Research Malpractice and the Issue of Incidental Findings

2008 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 356-360 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alan C. Milstein
Keyword(s):  
Brain Function ◽  
Neurological Status ◽  
Speech Development ◽  
Columbia University ◽  
Brain Organization ◽  
Physiological Basis ◽  
Neurosurgical Planning ◽  
Neurological Research ◽  
Magnetic Resonance Imaging Mri ◽  
And Function

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and functional MRI (fMRI) are important tools for neuroscience research because of their capability for investigating both the structure and function of the brain. The fMRI image extends traditional anatomical imaging of the MRI to include maps of human brain function. The ability to observe brain function opens an array of opportunities to research brain organization, neurological status, and neurosurgical risk. Neurological research is, thus, burgeoning. For example, Columbia University currently has several ongoing protocols investigating fMRI’s future role in neurosurgical planning, pain management, and understanding the physiological basis for neurological disorders as well as cognitive and perceptual events. One can imagine research proposals, both important and trivial, on such topics as whether brain imaging can shed light on the nature of dreams, memory, speech development, love, anger, or addiction.

Toward a neuroscope: An application of high-performance computing for real-time evaluation of brain function using MRI

1994 ◽  
Vol 52 ◽  
pp. 922-923
Author(s):  
C. S. Potter ◽  
C. D. Gregory ◽  
H. D. Morris ◽  
Z.-P. Liang ◽  
P. C. Lauterbur
Keyword(s):  
Human Brain ◽  
Brain Function ◽  
High Performance ◽  
Complex Signal ◽  
Time Step ◽  
Brain Organization ◽  
Cognitive Studies ◽  
Positron Emission ◽  
Imaging And Spectroscopy ◽  
3D Anatomy

Over the past few years, several laboratories have demonstrated that changes in local neuronal activity associated with human brain function can be detected by magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy. Using these methods, the effects of sensory and motor stimulation have been observed and cognitive studies have begun. These new methods promise to make possible even more rapid and extensive studies of brain organization and responses than those now in use, such as positron emission tomography.Human brain studies are enormously complex. Signal changes on the order of a few percent must be detected against the background of the complex 3D anatomy of the human brain. Today, most functional MR experiments are performed using several 2D slice images acquired at each time step or stimulation condition of the experimental protocol. It is generally believed that true 3D experiments must be performed for many cognitive experiments. To provide adequate resolution, this requires that data must be acquired faster and/or more efficiently to support 3D functional analysis.

scholarly journals The Participation of Microglia in Neurogenesis: A Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 658
Author(s):  
Diego R. Pérez-Rodríguez ◽  
Idoia Blanco-Luquin ◽  
Maite Mendioroz
Keyword(s):  
Adult Neurogenesis ◽  
Brain Function ◽  
Brain Organization ◽  
Fine Tune

Adult neurogenesis was one of the most important discoveries of the last century, helping us to better understand brain function. Researchers recently discovered that microglia play an important role in this process. However, various questions remain concerning where, at what stage, and what types of microglia participate. In this review, we demonstrate that certain pools of microglia are determinant cells in different phases of the generation of new neurons. This sheds light on how cells cooperate in order to fine tune brain organization. It also provides us with a better understanding of distinct neuronal pathologies.

Targeting the Cerebrovascular System: Next-Generation Biomarkers and Treatment for Mild Traumatic Brain Injury

2021 ◽  
pp. 107385842110122
Author(s):  
Tamara L. Baker ◽  
Denes V. Agoston ◽  
Rhys D. Brady ◽  
Brendan Major ◽  
Stuart J. McDonald ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Brain Function ◽  
Brain Injuries ◽  
Neurological Dysfunction ◽  
Clinical Approach ◽  
Cerebral Vasculature ◽  
Review Of The Literature ◽  
Cerebrovascular Injury ◽  
Medical Issues ◽  
And Function ◽  
Cerebrovascular System

The diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of mild traumatic brain injuries (mTBIs), such as concussions, are significant unmet medical issues. The kinetic forces that occur in mTBI adversely affect the cerebral vasculature, making cerebrovascular injury (CVI) a pathophysiological hallmark of mTBI. Given the importance of a healthy cerebrovascular system in overall brain function, CVI is likely to contribute to neurological dysfunction after mTBI. As such, CVI and related pathomechanisms may provide objective biomarkers and therapeutic targets to improve the clinical management and outcomes of mTBI. Despite this potential, until recently, few studies have focused on the cerebral vasculature in this context. This article will begin by providing a brief overview of the cerebrovascular system followed by a review of the literature regarding how mTBI can affect the integrity and function of the cerebrovascular system, and how this may ultimately contribute to neurological dysfunction and neurodegenerative conditions. We then discuss promising avenues of research related to mTBI biomarkers and interventions that target CVI, and conclude that a clinical approach that takes CVI into account could result in substantial improvements in the care and outcomes of patients with mTBI.

scholarly journals Validating Linear Systems Analysis for Laminar fMRI: Temporal Additivity for Stimulus Duration Manipulations

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jelle A. van Dijk ◽  
Alessio Fracasso ◽  
Natalia Petridou ◽  
Serge O. Dumoulin
Keyword(s):  
Systems Theory ◽  
Linear Systems ◽  
Blood Oxygenation ◽  
Ultra High Field ◽  
Feedback Information ◽  
Oxygenation Level ◽  
Early Visual Cortex ◽  
Magnetic Resonance Imaging Mri ◽  
And Function ◽  
The Relationship

AbstractAdvancements in ultra-high field (7 T and higher) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners have made it possible to investigate both the structure and function of the human brain at a sub-millimeter scale. As neuronal feedforward and feedback information arrives in different layers, sub-millimeter functional MRI has the potential to uncover information processing between cortical micro-circuits across cortical depth, i.e. laminar fMRI. For nearly all conventional fMRI analyses, the main assumption is that the relationship between local neuronal activity and the blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) signal adheres to the principles of linear systems theory. For laminar fMRI, however, directional blood pooling across cortical depth stemming from the anatomy of the cortical vasculature, potentially violates these linear system assumptions, thereby complicating analysis and interpretation. Here we assess whether the temporal additivity requirement of linear systems theory holds for laminar fMRI. We measured responses elicited by viewing stimuli presented for different durations and evaluated how well the responses to shorter durations predicted those elicited by longer durations. We find that BOLD response predictions are consistently good predictors for observed responses, across all cortical depths, and in all measured visual field maps (V1, V2, and V3). Our results suggest that the temporal additivity assumption for linear systems theory holds for laminar fMRI. We thus show that the temporal additivity assumption holds across cortical depth for sub-millimeter gradient-echo BOLD fMRI in early visual cortex.

scholarly journals Effect of HAART on Brain Organization and Function in HIV-Negative Subjects

2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 517-521 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew R. Brier ◽  
Qian Wu ◽  
Aaron B. Tanenbaum ◽  
Elizabeth T. Westerhaus ◽  
Evan D. Kharasch ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Brain Organization ◽  
And Function ◽  
Hiv Negative

scholarly journals Flexible annotation atlas of the mouse brain: combining and dividing brain structures of the Allen Brain Atlas while maintaining anatomical hierarchy

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Norio Takata ◽  
Nobuhiko Sato ◽  
Yuji Komaki ◽  
Hideyuki Okano ◽  
Kenji F. Tanaka
Keyword(s):  
Mouse Brain ◽  
Brain Structures ◽  
Brain Atlas ◽  
Resting State Functional Connectivity ◽  
Brain Science ◽  
Step Procedure ◽  
Public Resources ◽  
Large Brain ◽  
Magnetic Resonance Imaging Mri ◽  
And Function

AbstractA brain atlas is necessary for analyzing structure and function in neuroimaging research. Although various annotation volumes (AVs) for the mouse brain have been proposed, it is common in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the mouse brain that regions-of-interest (ROIs) for brain structures (nodes) are created arbitrarily according to each researcher’s necessity, leading to inconsistent ROIs among studies. One reason for such a situation is the fact that earlier AVs were fixed, i.e. combination and division of nodes were not implemented. This report presents a pipeline for constructing a flexible annotation atlas (FAA) of the mouse brain by leveraging public resources of the Allen Institute for Brain Science on brain structure, gene expression, and axonal projection. A mere two-step procedure with user-specified, text-based information and Python codes constructs FAA with nodes which can be combined or divided objectively while maintaining anatomical hierarchy of brain structures. Four FAAs with total node count of 4, 101, 866, and 1381 were demonstrated. Unique characteristics of FAA realized analysis of resting-state functional connectivity (FC) across the anatomical hierarchy and among cortical layers, which were thin but large brain structures. FAA can improve the consistency of whole brain ROI definition among laboratories by fulfilling various requests from researchers with its flexibility and reproducibility.

scholarly journals Irritable bowel syndrome: new insights into symptom mechanisms and advances in treatment

F1000Research ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 780 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robin Spiller
Keyword(s):  
Irritable Bowel Syndrome ◽  
New Agents ◽  
Enteric Nerves ◽  
Inflammatory Bowel ◽  
Magnetic Resonance Imaging Mri ◽  
Irritable Bowel ◽  
Fodmap Diet ◽  
And Function ◽  
The Impact

Despite being one of the most common conditions leading to gastroenterological referral, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is poorly understood. However, recent years have seen major advances. These include new understanding of the role of both inflammation and altered microbiota as well as the impact of dietary intolerances as illuminated by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), which has thrown new light on IBS. This article will review new data on how excessive bile acid secretion mediates diarrhea and evidence from post infectious IBS which has shown how gut inflammation can alter gut microbiota and function. Studies of patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have also shown that even when inflammation is in remission, the altered enteric nerves and abnormal microbiota can generate IBS-like symptoms. The efficacy of the low FODMAP diet as a treatment for bloating, flatulence, and abdominal discomfort has been demonstrated by randomized controlled trials. MRI studies, which can quantify intestinal volumes, have provided new insights into how FODMAPs cause symptoms. This article will focus on these areas together with recent trials of new agents, which this author believes will alter clinical practice within the foreseeable future.

scholarly journals Longitudinal structural and functional brain development in childhood and adolescence

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryn L. Mills ◽  
Christian K. Tamnes
Keyword(s):  
Brain Development ◽  
Animal Studies ◽  
Diffusion Tensor ◽  
Childhood And Adolescence ◽  
Structural Development ◽  
Social Environments ◽  
Brain Structure And Function ◽  
Magnetic Resonance Imaging Mri ◽  
Methodological Considerations ◽  
And Function

The development of the human brain involves a prolonged course of maturation, enabling us to learn to navigate our complex social environments. Here, we give short introductions to post-mortem and animal studies on postnatal brain development and selected methodological considerations for longitudinal developmental neuroimaging. We then describe typical developmental changes in brain structure and function from childhood to adulthood. We focus on measurements derived from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and on longitudinal data. Specifically, we discuss brain structural development based on morphometry and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) studies, and functional development based on resting-state and task-based functional MRI. Finally, we highlight selected current overarching research questions and argue that an important step in answering these questions is to study individual differences in longitudinal brain development.

scholarly journals Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor and Diabetes

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 841 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olga Rozanska ◽  
Aleksandra Uruska ◽  
Dorota Zozulinska-Ziolkiewicz
Keyword(s):  
Neurotrophic Factor ◽  
Brain Function ◽  
Clinical Problem ◽  
Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor ◽  
Chronic Complications ◽  
Neuronal Tissue ◽  
Beneficial Impact ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
And Function ◽  
Made In

Diabetes and its chronic complications still represent a great clinical problem, despite improvements made in the diagnosis and treatment of the disease. People with diabetes have a much higher risk of impaired brain function and psychiatric disorders. Neurotrophins are factors that protect neuronal tissue and improve the function of the central nervous system, and among them is brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). The level and function of BDNF in diabetes seems to be disturbed by and connected with the presence of insulin resistance. On the other hand, there is evidence for the highly beneficial impact of physical activity on brain function and BDNF level. However, it is not clear if this protective phenomenon works in the presence of diabetes. In this review, we summarize the current available research on this topic and find that the results of published studies are ambiguous.

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