Science and news
Funsy science and news
What if all these different oscillations where entangled in a network of interdependence?
Linking neural activity to sensory, motor or cognitive processes is an ongoing goal in Neuroscience and articular attention has been devoted to the role of brain oscillations, analyzed by averaging over many trials in suitably designed tasks. Previous findings offer a glimpse of the complexity of the overall picture, but have also limitations. First, searching…
Cortical cross-frequency coupling alterations as a novel biomarker of ALS?
We have published a new article in collaboration avec Véronique Marchand-Pauvert (Paris), Sabine Liebscher (Munich/Cologne) and Caroline Rouaux (Strasbourg). In this Science Translational Medicine paper we show that the cross-frequency coupling analyses we have used in previous papers can serve as a promising biomarker for Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). ALS is a devastating neurodegenerative disease,…
Hippocampal gamma oscillatory complexity is not noise but reflects behavior and learning
Our FunSy paper on gamma oscillatory complexity in hippocampus is out in Nature Comms! The hippocampus and entorhinal cortex exhibit rich oscillatory patterns critical for cognitive functions. In the hippocampal region CA1, specific gamma-frequency oscillations, timed at different phases of the ongoing theta rhythm, are hypothesized to facilitate the integration of information from varied sources and…
Subject-specific maximum entropy model of resting state fMRI shows diagnostically distinct patterns of energy state distributions
Existing neuroimaging studies of psychotic and mood disorders have reported regional brain activation differences (first-order properties) and alterations in functional connectivity based on pairwise correlations in activation (second-order properties). In this preprint, in collaboration with Jonathan Rubin, Konasal Prasad et al. (Pittsburgh, PA), we use a generalized Ising model, also called a pairwise maximum entropy…
Brain-state-dependent constraints on claustrocortical communication and function
Our new paper in collaboration with Jesse Jackson (Edmonton) is out ! Neural activity in the claustrum has been associated with a range of vigilance states, yet the activity patterns and efficacy of synaptic communication of identified claustrum neurons have not been thoroughly determined. Here, we show that claustrum neurons projecting to the retrosplenial cortex are most active during synchronized cortical states…
Different Faces of Medial Beta-Band Activity Reflect Distinct Visuomotor Feedback Signals
Beta-band activity reflects neural processes well beyond sensorimotor functions, including cognition and motivation. In this Journal of Neuroscience article in collaboration with Nicola Malfait (Marseille), by disentangling alternative spatio-temporal-spectral patterns of possible beta-oscillatory activity, we reconcile a seemingly discrepant literature. First, high-beta power in the medial frontal cortex showed opposite modulations separated in time in…
Competing neural representations of choice shape evidence accumulation in humans
Making adaptive choices in dynamic environments requires flexible decision policies. Previously, we showed how shifts in outcome contingency change the evidence accumulation process that determines decision policies. In this eLife article we published in collaboration with Jonathan Rubin, Timothy Verstynen (Pittsburgh, PA) et al, we used in silico experiments to generate predictions and show how…
Perturbed Information Processing Complexity in Experimental Epilepsy
Usually we think that pathologies, as epilepsy, are associated to disruptions of the neural circuit mediating function. These disruptions certainly exist and are related e.g. to seizure events, which are rare and transient events. On the contrary, comorbidities, such as cognitive deficits, which often accompany epilepsies, constitute a basal state. This suggests that neural dynamics,…
Decomposing neural functions into information processing primitives?
We can easily name brain functions, and we are well informed about brain structure. However, it is not easy to bridge the gap between the two. Part of the problem is that simple circuit mechanisms do not directly give rise to high-level functions. Yet, they already implement simpler forms of information processing, a sort of…
CBGTPy: An extensible cortico-basal ganglia-thalamic framework for modeling biological decision making
In this preprint, in collaboration with Jonathan Rubin, Timothy Verstynen (Pittsburgh, PA) and Catalina Vich (Palma, Spain) we introduce CBGTPy, a virtual environment for designing and testing goal-directed agents with internal dynamics that are modeled on the cortico-basal-ganglia-thalamic (CBGT) pathways in the mammalian brain. CBGTPy enables researchers to investigate the internal dynamics of the CBGT…
Dynamic before time-averaged Functional Connectivity is destructured in Alzheimer’s Disease
Brain functions emerge from the coordinated dynamics of many brain regions. Dynamic functional connectivity (dFC) analyses are a key tool to describe such dynamic complexity and have been shown to be good predictors of cognitive performance. This is particularly true in the case of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) in which an impoverished dFC could indicate compromised…
From Event Related Potentials to Event Related Variability
In carefully designed experimental paradigms, cognitive scientists interpret the mean event-related potentials (ERP) in terms of cognitive operations. However, the huge signal variability from one trial to the next, questions the representability of such mean events. In our NeuroImage paper in collaboration with Ghislaine Dehaene (Neurospin, Paris-Saclay), we explored whether this variability is an unwanted…
When neural manifolds are useful to repair signal artifacts
Electrophysiology recordings are frequently affected by artifacts (e.g., subject motion or eye movements), which reduces the number of available trials and affects the statistical power. When artifacts are unavoidable and data are scarce, signal reconstruction algorithms that allow for the retention of sufficient trials become crucial. In our paper published on Sensors, in collaboration with…
Densely tied in space… but also for a sufficient time!
Functional interactions between brain regions or neurons have been described using features defined in network theory. For instance, the rich club phenomenon correspond to having high-degree nodes connected between them above chance-level. In our new Nature Physics paper we generalize this notion to dynamic networks. Indeed, in order for a certain spatial pattern in network…
Graph-based features to capture the embodiment of adaptive behavior
The cerebellar cortex encodes sensorimotor adaptation during skilled locomotor behaviors, however the precise relationship between synaptic connectivity and behavior is unclear. In our recent Nature Communications paper (in collaboration with Philippe Isope’s group at INCI, Strasbourg), we studied synaptic connectivity between granule cells (GCs) and Purkinje cells (PCs) in murine acute cerebellar slices using photostimulation…
Toward virtual connectomes for data augmentation
Personalized information on anatomic connectivity (structural connectivity; SC) or coordinated resting state activation patterns (functional connectivity; FC) is a source of powerful neuromarkers to detect and track the development of neurodegenerative diseases. However, there are often “gaps” in the available information, with only SC (or FC) being known but not FC (or SC). In our…
Effects of localized brain stimulation depend on dynamical state
Stimulation can be used to alter brain activity and is a therapeutic option for certain neu- rological conditions. However, predicting the distributed effects of local perturbations is difficult. Previous studies show that responses to stimulation depend on anatomical (or structural) coupling. In addition to structure, in our PLoS Computational Biology paper (in collaboration with Danielle…
The speed and geometry of resting state dynamic Functional Connectivity
We are happy announcing that a diptych of publications on resting dynamic Functional Connectivity is finally out on NeuroImage! Functional Connectivity (FC) measured on resting state fMRI is dynamic and continually reconfiguring. However these variations are not necessarily very large and discrete state transitions are difficult (or questionable) to identify. Here we introduce a new…
Is human cortical connectome optimized for ignition?
The activity of the cortex in mammals constantly fluctuates in relation to cognitive tasks, but also during rest. The ability of brain regions to display ignition, a fast transition from low to high activity is central for the emergence of conscious perception and decision making. In our recently published paper in PLoS Computational Biology (in…
Uncoupling the roles of firing rate and spike bursts in shaping the gpe-stn beta band oscillations.
The excess of 15-30 Hz (β-band) oscillations in the basal ganglia is one of the key signatures of Parkinson’s disease (PD). The STN-GPe network is integral to generation and modulation of β band oscillations in basal ganglia. However, the role of changes in the firing rates and spike bursting of STN and GPe neurons in shaping these…
Un problème est survenu. Veuillez actualiser la page et/ou essayer à nouveau.
About us
The Functional System’s Dynamics team is an emergent team of the Laboratory for Cognitive and Adaptive Neuroscience (CNRS UMR 7364), within the Interdisciplinary Thematic Institute “NeuroStra” at University of Strasbourg, member of the trinational Neuroscience Upper Rhine network (NEUREX). The team was kickstarted thanks to the support of the University of Strasbourg Institute of Advanced Studies (USIAS).
How to find us
We are located within the building of the Faculty of Psychology, at the ground floor (LNCA wing, to the right, end of the corridor, entering from Rue Goethe side).
LNCA – 12 rue Goethe, F-67000 STRASBOURG
Tramway lines C/E/F – stop « Université » – Bus line 2 (~15 min from central station) – Strasbourg Entzheim airport at ~40 min, high speed train to Paris CDG and Frankfurt / Main international hubs.