人脑功能连通性研究进展

对人脑结构和功能的深入研究,已经要求脑成像技术不能仅仅局限于研究简单的脑功能定位问题,即寻找和定位与特定认知任务相关的某一块或者一组大脑皮层功能区,而必须研究分析各功能区间的动态功能连通和整合问题,即描述特定脑功能区域间的交互作用以及这些交互作用如何受认知任务的影响.已有几种非常规的脑成像技术和数据分析方法,包括时间相关性分析、心理生理交互作用(PPI)、结构方程模型(SEM)、动态因果模型(DCM)、弥散张量成像(DTI)等等,被成功用于人脑功能连通性和有效连通性的研究.脑功能连通性研究的发展,有利于深入理解人脑在系统水平上的动态运作方式,是今后认知神经科学发展的一个重要方向.

Progress in Functional Connectivity Analysis

Conventional neuroimaging methods primarily focus on functional localization, through which specific cognitive functions are localized to specific brain regions. However, fully understanding the human brain function requires characterization of functional integration within and among the functionally specialized regions in addition to functional localization. Functional connectivity and effective connectivity analyses have been developed to investigate functional integration in human brain. Several approaches for modeling functional connectivity and effective connectivity, including the time-series correlation, psychophysiological interaction (PPI), structural equation modeling (SEM), dynamic casual modeling (DCM), and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) are reviewed. The applications of functional connectivity analysis to the studies of object representation, motor coordinate, language, and autism are demonstrated. Functional connectivity study will highly enrich our knowledge about the dynamic integration in the human brain.