An Integrated Structural and Functional Connectivity Atlas for Neurosurgical Targeting

This project aims to understand the relationship between the structural wiring of the brain and its functional activity. Electricity is the fundamental "language" of the brain for neural communication, function, and cognition. Connecting electrical function to brain’s structure is one of the most fundamental problems in neuroscience. Solving this problem will help us decode brain organization and devise intelligent, minimally invasive neurosurgical approaches. Existing studies rely on indirect neural measures and suffer from limited spatial resolution, preventing both clinical translation and whole-brain investigations. To overcome these challenges, the project will develop an interdisciplinary approach that integrates diffusion MRI tractography with stereo-electroencephalography (stereo-EEG) using signal processing and computational modeling algorithms. The project will leverage groundbreaking advancements at Stanford in neuroimaging, robotic surgeries, and AI-driven computational modeling. Ultimately, this project will (1) deliver a non-invasive, whole-brain tool to predict electrical signaling in the brain, and (2) will produce a novel atlas that maps how signals propagate across the entire brain. These findings will have a broad scientific and clinical impact in functional neurosurgery and in our understanding of the human brain.

To achieve these aims, epilepsy will act as a model system where stereo EEG is used to implant over 150 electrodes deep in the brain to identify the location of seizure onsets. The key idea in this project is that SEEG provides a true “stereo” view of electrical activity across the whole brain. By linking these functional recordings to the structural wiring of the brain revealed by diffusion MRI tractography, the investigators will test whether structural connectivity can reliably predict electrophysiological networks. This integrated atlas will chart signal propagation pathways underlying brain regions that electrically communicate and guide precise electrode placement in neurosurgeries. Therefore, this project represents an unprecedented step forward in mapping brain structure-function relationships.