Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopic images and MRI volumetric studies for lateralization of temporal lobe epilepsy

We obtained 2D magnetic resonance (MR) spectroscopic images (MRSI) and MRI volumetric measurements (MRIV) of amygdala and hippocampus in 30 consecutive patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) being evaluated for surgical treatment. Both MRSI and MRIV lateralization showed good agreement with the current gold standard of clinical-EEG lateralization. Each exam separately correctly lateralized 25 out of 30 patients with no false lateralization. Combining both exams, lateralization could be achieved in 28 out of 30 patients. The two patients with no significant asymmetry had bitemporal EEG abnormalities, and bilateral damage on both MRIV and MRSI. There was a good correlation between the magnitude of the MRSI and MRIV asymmetry (Pearson COEFFICIENT = 0.83; p < .0001). Both MRSI and MRIV were normal in our patients with seizures originating outside the temporal lobes. Both MRIV and MRSI can lateralize TLE in 83% of patients. Combination of the two modalities allows lateralization in 93% of patients. Patients who cannot be lateralized generally have symmetrical bitemporal abnormalities; they are not incorrectly lateralized. The structural and chemical pathologic abnormalities seen in TLE seem to be associated with the seizure focus, and may be as, or even more, reliable than a few recorded seizures in predicting the side from which most seizures originate.     

基于非线性预测效果的癫痫脑电信号的特征提取方法

在非线性时间序列预测研究的基础上,提出了基于非线性预测效果的癫痫脑电信号特征提取方法,从脑电信号中自动检测出癫痫脑电信号.采用基于可预测性的选取嵌入维数的方法确定脑电信号序列的嵌入维数,进行相空间重构.实验结果表明:基于非线性预测效果的特征提取方法提取的特征能明显地区分癫痫脑电信号与正常脑电信号,该非线性特征提取方法适合小数据量的情况且对噪声的稳定性好.     

Coupling of simultaneously acquired electrophysiological and haemodynamic responses during visual stimulation

We investigate the relationship between the temporal variation in the magnitude of occipital visual evoked potentials (VEPs) and of haemodynamic measures of brain activity obtained using both blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) and perfusion sensitive (ASL) functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Volunteers underwent a continuous BOLD fMRI scan and/or a continuous perfusion-sensitive (gradient and spin echo readout) ASL scan, during which 30 second blocks of contrast reversing visual stimuli (at 4 Hz) were interleaved with 30 second blocks of rest (visual fixation). Electroencephalography (EEG) and fMRI were simultaneously recorded and following EEG artefact cleaning, VEPs were averaged across the whole stimulation block (120 reversals, VEP₁₂₀) and at a finer timescale (15 reversals, VEP₁₅). Both BOLD and ASL time-series were linearly modelled to establish: (1) the mean response to visual stimulation, (2) transient responses at the start and end of each stimulation block, (3) the linear decrease between blocks, (4) the nonlinear between-block variation (covariation with VEP₁₂₀), (5) the linear decrease within block and (6) the nonlinear variation within block (covariation with VEP₁₅).     

Brain oscillatory activity during motor imagery in EEG-fMRI coregistration

The purpose of the present work was to investigate the correlation between topographical changes in brain oscillatory activity and the blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) signal during a motor imagery (MI) task using electroencephalography (EEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) coregistration.     

Increased Entropic Brain Dynamics during DeepDream-Induced Altered Perceptual Phenomenology

In recent years, the use of psychedelic drugs to study brain dynamics has flourished due to the unique opportunity they offer to investigate the neural mechanisms of conscious perception. Unfortunately, there are many difficulties to conduct experiments on pharmacologically-induced hallucinations, especially regarding ethical and legal issues. In addition, it is difficult to isolate the neural effects of psychedelic states from other physiological effects elicited by the drug ingestion. Here, we used the DeepDream algorithm to create visual stimuli that mimic the perception of hallucinatory states. Participants were first exposed to a regular video, followed by its modified version, while recording electroencephalography (EEG). Results showed that the frontal region’s activity was characterized by a higher entropy and lower complexity during the modified video, with respect to the regular one, at different time scales. Moreover, we found an increased undirected connectivity and a greater level of entropy in functional connectivity networks elicited by the modified video. These findings suggest that DeepDream and psychedelic drugs induced similar altered brain patterns and demonstrate the potential of adopting this method to study altered perceptual phenomenology in neuroimaging research.     

Exploring the feasibility of simultaneous electroencephalography/functional magnetic resonance imaging at 7 T

The increased blood oxygenation level-dependent contrast available at high field makes the implementation of combined EEG/fMRI experiments at 7 T highly worthwhile from the point of view of fMRI data quality, but the higher field poses greater technical challenges for achieving good quality EEG data. A study of the feasibility of recording EEG signals from human subjects at 7 T using a commercially available, MR-compatible EEG system has therefore been carried out. This involved systematic measurement of the sources of noise in EEG recordings made in the 7 T scanner and measurement of RF heating effects on a gel phantom in the presence of a 32-electrode EEG cap. Having found no significant safety concerns and identified a set-up (involving switching off the magnet's cryo-cooler pumps and mounting the EEG amplifier on a cantilever) that limited scanner-induced noise, combined EEG/fMRI experiments employing visual stimulation were then successfully carried out on two human subjects. With the use of beamformer-based analysis of the EEG data, driven responses and alpha-band, event-related desynchronisation were identified in both subjects.     

儿童额叶癫痫临床和长程视频脑电图特征

目的通过对46例儿童额叶癫痫患儿的临床表现、长程视频脑电图（VEEG）特点进行分析,提高对儿童额叶癫痫的认识。方法收集2008年12月至2014年8月儿科门诊及住院确诊的46例儿童额叶癫痫病例的资料,回顾性分析其临床表现、VEEG及神经影像学等特征。结果本组患儿发病年龄最小11个月,最大15岁。46例患儿共监测到临床发作258次,明确临床发作34例,14.7%仅于清醒期发作,61.8%仅在睡眠期发作,23.5%在清醒、睡眠中均有发作;临床发作形式包括额叶失神、局部阵挛发作、偏转性强直、姿势性强直、过度运动性自动症、口咽自动症、发声、发笑发作、临床下放电和自主神经性发作等。73.9%患儿记录到发作间期额叶为主的癫痫样放电,63.0%患儿记录到发作期额叶为主的癫痫样放电。结论儿童额叶癫痫临床发作频繁、短暂,以睡眠期发作为主,临床表现复杂多样,易漏诊;长程VEEG可监测到儿童额叶癫痫发作期临床及异常脑电图表现,可提供明确诊断率。     

Chaos and generalised multistability in a mesoscopic model of the electroencephalogram

We present evidence for chaos and generalised multistability in a mesoscopic model of the electroencephalogram (EEG). Two limit cycle attractors and one chaotic attractor were found to coexist in a two-dimensional plane of the ten-dimensional volume of initial conditions. The chaotic attractor was found to have a moderate value of the largest Lyapunov exponent (3.4 s⁻¹ base e) with an associated Kaplan-Yorke (Lyapunov) dimension of 2.086. There are two different limit cycles appearing in conjunction with this particular chaotic attractor: one multiperiodic low amplitude limit cycle whose largest spectral peak is within the alpha band (8-13 Hz) of the EEG; and another multiperiodic large-amplitude limit cycle which may correspond to epilepsy. The cause of the coexistence of these structures is explained with a one-parameter bifurcation analysis. Each attractor has a basin of differing complexity: the large-amplitude limit cycle has a basin relatively uncomplicated in its structure while the small-amplitude limit cycle and chaotic attractor each have much more finely structured basins of attraction, but none of the basin boundaries appear to be fractal. The basins of attraction for the chaotic and small-amplitude limit cycle dynamics apparently reside within each other. We briefly discuss the implications of these findings in the context of theoretical attempts to understand the dynamics of brain function and behaviour.     

基于LABVIEW的脑电信号虚拟采集系统设计

在神经科学研究领域,对大脑的观察主要来源于对脑电信号的收集与分析。当前对脑电信号收集的方法是通过专业脑电设备将信号收集保存,再由专业软件处理。由于这类仪器非常昂贵,系统体积也比较大,软件更新快,现在只能用在科学研究上,根本无法用于有规模的实验教学,更不可能一人一机。为此,提出了一种基于LABVIEW的脑电信号虚拟采集系统设计方法,使脑电收集与分析可以广泛地应用于教学。该方法首先对脑电信号虚拟采集系统的硬件进行构造,然后以硬件构造为依据,利用AR模型功率谱估计对脑电信号进行特征提取,在特征提取过程中,对模型类型与模型系数算法以及模型最佳阶数进行分析,最后通过将二阶低通滤波器与二阶高通滤波器进行串联,形成4阶Bessel带通滤波器,实现脑电信号的滤波,并以脑电信号传输电路的设计完成脑电信号虚拟采集系统的设计。实验结果证明,所提方法可以快速地对脑电信号虚拟采集系统进行设计,并为该领域的研究发展提供支撑。#$NL关键词：LABVIEW;脑电信号;虚拟采集系统;