Stimulation mapping of white matter tracts to study brain functional connectivity

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Connectomics
• Neurophysiology

Background:

• Mapping neural connections (connectomics) has advanced, but studying white matter tract function in vivo remains challenging.
• Direct electrical stimulation (DES) offers a novel method to investigate brain functional connectivity in real-time during surgery.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review insights from axonal DES into functional connectivity of sensorimotor, visuospatial, language, and sociocognitive systems.
• To explore interactions between neural networks and cognitive functions like memory, attention, and consciousness using axonal stimulation.

Main Methods:

• Utilizing direct electrical stimulation (DES) mapping of subcortical fibers in awake patients.
• Establishing real-time anatomo-functional correlations for neural pathways during brain surgery.

Main Results:

• Axonal DES provides new understanding of functional connectivity in key brain systems.
• This method supports a networking model of cognition, emphasizing integrated subnetworks over isolated functions.
• Hodotopical insights from DES improve the understanding of neuroplasticity and its constraints.

Conclusions:

• Axonal DES is a powerful tool for studying brain functional connectivity and network interactions.
• The hodotopical approach offers a paradigm shift from localizationism, with significant clinical implications for brain surgery, neurology, and psychiatry.
• This method advances our comprehension of neuroplasticity and its clinical relevance.