{
  "id": 9009925,
  "title": "Diffusion MRI Tractography Predicts Electrophysiological Connectivity and Explains Spectral Signatures of Evoked Potentials in the Human Brain",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/21/diffusion-mri-tractography-predicts-electrophysiological-connectivity",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-09-21T00:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "bioRxiv",
    "slug": "biorxiv",
    "url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.15.751678v1?rss=1"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) and stereoelectroencephalography (SEEG) recordings in neurosurgical patients have been combined to create a framework that predicts and interprets causal electrophysiological connectivity patterns between brain regions. This framework was applied to 40 participants with 5794 intracranial electrodes implanted throughout the brain, including cortical areas and multiple thalamic nuclei. Nonlinear, time-frequency manifold learning was used to define electrophysiological connectivity, which was then compared to both subject-specific and atlas-based structural connectivity.\n\nThe study found that the presence of a structural connection between brain regions predicted causal electrophysiological connectivity with a probability of approximately 95%. Conversely, the absence of a structural connection predicted the lack of direct electrophysiological connectivity with a probability of around 80%. Indirect or polysynaptic pathways were also observed, supported by both modalities. Neural features from time-frequency decomposition were able to distinguish between direct and indirect signaling.\n\nThe researchers identified an early phase-locked broadband component between 10-70 milliseconds that was associated with direct structural pathways. In contrast, delayed and slower components indicated indirect propagation. Interestingly, the involvement of thalamic regions within an indirect pathway led to increased latency (200 milliseconds or more) and enhanced late oscillatory behavior. This increase in latency and behavior persisted despite higher conduction velocity measures along thalamo-cortical pathways. Ultimately, the multimodal framework successfully maps human brain connectivity, linking structural architecture, causal electrophysiological dynamics, and network-level communication.",
  "summary": "White matter fiber bundles are the structural conduits of information flow in the human brain and thereby mediate the spatial trajectories and timings of the electrophysiological signaling. Here, we combined diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) and stereoelectroencephalography (SEEG) recordings in neurosurgical patients to develop an integrated framework for predicting and interpreting…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}