Brain mapping


Brain mapping is a set of neuroscience techniques predicated on the mapping of quantities or properties onto spatial representations of the brain resulting in maps.
According to the definition established in 2013 by Society for Brain Mapping and Therapeutics, brain mapping is specifically defined, in summary, as the study of the anatomy and function of the brain and spinal cord through the use of imaging, immunohistochemistry, molecular & optogenetics, stem cell and cellular biology, engineering, neurophysiology and nanotechnology.

Overview

All neuroimaging is considered part of brain mapping. Brain mapping can be conceived as a higher form of neuroimaging, producing brain images supplemented by the result of additional data processing or analysis, such as maps projecting behavior onto brain regions. One such map, called a connectogram, depicts cortical regions around a circle, organized by lobes. Concentric circles within the ring represent various common neurological measurements, such as cortical thickness or curvature. In the center of the circles, lines representing white matter fibers illustrate the connections between cortical regions, weighted by fractional anisotropy and strength of connection. At higher resolutions brain maps are called connectomes. These maps incorporate individual neural connections in the brain and are often presented as wiring diagrams.
Brain mapping techniques are constantly evolving, and rely on the development and refinement of image acquisition, representation, analysis, visualization and interpretation techniques. Functional and structural neuroimaging are at the core of the mapping aspect of brain mapping.
Some scientists have criticized the brain image-based claims made in scientific journals and the popular press, like the discovery of "the part of the brain responsible" things like love or musical abilities or a specific memory. Many mapping techniques have a relatively low resolution, including hundreds of thousands of neurons in a single voxel. Many functions also involve multiple parts of the brain, meaning that this type of claim is probably both unverifiable with the equipment used, and generally based on an incorrect assumption about how brain functions are divided. It may be that most brain functions will only be described correctly after being measured with much more fine-grained measurements that look not at large regions but instead at a very large number of tiny individual brain circuits. Many of these studies also have technical problems like small sample size or poor equipment calibration which means they cannot be reproduced - considerations which are sometimes ignored to produce a sensational journal article or news headline. In some cases the brain mapping techniques are used for commercial purposes, lie detection, or medical diagnosis in ways which have not been scientifically validated.

History

In the late 1980s in the United States, the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Science was commissioned to establish a panel to investigate the value of integrating neuroscientific information across a variety of techniques.
Of specific interest is using structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging, diffusion MRI, magnetoencephalography, electroencephalography, positron emission tomography, Near-infrared spectroscopy and other non-invasive scanning techniques to map anatomy, physiology, perfusion, function and phenotypes of the human brain. Both healthy and diseased brains may be mapped to study memory, learning, aging, and drug effects in various populations such as people with schizophrenia, autism, and clinical depression. This led to the establishment of the Human Brain Project. It may also be crucial to understanding traumatic brain injuries and improving brain injury treatment.
Following a series of meetings, the International Consortium for Brain Mapping evolved. The ultimate goal is to develop flexible computational brain atlases.
On May 5, 2010 the Supreme Court in India declared brain mapping, lie detector tests and narcoanalysis to be unconstitutional, violating Article 20 of Fundamental Rights. These techniques cannot be conducted forcefully on any individual and requires consent for the same. When they are conducted with consent, the material so obtained is regarded as evidence during trial of cases according to Section 27 of the Evidence Act.

Current Atlas tools

Brain mapping is the study of the anatomy and function of the brain and spinal cord through the use of imaging, immunohistochemistry, molecular & optogenetics, stem cell and cellular biology, engineering, neurophysiology and nanotechnology.