational Neuroscience
Background:
- Coherent spontaneous blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) fluctuations are used to measure functional connectivity (FC) in the primate neocortex.
- FC is often assumed to be constrained by anatomical connectivity (AC), but strong FC exists between areas without direct AC.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the mechanisms generating FC between unconnected cortical areas.
- To determine whether FC is driven by short connection patterns or broader network properties.
Main Methods:
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in anesthetized macaque monkeys.
- Computational modeling of interareal BOLD-FC networks.
Main Results:
- BOLD-FC between unconnected areas was less dependent on serial relays and more influenced by common afferents and common efferents.
- Empirical AC-FC relationships align with network motifs in the cortical anatomical network, supporting network-level effects.
Conclusions:
- FC is not solely determined by direct anatomical connections or simple relay pathways.
- Cortical network architecture and collective effects significantly influence interareal functional connectivity.
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