Causal mapping of human brain function.

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Translational Research

Background:

• Mapping human brain function is crucial for developing treatments for brain disorders.
• Historically, brain mapping relied on lesion and stimulation studies, later supplemented by functional neuroimaging.
• Functional neuroimaging reveals correlations, not causation, posing challenges for treatment development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To define causality in translational neuroscience research.
• To propose a framework for assessing causal information strength in human brain mapping.
• To review advances in causal brain mapping and their therapeutic relevance.

Main Methods:

• Review of historical and modern human brain mapping techniques.
• Discussion of lesion studies and brain stimulation methods.
• Integration of causal data with neuroimaging and electrophysiology.

Main Results:

• Functional neuroimaging provides correlational data, limiting causal inference.
• A resurgence in causal mapping using lesions and stimulation is occurring.
• New methods combine causal data with advanced neuroimaging for deeper insights.

Conclusions:

• Causal mapping is essential for understanding brain function and developing effective treatments.
• A continuum for evaluating causal evidence strength is proposed.
• Advances in causal brain mapping hold significant promise for clinical neuroscience.