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Updated: Feb 15, 2026

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Ultra-Slow Single-Vessel BOLD and CBV-Based fMRI Spatiotemporal Dynamics and Their Correlation with Neuronal

Yi He1, Maosen Wang1, Xuming Chen1

  • 1High-Field Magnetic Resonance Department, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, 72076 Tuebingen, Germany; Graduate Training Centre of Neuroscience, International Max Planck Research School, University of Tuebingen, 72074 Tuebingen, Germany.

Neuron
|February 6, 2018
PubMed

Insights

Single-vessel functional MRI (fMRI) reveals vessel-specific brain activity patterns. This technique links neuronal activity to cerebral vasculature oscillations, enabling functional connectivity mapping at the single-vessel level in rodents and humans.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroimaging
  • Vascular Biology
  • Systems Neuroscience

Background:

  • Functional MRI (fMRI) traditionally maps brain activity via hemodynamic signals.
  • Understanding the precise relationship between neuronal activity and vascular signals at a fine scale remains a challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate vessel-specific functional connectivity using advanced fMRI techniques.
  • To explore the correlation between neuronal activity and cerebral vasculature oscillations.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized single-vessel fMRI in anesthetized rats and awake human subjects.
  • Correlated fMRI signals with intracellular calcium signals in neighboring neurons (rodents).
  • Analyzed blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) and cerebral blood volume (CBV) signals from individual vessels.

Main Results:

  • Demonstrated vessel-specific correlation patterns in both rodent and human brains.
  • Found correlations between neuronal calcium signals and fMRI signals in rat venules and arterioles.
  • Observed ultra-slow (<0.1 Hz) rhythmic correlations in human visual cortex veins, linked to anesthetic states and neuronal activity.

Conclusions:

  • Neuronal activity is intrinsically linked to oscillations within the cerebral vasculature.
  • Single-vessel fMRI can resolve functional connectivity at the level of individual blood vessels.
  • This approach offers a new window into neurovascular coupling mechanisms.
Keywords:
BOLDCalciumGCaMPcerebral blood volumefMRIfunctional connectivityoscillationresting statesingle vesselvasomotion

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