A Probabilistic Map of Human Visual Cortical Areas from Quantitative Microscopy

描述(由申请人提供)：我们关于人类视觉皮质组织的大部分知识来自神经成像研究，这些研究根据皮质的功能特征定位了一些皮质区域。这些功能图没有固定在精确的解剖地标上，也没有真正努力将功能边界的地形与皮质结构的局部差异联系起来。这是因为很难系统地比较功能图像和组织图像。这项工作的总体目标是将功能磁共振成像(FMRI)获得的详细视网膜定位图与通过量化皮质内髓鞘组织学产生的解剖图相关联。我们建议通过使用高分辨率、基于非线性表面的方法来明确这种比较，以最大限度地减少受试者和异地大脑之间的差异。皮质几何形状将根据表面自动识别的可靠的脑沟地标进行翘曲。为了使组织学数据服从3-D空间变换，我们将使用经过测试的比对和重建算法来产生其表面包含建筑信息的标本的数字3-D模型。此外，通过使用专业的受试者团队进行重复扫描和改进的视网膜刺激被证明可以从更高级别的视觉区域引发更强的反应，视网膜定位图的准确性和分辨率将得到提高。这项建议利用了三个实验室在神经解剖技术、神经成像和计算方法方面的综合专业知识，用于形态测量分析和转换。这是第一次将这些专家方法结合起来创建人类视觉皮质的全面地图。拟议项目的结果是与宏观表面(沟)地标相关的更高视觉区域的多模式本地化。该项目产生的地图和定义将构成进一步的功能和解剖学研究以及高分辨率MRI、fMRI和MR-DTI提供的新的连接性研究的必要框架。 与公共健康相关：将使用计算机辅助显微解剖测绘方法对人脑中的视觉皮质进行地形测量。标本将根据多种组织学方案进行处理，以揭示互补的建筑特征。髓鞘形成和神经元密度的量化将是统计描述结构边界的基础，这将导致皮质视觉区域的数字、基于表面的和概率的地图。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Most of our knowledge on the organization of the human visual cortex derives from neuroimaging studies that have localized a number of cortical areas based on their functional characteristics. These functional maps are not anchored to precise anatomical landmarks, and no real effort has been made to correlate the topography of the functional borders with local differences in cortical architecture. This is due to the difficulty of systematically comparing functional and histological images. The overall goal of the work is to correlate detailed retinotopic maps acquired by functional MRI (fMRI) with anatomical maps produced by quantifying intracortical myelination histologically. We propose to make this comparison explicit by using high resolution, non-linear surface-based methods to minimize the variability between subjects and brains ex-situ. Cortical geometry will be warped based on reliable sulcal landmarks that are identified automatically on the surface. In order to make histological data amenable to 3-D spatial transformations, we will use tested algorithms for alignment, and reconstruction to produce digital 3-D models of specimens whose surfaces contain architectonic information. In addition, the accuracy and resolution of retinotopic maps will be enhanced by employing a professional team of subjects for repeated scans and improved retinotopic stimulation proven to set off stronger responses from higher order visual areas. This proposal utilizes the combined expertise of three laboratories in neuroanatomical techniques, neuroimaging and computational methods for morphometric analysis and transformation. It is the first time that these expert methodologies are combined to create comprehensive maps of the human visual cortex. The result of the proposed project is the multimodal localization of higher visual areas in relation to macroscopic surface (sulcal) landmarks. The maps and definitions produced by this project will constitute a necessary framework for further functional and anatomical studies, as well as new studies of connectivity afforded by high resolution MRI, fMRI, and MR-DTI. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Computer-aided microanatomical mapping methods will be used to conduct a topographic survey of the visual cortex in the human brain. Specimens will be processed according to multiple histological protocols to reveal complementary architectonic features. Quantification of myelination and neuronal density will be the basis for the statistical delineation of structural borders which will result in a digital, surface-based and probabilistic map of cortical visual areas.