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Bibliography on: Brain-Computer Interface

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Robert J. Robbins is a biologist, an educator, a science administrator, a publisher, an information technologist, and an IT leader and manager who specializes in advancing biomedical knowledge and supporting education through the application of information technology. More About:  RJR | OUR TEAM | OUR SERVICES | THIS WEBSITE

RJR: Recommended Bibliography 25 Jan 2025 at 01:38 Created: 

Brain-Computer Interface

Wikipedia: A brain–computer interface (BCI), sometimes called a neural control interface (NCI), mind–machine interface (MMI), direct neural interface (DNI), or brain–machine interface (BMI), is a direct communication pathway between an enhanced or wired brain and an external device. BCIs are often directed at researching, mapping, assisting, augmenting, or repairing human cognitive or sensory-motor functions. Research on BCIs began in the 1970s at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) under a grant from the National Science Foundation, followed by a contract from DARPA. The papers published after this research also mark the first appearance of the expression brain–computer interface in scientific literature. BCI-effected sensory input: Due to the cortical plasticity of the brain, signals from implanted prostheses can, after adaptation, be handled by the brain like natural sensor or effector channels. Following years of animal experimentation, the first neuroprosthetic devices implanted in humans appeared in the mid-1990s. BCI-effected motor output: When artificial intelligence is used to decode neural activity, then send that decoded information to some kind of effector device, BCIs have the potential to restore communication to people who have lost the ability to move or speak. To date, the focus has largely been on motor skills such as reaching or grasping. However, in May of 2021 a study showed that an AI/BCI system could be use to translate thoughts about handwriting into the output of legible characters at a usable rate (90 characters per minute with 94% accuracy).

Created with PubMed® Query: (bci OR (brain-computer OR brain-machine OR mind-machine OR neural-control interface) NOT 26799652[PMID] ) NOT pmcbook NOT ispreviousversion

Citations The Papers (from PubMed®)

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RevDate: 2025-01-24

Yu W, C Wu (2024)

Development and Validation of the Interpreting Learning Engagement Scale (ILES).

Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland), 15(1): pii:bs15010016.

This study developed and validated the Interpreting Learning Engagement Scale (ILES), which was designed to measure the engagement of students in the interpreting learning context. Recognizing the crucial role of learning engagement in academic success and the acquisition of interpreting skills, which demands considerable cognitive effort and active involvement, this research addresses the gap in empirical studies on engagement within the field of interpreting. The ILES, comprising 18 items across four dimensions (behavioral, emotional, cognitive, and agentic engagement), was validated with data collected from a cohort of 306 students from five universities in China. The study employed exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses to establish the scale's theoretical underpinnings and provided further reliability and validity evidence, demonstrating its adequate psychometric properties. Additionally, the scale's scores showed a significant correlation with grit, securing the external validity of the ILES. This study not only contributes a validated instrument for assessing student engagement in interpreting learning but also provides implications for promoting engagement through potential interventions, with the ultimate aim of achieving high levels of interpreting competence.

RevDate: 2025-01-24

Ding X, Zhang Z, Wang K, et al (2024)

A Lightweight Network with Domain Adaptation for Motor Imagery Recognition.

Entropy (Basel, Switzerland), 27(1): pii:e27010014.

Brain-computer interfaces (BCI) are an effective tool for recognizing motor imagery and have been widely applied in the motor control and assistive operation domains. However, traditional intention-recognition methods face several challenges, such as prolonged training times and limited cross-subject adaptability, which restrict their practical application. This paper proposes an innovative method that combines a lightweight convolutional neural network (CNN) with domain adaptation. A lightweight feature extraction module is designed to extract key features from both the source and target domains, effectively reducing the model's parameters and improving the real-time performance and computational efficiency. To address differences in sample distributions, a domain adaptation strategy is introduced to optimize the feature alignment. Furthermore, domain adversarial training is employed to promote the learning of domain-invariant features, significantly enhancing the model's cross-subject generalization ability. The proposed method was evaluated on an fNIRS motor imagery dataset, achieving an average accuracy of 87.76% in a three-class classification task. Additionally, lightweight experiments were conducted from two perspectives: model structure optimization and data feature selection. The results demonstrated the potential advantages of this method for practical applications in motor imagery recognition systems.

RevDate: 2025-01-24

Zhu X, Meng M, Yan Z, et al (2025)

Motor Imagery EEG Classification Based on Multi-Domain Feature Rotation and Stacking Ensemble.

Brain sciences, 15(1): pii:brainsci15010050.

BACKGROUND: Decoding motor intentions from electroencephalogram (EEG) signals is a critical component of motor imagery-based brain-computer interface (MI-BCIs). In traditional EEG signal classification, effectively utilizing the valuable information contained within the electroencephalogram is crucial.

OBJECTIVES: To further optimize the use of information from various domains, we propose a novel framework based on multi-domain feature rotation transformation and stacking ensemble for classifying MI tasks.

METHODS: Initially, we extract the features of Time Domain, Frequency domain, Time-Frequency domain, and Spatial Domain from the EEG signals, and perform feature selection for each domain to identify significant features that possess strong discriminative capacity. Subsequently, local rotation transformations are applied to the significant feature set to generate a rotated feature set, enhancing the representational capacity of the features. Next, the rotated features were fused with the original significant features from each domain to obtain composite features for each domain. Finally, we employ a stacking ensemble approach, where the prediction results of base classifiers corresponding to different domain features and the set of significant features undergo linear discriminant analysis for dimensionality reduction, yielding discriminative feature integration as input for the meta-classifier for classification.

RESULTS: The proposed method achieves average classification accuracies of 92.92%, 89.13%, and 86.26% on the BCI Competition III Dataset IVa, BCI Competition IV Dataset I, and BCI Competition IV Dataset 2a, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS: Experimental results show that the method proposed in this paper outperforms several existing MI classification methods, such as the Common Time-Frequency-Spatial Patterns and the Selective Extract of the Multi-View Time-Frequency Decomposed Spatial, in terms of classification accuracy and robustness.

RevDate: 2025-01-24

Suresh RE, Zobaer MS, Triano MJ, et al (2024)

Exploring Machine Learning Classification of Movement Phases in Hemiparetic Stroke Patients: A Controlled EEG-tDCS Study.

Brain sciences, 15(1): pii:brainsci15010028.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Noninvasive brain stimulation (NIBS) can boost motor recovery after a stroke. Certain movement phases are more responsive to NIBS, so a system that auto-detects these phases would optimize stimulation timing. This study assessed the effectiveness of various machine learning models in identifying movement phases in hemiparetic individuals undergoing simultaneous NIBS and EEG recordings. We hypothesized that transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), a form of NIBS, would enhance EEG signals related to movement phases and improve classification accuracy compared to sham stimulation.

METHODS: EEG data from 10 chronic stroke patients and 11 healthy controls were recorded before, during, and after tDCS. Eight machine learning algorithms and five ensemble methods were used to classify two movement phases (hold posture and reaching) during each of these periods. Data preprocessing included z-score normalization and frequency band power binning.

RESULTS: In chronic stroke participants who received active tDCS, the classification accuracy for hold vs. reach phases increased from pre-stimulation to the late intra-stimulation period (72.2% to 75.2%, p < 0.0001). Late active tDCS surpassed late sham tDCS classification (75.2% vs. 71.5%, p < 0.0001). Linear discriminant analysis was the most accurate (74.6%) algorithm with the shortest training time (0.9 s). Among ensemble methods, low gamma frequency (30-50 Hz) achieved the highest accuracy (74.5%), although this result did not achieve statistical significance for actively stimulated chronic stroke participants.

CONCLUSIONS: Machine learning algorithms showed enhanced movement phase classification during active tDCS in chronic stroke participants. These results suggest their feasibility for real-time movement detection in neurorehabilitation, including brain-computer interfaces for stroke recovery.

RevDate: 2025-01-24

Pan S, Shen T, Lian Y, et al (2024)

A Task-Related EEG Microstate Clustering Algorithm Based on Spatial Patterns, Riemannian Distance, and a Deep Autoencoder.

Brain sciences, 15(1): pii:brainsci15010027.

BACKGROUND: The segmentation of electroencephalography (EEG) signals into a limited number of microstates is of significant importance in the field of cognitive neuroscience. Currently, the microstate analysis algorithm based on global field power has demonstrated its efficacy in clustering resting-state EEG. The task-related EEG was extensively analyzed in the field of brain-computer interfaces (BCIs); however, its primary objective is classification rather than segmentation.

METHODS: We propose an innovative algorithm for analyzing task-related EEG microstates based on spatial patterns, Riemannian distance, and a modified deep autoencoder. The objective of this algorithm is to achieve unsupervised segmentation and clustering of task-related EEG signals.

RESULTS: The proposed algorithm was validated through experiments conducted on simulated EEG data and two publicly available cognitive task datasets. The evaluation results and statistical tests demonstrate its robustness and efficiency in clustering task-related EEG microstates.

CONCLUSIONS: The proposed unsupervised algorithm can autonomously discretize EEG signals into a finite number of microstates, thereby facilitating investigations into the temporal structures underlying cognitive processes.

RevDate: 2025-01-24

Mahheidari N, Alizadeh M, Kamalabadi Farahani M, et al (2025)

Regeneration of the skin wound by two different crosslinkers: In vitro and in vivo studies.

Iranian journal of basic medical sciences, 28(2):194-208.

OBJECTIVES: For designing a suitable hydrogel, two crosslinked Alginate/ Carboxymethyl cellulose (Alg/CMC) hydrogel, using calcium chloride (Ca[2+]) and glutaraldehyde (GA) as crosslinking agents were synthesized and compared.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: All samples were characterized by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Blood compatibility (BC), Blood clotting index (BCI), weight loss (WL), water absorption (WA), pH, and Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS). Cell viability and cell migration were investigated using the MTT assay and the wound scratch test, respectively. Besides, the wound healing potential of prepared hydrogels was evaluated on the rat models with full-thickness skin excision. To further investigation, TGF β1, IGF-I, COL1, ACT-A (alfa-SMA), and GAPDH expression levels were also reported by RT-PCR.

RESULTS: Water absorption and weight loss properties were compared between different crosslinker agents, and the most nontoxic crosslinker concentration was determined. We have shown that GA (20 µl/ml) and Ca[2+] (50 or 75 mM) enhanced the physical stability of Alg-CMC hydrogel, and they are nontoxic and suitable crosslinkers for wound dressing applications. Although in vivo assessments indicated that the GA (20 µl/ml) had a cytotoxic effect on tissue repair, Ca[2+] (75 mM) boosted the wound healing process. Further, RT-PCR results revealed that TGF β1, IGF-I, COL1, ACT-A (alfa-SMA), and GAPDH expression levels were increased in GA (20 µl/ml). Moreover, this trend is the opposite in the Ca[2+] (75 mM) treatment groups.

CONCLUSION: This research shows that Ca[2+] (75 mM) boosts tissue regeneration and wound healing process.

RevDate: 2025-01-24

He J, Huang Z, Li Y, et al (2024)

Single-channel attention classification algorithm based on robust Kalman filtering and norm-constrained ELM.

Frontiers in human neuroscience, 18:1481493.

INTRODUCTION: Attention classification based on EEG signals is crucial for brain-computer interface (BCI) applications. However, noise interference and real-time signal fluctuations hinder accuracy, especially in portable single-channel devices. This study proposes a robust Kalman filtering method combined with a norm-constrained extreme learning machine (ELM) to address these challenges.

METHODS: The proposed method integrates Discrete Wavelet Transformation (DWT) and Independent Component Analysis (ICA) for noise removal, followed by a robust Kalman filter enhanced with convex optimization to preserve critical EEG components. The norm-constrained ELM employs L1/L2 regularization to improve generalization and classification performance. Experimental data were collected using a Schulte Grid paradigm and TGAM sensors, along with publicly available datasets for validation.

RESULTS: The robust Kalman filter demonstrated superior denoising performance, achieving an average AUC of 0.8167 and a maximum AUC of 0.8678 on self-collected datasets, and an average AUC of 0.8344 with a maximum of 0.8950 on public datasets. The method outperformed traditional Kalman filtering, LMS adaptive filtering, and TGAM's eSense algorithm in both noise reduction and attention classification accuracy.

DISCUSSION: The study highlights the effectiveness of combining advanced signal processing and machine learning techniques to improve the robustness and generalization of EEG-based attention classification. Limitations include the small sample size and limited demographic diversity, suggesting future research should expand participant groups and explore broader applications, such as mental health monitoring and neurofeedback.

RevDate: 2025-01-23

Pantaleo A, Curatoli L, Cavallaro G, et al (2025)

Unilateral Versus Bilateral Cochlear Implants in Adults: A Cross-Sectional Questionnaire Study Across Multiple Hearing Domains.

Audiology research, 15(1): pii:audiolres15010006.

AIM: The aim of this study was to assess the subjective experiences of adults with different cochlear implant (CI) configurations-unilateral cochlear implant (UCI), bilateral cochlear implant (BCI), and bimodal stimulation (BM)-focusing on their perception of speech in quiet and noisy environments, music, environmental sounds, people's voices and tinnitus.

METHODS: A cross-sectional survey of 130 adults who had undergone UCI, BCI, or BM was conducted. Participants completed a six-item online questionnaire, assessing difficulty levels and psychological impact across auditory domains, with responses measured on a 10-point scale. Statistical analyses were performed to compare the subjective experiences of the three groups.

RESULTS: Patients reported that understanding speech in noise and tinnitus perception were their main concerns. BCI users experienced fewer difficulties with understanding speech in both quiet (p < 0.001) and noisy (p = 0.008) environments and with perceiving non-vocal sounds (p = 0.038) compared to UCI and BM users; no significant differences were found for music perception (p = 0.099), tinnitus perception (p = 0.397), or voice naturalness (p = 0.157). BCI users also reported less annoyance in quiet (p = 0.004) and noisy (p = 0.047) environments, and in the perception of voices (p = 0.009) and non-vocal sounds (p = 0.019). Tinnitus-related psychological impact showed no significant differences between groups (p = 0.090).

CONCLUSIONS: Although speech perception in noise and tinnitus remain major problems for CI users, the results of our study suggest that bilateral cochlear implantation offers significant subjective advantages over unilateral implantation and bimodal stimulation in adults, particularly in difficult listening environments.

RevDate: 2025-01-23

Guo M, Han X, Liu H, et al (2025)

MI-Mamba: A hybrid motor imagery electroencephalograph classification model with Mamba's global scanning.

Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences [Epub ahead of print].

Deep learning has revolutionized electroencephalograph (EEG) decoding, with convolutional neural networks (CNNs) being a predominant tool. However, CNNs struggle with long-term dependencies in sequential EEG data. Models like long short-term memory and transformers improve performance but still face challenges of computational efficiency and long sequences. Mamba, a state space model-based method, excels in modeling long sequences. To overcome the limitations of existing EEG decoding models and exploit Mamba's potential in EEG analysis, we propose MI-Mamba, a model integrating CNN with Mamba for motor imagery (MI) data decoding. MI-Mamba processes multi-channel EEG signals through a single convolutional layer to capture spatial features in the local temporal domain, followed by a Mamba module that processes global temporal features. A fully connected, layer-based classifier is used to derive classification results. Evaluated on two public MI datasets, MI-Mamba achieves 80.59% accuracy in the four-class MI task of the BCI Competition IV 2a dataset and 84.42% in the two-class task of the BCI Competition IV 2b dataset, while reducing parameter count by nearly six times compared to the most advanced previous models. These results highlight MI-Mamba's effectiveness in MI decoding and its potential as a new backbone for general EEG decoding.

RevDate: 2025-01-22

O'Connell KS, Koromina M, van der Veen T, et al (2025)

Genomics yields biological and phenotypic insights into bipolar disorder.

Nature [Epub ahead of print].

Bipolar disorder is a leading contributor to the global burden of disease[1]. Despite high heritability (60-80%), the majority of the underlying genetic determinants remain unknown[2]. We analysed data from participants of European, East Asian, African American and Latino ancestries (n = 158,036 cases with bipolar disorder, 2.8 million controls), combining clinical, community and self-reported samples. We identified 298 genome-wide significant loci in the multi-ancestry meta-analysis, a fourfold increase over previous findings[3], and identified an ancestry-specific association in the East Asian cohort. Integrating results from fine-mapping and other variant-to-gene mapping approaches identified 36 credible genes in the aetiology of bipolar disorder. Genes prioritized through fine-mapping were enriched for ultra-rare damaging missense and protein-truncating variations in cases with bipolar disorder[4], highlighting convergence of common and rare variant signals. We report differences in the genetic architecture of bipolar disorder depending on the source of patient ascertainment and on bipolar disorder subtype (type I or type II). Several analyses implicate specific cell types in the pathophysiology of bipolar disorder, including GABAergic interneurons and medium spiny neurons. Together, these analyses provide additional insights into the genetic architecture and biological underpinnings of bipolar disorder.

RevDate: 2025-01-22

Xu X, Gong Q, XD Wang (2025)

MK-801 attenuates one-trial tolerance in the elevated plus maze via the thalamic nucleus reuniens.

Neuropharmacology pii:S0028-3908(25)00024-3 [Epub ahead of print].

Anxiety, a future-oriented negative emotional state, is characterized by heightened arousal and vigilance. The elevated plus maze (EPM) test is a widely used assay of anxiety-related behaviors in rodents and shows a phenomenon where animals with prior test experience tend to avoid open arms in retest sessions. While this one-trial tolerance (OTT) phenomenon limits the reuse of the EPM test, the potential mechanisms remain unsolved. Here, we found that neither anxiogenic factors like acute restraint stress nor anxiolytic factors like diazepam (2 mg/kg) influenced the emergence of the OTT phenomenon in mice in the EPM test. In contrast, OTT was markedly attenuated by MK-801 (0.1 mg/kg), a non-competitive N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor antagonist. Through the use of c-fos mapping, MK-801 was found to increase neuronal activation in the thalamic nucleus reuniens (Re). Moreover, chemogenetic inactivation of Re neurons could prevent the effects of MK-801. Our findings suggest the Re as a crucial brain region in emotional adaptation in the EPM and shed light on the experimental design optimization and mechanistic investigation of anxiety-related behaviors.

RevDate: 2025-01-23

Tan J, Joe N, Kong V, et al (2023)

Contemporary management of blunt colonic injuries - Experience from a level one trauma centre in New Zealand.

Surgery in practice and science, 13:100179.

INTRODUCTION: Blunt colonic injury (BCI) is relatively rare, and literature on the topic is sparse. This study reviews our contemporary experience in its management at a level-one trauma centre in New Zealand.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a retrospective study (January 2012 to December 2020) that included all patients who sustained a BCI managed at Waikato Hospital, New Zealand.

RESULTS: Of the total of 1181 patients with blunt abdominal trauma, 69 (6%) of them sustained a BCI (49% male, mean age: 36 years). 78 separate colonic injuries were identified in the 69 cases. The most commonly injured segment was the ascending colon 49% (38/78). Eighty percent (55/69) underwent a CT scan, with only 16 showing definite evidence of a colonic injury. AAST Grade 1 was the most common (81%). Fifteen patients underwent damage control surgery. All 11 grade 1 injuries were repaired primarily, whilst the other four grade 4 and 5 colonic injuries were resected, with 3 having a subsequent stoma formation and one delayed anastomosis. There were four mortalities. Patients who had negative or equivocal admission CT findings for colonic injury had delays to the operating theatre and had poorer outcomes.

CONCLUSION: BCI is rare but is associated with a prolonged hospital stay. The treatment of BCI is similar to that of penetrating colonic injury. CT appeared inaccurate in many cases.

RevDate: 2025-01-22
CmpDate: 2025-01-22

Zhang J, Yang X, Liang Z, et al (2025)

A brain-computer interface system for lower-limb exoskeletons based on motor imagery and stacked ensemble approach.

The Review of scientific instruments, 96(1):.

Existing lower limb exoskeletons (LLEs) have demonstrated a lack of sufficient patient involvement during rehabilitation training. To address this issue and better incorporate the patient's motion intentions, this paper proposes an online brain-computer interface (BCI) system for LLE based motor imagery and stacked ensemble. The establishment of this online BCI system enables a comprehensive closed-loop control process, which includes the collection and decoding of brain signals, robotic control, and real-time feedback mechanisms. Additionally, an online experimental protocol that integrates visual and proprioceptive feedback is developed. To enhance decoding precision, we proposed a novel classification algorithm based on the stacking technique, termed weighted random forests-support vector machines (WRF-SVM). In this algorithm, WRFs function as the base learning models, while SVMs act as the meta-learning layer. To assess the efficacy of the BCI system and the classification algorithm, eight subjects were recruited for testing. The outcomes of both online and offline experiments exhibit high classification accuracy, confirming the viability and utility of the BCI system. We are confident that our approach holds significant promise for practical applications in the field of LLE technology.

RevDate: 2025-01-22

Yang XY, Huang S, Fu QJ, et al (2024)

Preliminary evaluation of the FastCAP for users of the Nurotron cochlear implant.

Frontiers in neuroscience, 18:1523212.

BACKGROUND: Electrically evoked compound action potential (ECAP) can be used to measure the auditory nerve's response to electrical stimulation in cochlear implant (CI) users. In the Nurotron CI system, extracting the ECAP waveform from the stimulus artifact is time-consuming.

METHOD: We developed a new paradigm ("FastCAP") for use with Nurotron CI devices. In electrically evoked compound action potential in fast mode (FastCAP), N recordings are averaged directly on the CI hardware before data transmission, significantly reducing data transmission time. FastCAPs and ECAPs were measured across five electrodes and four stimulation levels per electrode. The FastCAP stimulation rate (33.3 Hz) is also faster than the ECAP rate (2.5 Hz).

RESULTS: Results showed strong correlations between ECAPs and FastCAPs for N1 latency (r = 0.84, p < 0.001) and N1 amplitude (r = 0.97, p < 0.001). Test-retest reliability for FastCAPs was also high, with intraclass correlation coefficients of r = 0.87 for N1 latency (p < 0.001) and r = 0.96 for N1 amplitude (p < 0.001). The mean test time was 46.9 ± 1.4 s for the FastCAP and 340.3 ± 6.3 s for the ECAP. The FastCAP measurement time was significantly shorter than the ECAP measurement time (W = -210.0, p < 0.001). FastCAP thresholds were significantly correlated with behavioral thresholds in 7/20 participants and with comfortable loudness levels in 11/20 participants. The time required to measure FastCAPs was significantly lower than that for ECAPs. The FastCAP paradigm maintained the accuracy and reliability the ECAP measurements while offering a significant reduction in time requirements.

CONCLUSION: This preliminary evaluation suggests that the FastCAP could be an effective clinical tool to optimize CI processor settings (e.g., threshold stimulation levels) in users of the Nurotron CI device.

RevDate: 2025-01-22
CmpDate: 2025-01-22

Kusano K, Hayashi M, Iwama S, et al (2024)

Improved motor imagery skills after repetitive passive somatosensory stimulation: a parallel-group, pre-registered study.

Frontiers in neural circuits, 18:1510324.

INTRODUCTION: Motor-imagery-based Brain-Machine Interface (MI-BMI) has been established as an effective treatment for post-stroke hemiplegia. However, the need for long-term intervention can represent a significant burden on patients. Here, we demonstrate that motor imagery (MI) instructions for BMI training, when supplemented with somatosensory stimulation in addition to conventional verbal instructions, can help enhance MI capabilities of healthy participants.

METHODS: Sixteen participants performed MI during scalp EEG signal acquisition before and after somatosensory stimulation to assess MI-induced cortical excitability, as measured using the event-related desynchronization (ERD) of the sensorimotor rhythm (SMR). The non-dominant left hand was subjected to neuromuscular electrical stimulation above the sensory threshold but below the motor threshold (St-NMES), along with passive movement stimulation using an exoskeleton. Participants were randomly divided into an intervention group, which received somatosensory stimulation, and a control group, which remained at rest without stimulation.

RESULTS: The intervention group exhibited a significant increase in SMR-ERD compared to the control group, indicating that somatosensory stimulation contributed to improving MI ability.

DISCUSSION: This study demonstrates that somatosensory stimulation, combining electrical and mechanical stimuli, can improve MI capability and enhance the excitability of the sensorimotor cortex in healthy individuals.

RevDate: 2025-01-21

Coulter ME, Gillespie AK, Chu J, et al (2025)

Closed-loop modulation of remote hippocampal representations with neurofeedback.

Neuron pii:S0896-6273(24)00923-1 [Epub ahead of print].

Humans can remember specific remote events without acting on them and influence which memories are retrieved based on internal goals. However, animal models typically present sensory cues to trigger memory retrieval and then assess retrieval based on action. Thus, it is difficult to determine whether measured neural activity patterns relate to the cue(s), the memory, or the behavior. We therefore asked whether retrieval-related neural activity could be generated in animals without cues or a behavioral report. We focused on hippocampal "place cells," which primarily represent the animal's current location (local representations) but can also represent locations away from the animal (remote representations). We developed a neurofeedback system to reward expression of remote representations and found that rats could learn to generate specific spatial representations that often jumped directly to the experimenter-defined target location. Thus, animals can deliberately engage remote representations, enabling direct study of retrieval-related activity in the brain.

RevDate: 2025-01-21
CmpDate: 2025-01-21

Alotaibi S, Alotaibi MM, Alghamdi FS, et al (2025)

The role of fMRI in the mind decoding process in adults: a systematic review.

PeerJ, 13:e18795 pii:18795.

BACKGROUND: Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) has revolutionized our understanding of brain activity by non-invasively detecting changes in blood oxygen levels. This review explores how fMRI is used to study mind-reading processes in adults.

METHODOLOGY: A systematic search was conducted across Web of Science, PubMed, and Google Scholar. Studies were selected based on strict inclusion and exclusion criteria: peer-reviewed; published between 2000 and 2024 (in English); focused on adults; investigated mind-reading (mental state decoding, brain-computer interfaces) or related processes; and employed various mind-reading techniques (pattern classification, multivariate analysis, decoding algorithms).

RESULTS: This review highlights the critical role of fMRI in uncovering the neural mechanisms of mind-reading. Key brain regions involved include the superior temporal sulcus (STS), medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), and temporoparietal junction (TPJ), all crucial for mentalizing (understanding others' mental states).

CONCLUSIONS: This review emphasizes the importance of fMRI in advancing our knowledge of how the brain interprets and processes mental states. It offers valuable insights into the current state of mind-reading research in adults and paves the way for future exploration in this field.

RevDate: 2025-01-21

Liu J, Yang Z, Wang Y, et al (2024)

Editorial: Micro/nano devices and technologies for neural science and medical applications.

Frontiers in bioengineering and biotechnology, 12:1545853 pii:1545853.

RevDate: 2025-01-20
CmpDate: 2025-01-21

Kocher HM, BCI-STARPAC2 team, BPTB team, et al (2025)

Study protocol: multi-centre, randomised controlled clinical trial exploring stromal targeting in locally advanced pancreatic cancer; STARPAC2.

BMC cancer, 25(1):106.

BACKGROUND: Pancreatic cancer (PDAC: pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, the commonest form), a lethal disease, is best treated with surgical excision but is feasible in less than a fifth of patients. Around a third of patients presentlocally advanced, inoperable, non-metastatic (laPDAC), whose stadrd of care is palliative chemotherapy; a small minority are down-sized sufficiently to enable surgical excision. We propose a phase II clinical trial to test whether a combination of standard chemotherapy (gemcitabine & nab-Paclitaxel: GEM-NABP) and repurposing All Trans Retinoic Acid (ATRA) to target the stroma may extend progression-free survival and enable successful surgical resection for patients with laPDAC, since data from phase IB clinical trial demonstrate safety of GEM-NABP-ATRA combination to patients with advanced PDAC with potential therapeutic benefit.

METHODS: Patients with laPDAC will receive at least six cycles of GEM-NABP with 1:1 randomisation to receive this with or without ATRA to assess response, until progression or intolerance. Those with stable/responding disease may undergo surgical resection. Primary endpoint is progression free survival (PFS) defined as the time from the date of randomisation to the date of first documented tumour progression (response evaluation criteria in solid tumours [RECIST] v1.1) or death from any cause, whichever occurs first. Secondary endpoints include objective response rate (ORR), overall survival (OS), safety and tolerability, surgical resection rate, R0 surgical resection rate and patient reported outcome measures (PROMS) as measured by questionnaire EQ-5D-5L. Exploratory endpoints include a decrease or increase in CA19-9 and serum Vitamin A over time correlated with ORR, PFS, and OS.

DISCUSSION: STARPAC2 aims to assess the role of stromal targeting in laPDAC.

TRIAL REGISTRATION: EudraCT: 2019-004231-23; NCT04241276; ISRCTN11503604.

RevDate: 2025-01-20

Willsey MS, Shah NP, Avansino DT, et al (2025)

A high-performance brain-computer interface for finger decoding and quadcopter game control in an individual with paralysis.

Nature medicine [Epub ahead of print].

People with paralysis express unmet needs for peer support, leisure activities and sporting activities. Many within the general population rely on social media and massively multiplayer video games to address these needs. We developed a high-performance, finger-based brain-computer-interface system allowing continuous control of three independent finger groups, of which the thumb can be controlled in two dimensions, yielding a total of four degrees of freedom. The system was tested in a human research participant with tetraplegia due to spinal cord injury over sequential trials requiring fingers to reach and hold on targets, with an average acquisition rate of 76 targets per minute and completion time of 1.58 ± 0.06 seconds-comparing favorably to prior animal studies despite a twofold increase in the decoded degrees of freedom. More importantly, finger positions were then used to control a virtual quadcopter-the number-one restorative priority for the participant-using a brain-to-finger-to-computer interface to allow dexterous navigation around fixed- and random-ringed obstacle courses. The participant expressed or demonstrated a sense of enablement, recreation and social connectedness that addresses many of the unmet needs of people with paralysis.

RevDate: 2025-01-20

Ramsey NF, MJ Vansteensel (2025)

The expanding repertoire of brain-computer interfaces.

Nature medicine [Epub ahead of print].

RevDate: 2025-01-20
CmpDate: 2025-01-21

Sun Z, Huang J, Ma X, et al (2025)

A Low-Field MRI Dataset For Spatiotemporal Analysis of Developing Brain.

Scientific data, 12(1):109.

Recently, imaging investigation of brain development has increasingly captured the attention of researchers and clinicians in an attempt to understand the link between the brain and behavioral changes. Although high-field MR imaging of infants is feasible, the necessary customizations have limited its accessibility, affordability, and reproducibility. Low-field MR, as an emerging solution for scrutinizing developing brain, has exhibited its unique advantages in safety, portability, and cost-effectiveness. The presented low-field infant structural MR data aims to manifest the feasibility of using low-field MR image to exam brain structural changes during early life in infants. The dataset comprises 100 T2 weighed MR images from infants with in-plane resolution of ~0.85 mm and ~6 mm slice thickness. To demonstrate the potential utility, we conducted atlas-based whole brain segmentations and volumetric quantifications to analyze brain development features in first 10 week in postnatal life. This dataset addresses the scarcity of a large, extended-span infant brain dataset that restricts the further tracking of infant brain development trajectories and the development of routine low-field MR imaging pipelines.

RevDate: 2025-01-20

Pickles J, Griffiths L, McCloskey AP, et al (2025)

Developing a behaviour change intervention using information about greenhouse gas emissions to reduce liquid antibiotic prescribing.

Research in social & administrative pharmacy : RSAP pii:S1551-7411(25)00006-3 [Epub ahead of print].

INTRODUCTION: The determinants of antimicrobial prescribing often involve social influence, which can be harnessed through behaviour change techniques (BCTs). While previous studies have used BCTs to address antimicrobial resistance, there is a lack of evidence regarding their application to address climate change-related issues in antibiotic prescribing. This study aimed to develop a behaviour change intervention (BCI) using information about greenhouse gas emissions to reduce liquid antibiotic prescribing.

METHODS: A convenience sample of participants from a primary care practice in North East England participated in semi-structured interviews. The intervention design was guided by the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF) and the Capability, Opportunity, Motivation - Behaviour (COM-B) model. Data were analysed thematically, mapped to the TDF, and used to refine the BCI.

FINDINGS: Participants identified motivating factors related to high rates of liquid prescribing, climate change, and solid oral dosage form (pill) aversion. The broader context of practice, such as initiatives reduce cost and improve sustainability, provided opportunities for intervention. Participants demonstrated the capability to change prescribing behaviours and expressed willingness to share resources within their teams.

CONCLUSION: This study underscores the potential of BCIs using greenhouse gas emissions data to reduce liquid antibiotic prescribing. Further research should focus on implementing and evaluating these interventions in practice settings.

RevDate: 2025-01-20

Chen Q, Pan C, Shen Y, et al (2025)

Atypical subcortical involvement in emotional face processing in major depressive disorder with and without comorbid social anxiety.

Journal of affective disorders pii:S0165-0327(25)00098-9 [Epub ahead of print].

Previous research on major depressive disorder (MDD) has largely focused on cognitive biases and abnormalities in cortico-limbic circuitry during emotional face processing. However, it remains unclear whether these abnormalities start at early perceptual stages via subcortical pathways and how comorbid social anxiety influences this process. Here, we investigated subcortical mechanisms in emotional face processing using a psychophysical method that measures monocular advantage (i.e., superior discrimination performance when two stimuli are presented to the same eye than to different eyes). Participants included clinical patients diagnosed with MDD (n = 32), patients with MDD comorbid with social anxiety (comorbid MDD-SAD, n = 32), and a control group of healthy participants (HC, n = 32). We assessed monocular advantage across different emotions (neutral, sad, angry) and among groups. Results indicated that individuals with MDD showed a stronger monocular advantage for sad expressions compared to neutral and angry expressions. In contrast, HC and comorbid MDD-SAD groups showed a greater monocular advantage for neural over negative expressions. Cross-group comparisons revealed that MDD group had a stronger monocular advantage for sad expressions than both HC and comorbid MDD-SAD groups. Additionally, self-reported depressive symptoms were positively correlated with monocular advantage for sad expressions, while social anxiety symptoms were negatively correlated with monocular advantage for negative expressions. These findings suggest atypical early perceptual processing of sadness in individuals with MDD via subcortical mechanisms, with comorbid social anxiety potentially counteracting this effect. This study may inform novel interventions targeting sensory processing and expand beyond cognitive bias modification.

RevDate: 2025-01-20

Haddix C, Bates M, Garcia Pava S, et al (2025)

Electroencephalogram Features Reflect Effort Corresponding to Graded Finger Extension: Implications for Hemiparetic Stroke.

Biomedical physics & engineering express [Epub ahead of print].

Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) offer disabled individuals the means to interact with devices by decoding the electroencephalogram (EEG). However, decoding intent in fine motor tasks can be challenging, especially in stroke survivors with cortical lesions. Here, we attempt to decode graded finger extension from the EEG in stroke patients with left-hand paresis and healthy controls. Participants extended their fingers to one of four levels: low, medium, high, or "no-go" (none), while hand, muscle (electromyography: EMG), and brain (EEG) activity were monitored. Event-related desynchronization (ERD) was measured as the change in 8-30 Hz EEG power during movement. Classifiers were trained on the ERD, EMG power, or both (EEG+EMG) to decode finger extension, and accuracy assessed via four-fold cross-validation for each hand of each participant. Mean accuracy exceeded chance (25%) for controls (n=11) at 62% for EMG, 60% for EEG, and 71% for EEG+EMG on the left hand; and 67%, 60%, and 74%, respectively, on the right hand. Accuracies were similar on the unimpaired right hand for the stroke group (n=3): 61%, 68%, and 78%, respectively. But on the paretic left hand, EMG only discriminated no-go from movement above chance (41%); in contrast, EEG gave 65% accuracy (68% for EEG+EMG), comparable to the non-paretic hand. The median ERD was significant (p < 0.01) over the cortical hand area in both groups and increased with each level of finger extension. But while the ERD favored the hemisphere contralateral to the active hand as expected, it was ipsilateral for the left hand of stroke due to the lesion in the right hemisphere, which may explain its discriminative ability. Hence, the ERD captures effort in finger extension regardless of success or failure at the task; and harnessing residual EMG improves the correlation. This marker could be leveraged in rehabilitative protocols that focus on fine motor control.

RevDate: 2025-01-20
CmpDate: 2025-01-20

Jiang M, Tan Y, Wang X, et al (2025)

The Phonograms' Genuine-Character Status: What the Embedded Semantic Radicals' Semantic Activation Live by.

Brain and behavior, 15(1):e70277.

BACKGROUND: In Chinese phonogram processing studies, it is widely accepted that both character and non-character semantic radicals could be semantically activated. However, little attention was paid to the underlying workings that enabled the semantic radicals' semantic activation.

PURPOSE: The present study aimed to address the above issue by conducting two experiments.

METHODS: Experiment 1 was committed to confirming whether both character and non-character semantic radicals could be semantically activated when embedded in genuine Chinese phonograms. Experiment 2 was devoted to exploring whether the same semantic radicals could also be semantically activated when incorporated in Chinese pseudo-characters.

RESULTS: Results demonstrated that both character and non-character semantic radicals embedded in the genuine phonograms were semantically activated, but those placed in the pseudo-characters underwent no semantic activation, suggesting that the semantic activation of semantic radicals was genuine-character status-dependent, irrespective of the semantic radicals' characterhood.

CONCLUSION: It seems that the genuine-character status and the meaning of the host phonogram have strong sway on the semantic activation of semantic radicals.

RevDate: 2025-01-20

Liu D, Wang N, Song M, et al (2024)

Global glucose metabolism rate as diagnostic marker for disorder of consciousness of patients: quantitative FDG-PET study.

Frontiers in neurology, 15:1425271.

OBJECTIVE: This study was to employ 18F-flurodeoxyglucose (FDG-PET) to evaluate the resting-state brain glucose metabolism in a sample of 46 patients diagnosed with disorders of consciousness (DoC). The aim was to identify objective quantitative metabolic indicators and predictors that could potentially indicate the level of awareness in these patients.

METHODS: A cohort of 46 patients underwent Coma Recovery Scale-Revised (CRS-R) assessments in order to distinguish between the minimally conscious state (MCS) and the unresponsive wakefulness syndrome (UWS). Additionally, resting-state FDG-PET data were acquired from both the patient group and a control group consisting of 10 healthy individuals. The FDG-PET data underwent reorientation, spatial normalization to a stereotaxic space, and smoothing. The normalization procedure utilized a customized template following the methodology outlined by Phillips et al. Mean cortical metabolism of the overall sample was utilized for distinguishing between UWS and MCS, as well as for predicting the outcome at a 1-year follow-up through the application of receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis.

RESULTS: We used Global Glucose Metabolism as the Diagnostic Marker. A one-way ANOVA revealed that there was a statistically significant difference in cortical metabolic index between two groups (F(2, 53) = 7.26, p < 0.001). Multiple comparisons found that the mean of cortical metabolic index was significantly different between MCS (M = 4.19, SD = 0.64) and UWS group (M = 2.74, SD = 0.94,p < 0.001). Also, the mean of cortical metabolic index was significantly different between MCS and healthy group (M = 7.88, SD = 0.80,p < 0.001). Using the above diagnostic criterion, the diagnostic accuracy yielded an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.89 across the pooled cohort (95%CI 0.79-0.99). There was an 85% correct classification between MCS and UWS, with 88% sensitivity and 81% specificity for MCS. The best classification rate in the derivation cohort was achieved at a metabolic index of 3.32 (41% of the mean cortical metabolic index in healthy controls).

CONCLUSION: Our findings demonstrate that conscious awareness requires a minimum of 41% of normal cortical activity, as indicated by metabolic rates.

RevDate: 2025-01-17

Oby ER, Degenhart AD, Grigsby EM, et al (2025)

Dynamical constraints on neural population activity.

Nature neuroscience [Epub ahead of print].

The manner in which neural activity unfolds over time is thought to be central to sensory, motor and cognitive functions in the brain. Network models have long posited that the brain's computations involve time courses of activity that are shaped by the underlying network. A prediction from this view is that the activity time courses should be difficult to violate. We leveraged a brain-computer interface to challenge monkeys to violate the naturally occurring time courses of neural population activity that we observed in the motor cortex. This included challenging animals to traverse the natural time course of neural activity in a time-reversed manner. Animals were unable to violate the natural time courses of neural activity when directly challenged to do so. These results provide empirical support for the view that activity time courses observed in the brain indeed reflect the underlying network-level computational mechanisms that they are believed to implement.

RevDate: 2025-01-17

Zhao J, Shen Q, Yong X, et al (2025)

Cryo-EM reveals cholesterol binding in the lysosomal GPCR-like protein LYCHOS.

Nature structural & molecular biology [Epub ahead of print].

Cholesterol plays a pivotal role in modulating the activity of mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTOR1), thereby regulating cell growth and metabolic homeostasis. LYCHOS, a lysosome-localized G-protein-coupled receptor-like protein, emerges as a cholesterol sensor and is capable of transducing the cholesterol signal to affect the mTORC1 function. However, the precise mechanism by which LYCHOS recognizes cholesterol remains unknown. Here, using cryo-electron microscopy, we determined the three-dimensional structural architecture of LYCHOS in complex with cholesterol molecules, revealing a unique arrangement of two sequential structural domains. Through a comprehensive analysis of this structure, we elucidated the specific structural features of these two domains and their collaborative role in the process of cholesterol recognition by LYCHOS.

RevDate: 2025-01-17

Cong L, Wang X, Wang J, et al (2025)

Three-Dimensional SERS-Active Hydrogel Microbeads Enable Highly Sensitive Homogeneous Phase Detection of Alkaline Phosphatase in Biosystems.

ACS applied materials & interfaces [Epub ahead of print].

Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) is a biomarker for many diseases, and monitoring its activity level is important for disease diagnosis and treatment. In this study, we used the microdroplet technology combined with an in situ laser-induced polymerization method to prepare the Ag nanoparticle (AgNP) doped hydrogel microbeads (HMBs) with adjustable pore sizes that allow small molecules to enter while blocking large molecules. The AgNPs embedded in the hydrogel microspheres can provide SERS activity, improving the SERS signal of small molecules that diffuse to the AgNPs. A specific hydrolysis reaction of ALP on 5-bromo-4-chloro-3-indolylphosphate (BCIP) was introduced and itsproduct 5,5'-dibromo-4,4'-dichloro-1H,1H-[2,2']bisindolyl-3,3'-dione (BCI) was employed to assess ALP activity due to its highly resonance Raman activity. The sensing platform was applied to model ALP activity in serum and evaluate ALP inhibitors. The SERS assay showed higher sensitivity than UV-vis absorption spectroscopy, with the lowest detectable ALP concentration of 1.0 × 10[-20] M. In addition, the ALP activity in HepG2 cells was evaluated using this sensing platform, showing lower ALP-expressing activity than that of controls in response to hypoxia and iron metastasis. This SERS-activated HMB shows great potential in detecting ALP and is expected to help analyze complex clinical samples.

RevDate: 2025-01-17

Ma X, Rizzoglio F, Bodkin KL, et al (2025)

Unsupervised, piecewise linear decoding enables an accurate prediction of muscle activity in a multi-task brain computer interface.

Journal of neural engineering [Epub ahead of print].

OBJECTIVE: Creating an intracortical brain-computer interface (iBCI) capable of seamless transitions between tasks and contexts would greatly enhance user experience. However, the nonlinearity in neural activity presents challenges to computing a global iBCI decoder. We aimed to develop a method that differs from a globally optimized decoder to address this issue.

APPROACH: We devised an unsupervised approach that relies on the structure of a low-dimensional neural manifold to implement a piecewise linear decoder. We created a distinctive dataset in which monkeys performed a diverse set of tasks, some trained, others innate, while we recorded neural signals from the motor cortex (M1) and electromyographs (EMGs) from upper limb muscles. We used both linear and nonlinear dimensionality reduction techniques to discover neural manifolds and applied unsupervised algorithms to identify clusters within those spaces. Finally, we fit a linear decoder of EMG for each cluster. A specific decoder was activated corresponding to the cluster each new neural data point belonged to.

MAIN RESULTS: We found clusters in the neural manifolds corresponding with the different tasks or task sub-phases. The performance of piecewise decoding improved as the number of clusters increased and plateaued gradually. With only two clusters it already outperformed a global linear decoder, and unexpectedly, it outperformed even a global recurrent neural network (RNN) decoder with 10-12 clusters.

SIGNIFICANCE: This study introduced a computationally lightweight solution for creating iBCI decoders that can function effectively across a broad range of tasks. EMG decoding is particularly challenging, as muscle activity is used, under varying contexts, to control interaction forces and limb stiffness, as well as motion. The results suggest that a piecewise linear decoder can provide a good approximation to the nonlinearity between neural activity and motor outputs, a result of our increased understanding of the structure of neural manifolds in motor cortex.

RevDate: 2025-01-17
CmpDate: 2025-01-17

Zou Y, Xu J, Y Chen (2025)

Volatility, correlation and risk spillover effect between freight rates in BCI and BPI markets: Evidence from static and dynamic GARCH-Copula and dynamic CoVaR models.

PloS one, 20(1):e0315167 pii:PONE-D-24-38564.

The dry bulk shipping market plays a crucial role in global trade. To examine the volatility, correlation, and risk spillover between freight rates in the BCI and BPI markets, this paper employs the GARCH-Copula-CoVaR model. We analyze the dynamic behavior of the secondary market freight index for dry bulk cargo, highlighting its performance in a complex financial environment and offering empirical support for the shipping industry and financial markets. The findings reveal that: (1) There are significant differences in correlation across various routes, with the correlation between BCI and BPI routes fluctuating over time. Among all route combinations, C5 and P3A_03 exhibit the highest positive correlation. (2) A one-way risk spillover exists between P1A_03 an C5, while two-way positive risk spillover is observed between other routes. This suggests that when a risk materializes on a specific route, other routes are also exposed to potential risks, with varying intensities of spillover. (3) The distance and geographical location of routes may be key factors influencing the differing intensities of risk spillover. This highlights the need to consider the geographical characteristics of routes in understanding risk transmission. This paper aims to provide risk management strategies based on these empirical findings, assisting shipping companies and investors in developing more effective responses to market volatility.

RevDate: 2025-01-17
CmpDate: 2025-01-17

D J, S K C (2025)

Parallel convolutional neural network and empirical mode decomposition for high accuracy in motor imagery EEG signal classification.

PloS one, 20(1):e0311942 pii:PONE-D-24-06957.

In recent years, the utilization of motor imagery (MI) signals derived from electroencephalography (EEG) has shown promising applications in controlling various devices such as wheelchairs, assistive technologies, and driverless vehicles. However, decoding EEG signals poses significant challenges due to their complexity, dynamic nature, and low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). Traditional EEG pattern recognition algorithms typically involve two key steps: feature extraction and feature classification, both crucial for accurate operation. In this work, we propose a novel method that addresses these challenges by employing empirical mode decomposition (EMD) for feature extraction and a parallel convolutional neural network (PCNN) for feature classification. This approach aims to mitigate non-stationary issues, improve performance speed, and enhance classification accuracy. We validate the effectiveness of our proposed method using datasets from the BCI competition IV, specifically datasets 2a and 2b, which contain motor imagery EEG signals. Our method focuses on identifying two- and four-class motor imagery EEG signal classifications. Additionally, we introduce a transfer learning technique to fine-tune the model for individual subjects, leveraging important features extracted from a group dataset. Our results demonstrate that the proposed EMD-PCNN method outperforms existing approaches in terms of classification accuracy. We conduct both qualitative and quantitative analyses to evaluate our method. Qualitatively, we employ confusion matrices and various performance metrics such as specificity, sensitivity, precision, accuracy, recall, and f1-score. Quantitatively, we compare the classification accuracies of our method with those of existing approaches. Our findings highlight the superiority of the proposed EMD-PCNN method in accurately classifying motor imagery EEG signals. The enhanced performance and robustness of our method underscore its potential for broader applicability in real-world scenarios.

RevDate: 2025-01-17

Xue YY, Zhang ZS, Lin RR, et al (2025)

Correction: CD2AP deficiency aggravates Alzheimer's disease phenotypes and pathology through p38 MAPK activation.

Translational neurodegeneration, 14(1):3.

RevDate: 2025-01-17

Liu DH, Kumar S, Alawieh H, et al (2025)

Personalized μ-transcranial alternating current stimulation improves online brain-computer interface control.

Journal of neural engineering [Epub ahead of print].

OBJECTIVE: A motor imagery (MI)-based brain-computer interface (BCI) enables users to engage with external environments by capturing and decoding electroencephalography (EEG) signals associated with the imagined movement of specific limbs. Despite significant advancements in BCI technologies over the past 40 years, a notable challenge remains: many users lack BCI proficiency, unable to produce sufficiently distinct and reliable MI brain patterns, hence leading to low classification rates in their BCIs. The objective of this study is to enhance the online performance of MI-BCIs in a personalized, biomarker-driven approach using transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS).

APPROACH: Previous studies have identified that the peak power spectral density (PSD) value in sensorimotor idling rhythms is a neural correlate of participants' upper limb MI-BCI performances. In this active-controlled, single-blind study, we applied 20 minutes of tACS at the participant-specific, peak µ frequency in resting-state sensorimotor rhythms (SMRs), with the goal of enhancing resting-state µ SMRs.

MAIN RESULTS: After tACS, we observed significant improvements in event-related desynchronizations (ERDs) of µ sensorimotor rhythms (SMRs), and in the performance of an online MI-BCI that decodes left versus right hand commands in healthy participants (N=10) -but not in an active control-stimulation control group (N=10). Lastly, we showed a significant correlation between the resting-state µ SMRs and µ ERD, offering a mechanistic interpretation behind the observed changes in online BCI performances.

SIGNIFICANCE: Our research lays the groundwork for future non-invasive interventions designed to enhance BCI performances, thereby improving the independence and interactions of individuals who rely on these systems.

RevDate: 2025-01-17
CmpDate: 2025-01-17

Tsai PC, Akpan A, Tang KT, et al (2025)

Brain computer interfaces for cognitive enhancement in older people - challenges and applications: a systematic review.

BMC geriatrics, 25(1):36.

BACKGROUND: Brain-computer interface (BCI) offers promising solutions to cognitive enhancement in older people. Despite the clear progress received, there is limited evidence of BCI implementation for rehabilitation. This systematic review addresses BCI applications and challenges in the standard practice of EEG-based neurofeedback (NF) training in healthy older people or older people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI).

METHODS: Articles were searched via MEDLINE, PubMed, SCOPUS, SpringerLink, and Web of Science. 16 studies between 1st January 2010 to 1st November 2024 are included after screening using PRISMA. The risk of bias, system design, and neurofeedback protocols are reviewed.

RESULTS: The successful BCI applications in NF trials in older people were biased by the randomisation process and outcome measurement. Although the studies demonstrate promising results in effectiveness of research-grade BCI for cognitive enhancement in older people, it is premature to make definitive claims about widespread BCI usability and applicability.

SIGNIFICANCE: This review highlights the common issues in the field of EEG-based BCI for older people. Future BCI research could focus on trial design and BCI performance gaps between the old and the young to develop a robust BCI system that compensates for age-related declines in cognitive and motor functions.

RevDate: 2025-01-17
CmpDate: 2025-01-17

Marasco PD (2025)

Navigating the complexity of touch.

Science (New York, N.Y.), 387(6731):248-249.

Precise cortical microstimulation improves tactile experience in brain-machine interfaces.

RevDate: 2025-01-16

Li C, Ma K, Li S, et al (2025)

Multi-channel spatio-temporal graph attention contrastive network for brain disease diagnosis.

NeuroImage pii:S1053-8119(25)00013-8 [Epub ahead of print].

Dynamic brain networks (DBNs) can capture the intricate connections and temporal evolution among brain regions, becoming increasingly crucial in the diagnosis of neurological disorders. However, most existing researches tend to focus on isolated brain network sequence segmented by sliding windows, and they are difficult to effectively uncover the higher-order spatio-temporal topological pattern in DBNs. Meantime, it remains a challenge to utilize the structure connectivity prior in the DBNs analysis. To address these problems, we propose a multi-channel spatio-temporal graph attention contrastive network for DBNs analysis. Specifically, we first construct dynamic brain functional networks from fMRI data with sliding windows, and embed the structural connectivity derived from diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) to the dynamic functional connectivity graph representation to construct multi-modal brain network. Second, we develop a multi-channel spatial attention contrastive network to extract topological features from the brain network within each time window. This network incorporates an intra-window graph contrastive constraint to enhance the discriminative ability of the extracted features. Moreover, temporal dependencies across windows are captured by integrating feature embeddings through a self-attention mechanism, and the inter-window recurrent contrastive constraint is devised to extract higher-order spatio-temporal topological features. Finally, a multi-layer perceptron (MLP) is used to classify the brain networks. Experiments on epilepsy and ADNI datasets show that our method outperforms several state-of-the-art approaches in diagnosing performance, and it provides discriminative graph features for related brain diseases.

RevDate: 2025-01-18
CmpDate: 2025-01-16

Dai C, Fu Y, Li X, et al (2025)

Clinical efficacy and safety of vortioxetine as an adjuvant drug for patients with bipolar depression.

Journal of Zhejiang University. Science. B, 26(1):26-38.

OBJECTIVES: Whether vortioxetine has a utility as an adjuvant drug in the treatment of bipolar depression remains controversial. This study aimed to validate the efficacy and safety of vortioxetine in bipolar depression.

METHODS: Patients with bipolar Ⅱ depression were enrolled in this prospective, two-center, randomized, 12-week pilot trial. The main indicator for assessing treatment effectiveness was a Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) of ≥50%. All eligible patients initially received four weeks of lurasidone monotherapy. Patients who responded well continued to receive this kind of monotherapy. However, no-response patients were randomly assigned to either valproate or vortioxetine treatment for eight weeks. By comprehensively comparing the results of MADRS over a period of 4‍‒‍12 weeks, a systematic analysis was conducted to determine whether vortioxetine could be used as an adjuvant drug for treating bipolar depression.

RESULTS: Thirty-seven patients responded to lurasidone monotherapy, and 60 patients were randomly assigned to the valproate or vortioxetine group for eight weeks. After two weeks of combined valproate or vortioxetine treatment, the MADRS score in the vortioxetine group was significantly lower than that in the valproate group. There was no difference in the MADRS scores between the two groups at 8 and 12 weeks. The incidence of side effects did not significantly differ between the valproate and vortioxetine groups. Importantly, three patients in the vortioxetine group appeared to switch to mania or hypomania.

CONCLUSIONS: This study suggested that lurasidone combination with vortioxetine might have potential benefits to bipolar II depression in the early stage, while disease progression should be monitored closely for the risk of switching to mania.

RevDate: 2025-01-15

Kyoda Y, Shibamori K, Tachikawa K, et al (2025)

The change of detrusor contractility at 5 years after transurethral resection of the prostate: a single center prospective observational study.

Urology pii:S0090-4295(24)01229-9 [Epub ahead of print].

OBJECTIVE: To prospectively assess the impact of transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) on detrusor function using pressure flow study (PFS) at 5 years after surgery in a single center prospective non-randomized observational study.

METHODS: Sixty consecutive male patients were prospectively enrolled and underwent TURP from November 2014 to November 2018. A questionnaire survey, free uroflowmetry and PFS were performed at baseline, and 6, 24 and 60 months after surgery. We divided the age groups at 70 years and defined the younger group as those younger than 70 years old, and the elderly group as those aged 70 years or older. The primary endpoint was the change of the bladder contractility index (BCI).

RESULTS: Of the 60 patients, 39 completed the protocol. Regardless of age, the bladder outlet obstruction indices at 6, 24, and 60 months after surgery were significantly lower than before surgery (all, p<0.01). Although the BCI did not significantly change during 60 months for the entire group of 39 patients, it was significantly decreased at 60 months (85.6) after surgery compared to before surgery (102) in the elderly group (p=0.02).

CONCLUSION: We prospectively evaluated detrusor contractility up to 5 years after TURP. It was significantly reduced in the elderly, in spite of which the relief of bladder outlet obstruction was maintained for 5 years after surgery.

RevDate: 2025-01-15

Wei Q, Fan W, Li HF, et al (2025)

Biallelic variants in SREBF2 cause autosomal recessive spastic paraplegia.

Journal of genetics and genomics = Yi chuan xue bao pii:S1673-8527(25)00019-0 [Epub ahead of print].

Hereditary spastic paraplegias (HSPs) refer to a genetically and clinically heterogeneous group of neurodegenerative disorders characterized by the degeneration of motor neurons. To date, a significant number of patients still have not received a definite genetic diagnosis. Therefore, identifying unreported causative genes continues to be of great importance. Here, we perform whole exome sequencing in a cohort of Chinese HSP patients. Three homozygous variants (p.L604W, p.S517F, and p.T984A) within the sterol regulatory element-binding factor 2 (SREBF2) gene are identified in one autosomal recessive family and two sporadic patients, respectively. Co-segregation is confirmed by Sanger sequencing in all available members. The three variants are rare in the public or in-house database and are predicted to be damaging. The biological impacts of variants in SREBF2 are examined by functional experiments in patient-derived fibroblasts and Drosophila. We find that the variants upregulate cellular cholesterol due to the overactivation of SREBP2, eventually impairing the autophagosomal and lysosomal functions. The overexpression of the mature form of SREBP2 leads to locomotion defects in Drosophila. Our findings identify SREBF2 as a causative gene for HSP and highlight the impairment of cholesterol as a critical pathway for HSP.

RevDate: 2025-01-15

Chen L, Yin Z, Gu X, et al (2025)

Neurophysiological data augmentation for EEG-fNIRS multimodal features based on a denoising diffusion probabilistic model.

Computer methods and programs in biomedicine, 261:108594 pii:S0169-2607(25)00011-2 [Epub ahead of print].

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The hybrid brain computer interfaces (BCI) combining electroencephalogram (EEG) and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) have attracted extensive attention for overcoming the decoding limitations of the single-modality BCI. With the deepening application of deep learning approaches in BCI systems, its significant performance improvement has become apparent. However, the scarcity of brain signal data limits the performance of deep learning models.

METHODS: In this study, we proposed an EEG-fNIRS data augmentation framework based on the combination of denoising diffusion probabilistic model (DDPM) and adding Gaussian noise (EFDA-CDG), for enhancing the performance of hybrid BCI systems. Firstly, we unified the temporal and spatial dimensions of EEG and fNIRS by manually extracting features and spatial mapping interpolation to create EEG-fNIRS joint distribution samples. Then, the DDPM generative model was combined with the traditional method of adding Gaussian noise to provide richer training data for the classifier. Finally, we constructed a classification module that applies EEG feature attention and fNIRS terrain attention to improve classification accuracy.

RESULTS: In order to evaluate the effectiveness of EFDA-CDG framework, experiments were conducted and fully validated on three publicly available databases and one self-collected database. In the context of a participant-dependent training approach, our method achieves accuracy rates of 82.02% for motor imagery, 91.93% for mental arithmetic, and 90.54% for n-back tasks on public databases. Additionally, our method boasts an accuracy rate of 97.82% for drug addiction discrimination task on the self-collected database.

CONCLUSIONS: EFDA-CDG framework successfully facilitates data augmentation, thereby enhancing the performance of EEG-fNIRS hybrid BCI systems.

RevDate: 2025-01-16

Maibam PC, Pei D, Olikkal P, et al (2024)

Enhancing prosthetic hand control: A synergistic multi-channel electroencephalogram.

Wearable technologies, 5:e18.

Electromyogram (EMG) has been a fundamental approach for prosthetic hand control. However it is limited by the functionality of residual muscles and muscle fatigue. Currently, exploring temporal shifts in brain networks and accurately classifying noninvasive electroencephalogram (EEG) for prosthetic hand control remains challenging. In this manuscript, it is hypothesized that the coordinated and synchronized temporal patterns within the brain network, termed as brain synergy, contain valuable information to decode hand movements. 32-channel EEGs were acquired from 10 healthy participants during hand grasp and open. Synergistic spatial distribution pattern and power spectra of brain activity were investigated using independent component analysis of EEG. Out of 32 EEG channels, 15 channels spanning the frontal, central and parietal regions were strategically selected based on the synergy of spatial distribution pattern and power spectrum of independent components. Time-domain and synergistic features were extracted from the selected 15 EEG channels. These features were employed to train a Bayesian optimizer-based support vector machine (SVM). The optimized SVM classifier could achieve an average testing accuracy of 94.39 .84% using synergistic features. The paired t-test showed that synergistic features yielded significantly higher area under curve values (p < .05) compared to time-domain features in classifying hand movements. The output of the classifier was employed for the control of the prosthetic hand. This synergistic approach for analyzing temporal activities in motor control and control of prosthetic hands have potential contributions to future research. It addresses the limitations of EMG-based approaches and emphasizes the effectiveness of synergy-based control for prostheses.

RevDate: 2025-01-14

Xu R, Allison BZ, Zhao X, et al (2025)

Multi-Scale Pyramid Squeeze Attention Similarity Optimization Classification Neural Network for ERP Detection.

Neural networks : the official journal of the International Neural Network Society, 184:107124 pii:S0893-6080(25)00003-6 [Epub ahead of print].

Event-related potentials (ERPs) can reveal brain activity elicited by external stimuli. Innovative methods to decode ERPs could enhance the accuracy of brain-computer interface (BCI) technology and promote the understanding of cognitive processes. This paper proposes a novel Multi-Scale Pyramid Squeeze Attention Similarity Optimization Classification Neural Network (MS-PSA-SOC) for ERP Detection. The model integrates a multi-scale architecture, self-attention mechanism, and deep metric learning to achieve a more comprehensive, refined, and discriminative feature representation. The MS module aggregates fine-grained local features and global features with a larger receptive field within a multi-scale architecture, effectively capturing the dynamic characteristics of complex oscillatory activities in the brain at different levels of abstraction. This preserves complementary spatiotemporal representation information. The PSA module continues the multi-scale contextual modeling from the previous module and achieves adaptive recalibration of multi-scale features. By employing effective aggregation and selection mechanisms, it highlights key features while suppressing redundant information. The SOC module jointly optimizes similarity metric loss and classification loss, maintaining the feature space distribution while focusing on sample class labels. This optimization of similarity relationships between samples improves the model's generalization ability and robustness. Results from public and self-collected datasets demonstrate that the command recognition accuracy of the MS-PSA-SOC model is at least 3.1% and 2.8% higher than other advanced algorithms, achieving superior performance. Additionally, the method demonstrates a lower standard deviation across both datasets. This study also validated the network parameters based on Shannon's sampling theorem and EEG "microstates" through relevant experiments.

RevDate: 2025-01-14

Gu M, Pei W, Gao X, et al (2025)

Optimizing the proportion of stimulation area in a grid stimulus for user-friendly SSVEP-based BCIs.

Journal of neural engineering [Epub ahead of print].

OBJECTIVE: Steady-state visual evoked potentials (SSVEPs) rely on the photic driving response to encode electroencephalogram (EEG) signals stably and efficiently. However, the user experience of the traditional stimulation with high-contrast flickers urgently needs to be improved. In this study, we introduce a novel paradigm of grid stimulation with weak flickering perception, distinguished by a markedly lower proportion of stimulation area in the overall pattern.

APPROACH: In an offline single-target experiment, we investigated the unique characteristics of SSVEPs evoked by varying proportions in grid stimuli within low and medium frequency bands. Based on the analysis of simulation performance across a four-class brain-computer interface (BCI) task and the evaluation of user experience questionnaires, a subset of paradigms that balance performance and comfort were selected for implementation in four-target online BCI systems.

MAIN RESULTS: Our results demonstrate that even ultra-low stimulation proportion paradigms can still evoke strong responses within specific frequency bands, effectively enhancing user experience with low and middle frequency stimuli. Notably, proportions of 0.94% and 2.10% within the 3-5 Hz range provide an optimal balance between performance and user experience. For frequencies extending up to 15 Hz, a 2.10% proportion remains ideal. At 20 Hz, slightly higher proportions of 3.75% and 8.43% maintain these benefits.

SIGNIFICANCE: These findings are crucial for advancing the development of effective and user-friendly SSVEP-based BCI systems.

RevDate: 2025-01-14

Prakash P, Lei T, Flint RD, et al (2025)

Decoding speech intent from non-frontal cortical areas.

Journal of neural engineering [Epub ahead of print].

Brain-machine interfaces (BMIs) have advanced greatly in decoding speech signals originating from the speech motor cortices. Primarily, these BMIs target individuals with intact speech motor cortices but who are paralyzed by disrupted connections between frontal cortices and their articulators due to brainstem stroke or motor neuron diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. A few studies have shown some information outside the speech motor cortices, such as in parietal and temporal lobes, that also may be useful for BMIs. The ability to use information from outside the frontal lobes could be useful not only for people with locked-in syndrome but also to people with frontal lobe damage, which can cause nonfluent aphasia or apraxia of speech. However, temporal and parietal lobes are predominantly involved in perceptive speech processing and comprehension. Therefore, to be able to use signals from these areas in a speech BMI, it is important to ascertain that they are related to production. Here, using intracranial recordings, we sought evidence for whether, when and where neural information related to speech intention could be found in the temporal and parietal cortices. Causal information enabled us to distinguish speech intent from resting state and other processes involved in language processing or working memory. Information related to speech intent was distributed widely across the temporal and parietal lobes, including superior temporal, medial temporal, angular, and supramarginal gyri. This provides evidence of a decodable production-related signal in these areas. This insight may help in designing speech brain-machine interfaces that could benefit people with locked-in syndrome, aphasia or apraxia of speech.

RevDate: 2025-01-14

Russo JS, Shiels TA, Lin CS, et al (2025)

Decoding imagined movement in people with multiple sclerosis for brain-computer interface translation.

Journal of neural engineering [Epub ahead of print].

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a heterogeneous autoimmune-mediated disorder affecting the central nervous system, commonly manifesting as fatigue and progressive limb impairment. This can significantly impact quality of life due to weakness or paralysis in the upper and lower limbs. A Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) aims to restore quality of life through control of an external device, such as a wheelchair. However, the limited BCI research in people with MS has been confined to exploring the P300 response and brain signals associated with attempted movement. The current study aims to expand the MS-BCI literature by highlighting the feasibility of decoding MS imagined movement. Approach. We collected electroencephalography (EEG) data from eight participants with various symptoms of MS and ten neurotypical control participants. Participants made imagined movements of the hands and feet as directed by a go no-go protocol. Binary regularised linear discriminant analysis was used to classify imagined movement vs. rest and vs. movement at individual time-frequency points. The frequency bands which provided the maximal accuracy, and the associated latency, were compared. Main Results. In all MS participants, the classification algorithm achieved above 70% accuracy in at least one imagined movement vs. rest classification and most movement vs. movement classifications. There was no significant difference between classification of limbs with weakness or paralysis to neurotypical controls. Both the MS and control groups possessed decodable information within the alpha (7-13 Hz) and beta (16-30 Hz) bands at similar latency. Significance. This study is the first to demonstrate the feasibility of decoding imagined movements in people with MS. As an alternative to the P300 response, motor imagery-based control of a BCI may also be combined with existing motor imagery therapy to supplement MS rehabilitation. These promising results merit further long term BCI studies to investigate the effect of MS progression on classification performance. .

RevDate: 2025-01-14

Dekleva BM, J Collinger (2025)

Using transient, effector-specific neural responses to gate decoding for brain-computer interfaces.

Journal of neural engineering [Epub ahead of print].

Real-world implementation of brain-computer interfaces (BCI) for continuous control of devices should ideally rely on fully asynchronous decoding approaches. That is, the decoding algorithm should continuously update its output by estimating the user's intended actions from real-time neural activity, without the need for any temporal alignment to an external cue. This kind of open-ended temporal flexibility is necessary to achieve naturalistic and intuitive control, but presents a challenge: how do we know when it is appropriate to decode anything at all? Activity in motor cortex is dynamic and modulates with many different types of actions (proximal arm control, hand control, speech, etc.), which can interfere with each other. Additionally, the "decodability" of any given action type (amount of relevant information present in the neural activity) fluctuates over time based on motor intent as well as intrinsic network dynamics. Here we present a method for simplifying the problem of continual decoding that uses transient, end effector-specific neural responses to identify periods of effector engagement. For example, we have observed unique neural signatures at the onset and offset of hand-related actions. Only after detecting the period of engagement do we then decode specific action features (e.g. digit movement or force). By using this gated approach, decoding models can be simpler (owing to local linearities) and are less sensitive to interference from cross-effector interference such as combined reaching and grasping actions. Clinical Trial ID: NCT01894802.

RevDate: 2025-01-13

Xu A, Huang Y, Wu B, et al (2025)

Phase separation-based screening identifies arsenic trioxide as the N-Myc-DNA interaction inhibitor for neuroblastoma therapy.

Cancer letters pii:S0304-3835(25)00013-8 [Epub ahead of print].

RevDate: 2025-01-13

Liu DH, Kumar S, Alawieh H, et al (2025)

Personalized μ-transcranial alternating current stimulation improves online brain-computer interface control.

Journal of neural engineering [Epub ahead of print].

OBJECTIVE: A motor imagery (MI)-based brain-computer interface (BCI) enables users to engage with external environments by capturing and decoding electroencephalography (EEG) signals associated with the imagined movement of specific limbs. Despite significant advancements in BCI technologies over the past 40 years, a notable challenge remains: many users lack BCI proficiency, unable to produce sufficiently distinct and reliable MI brain patterns, hence leading to low classification rates in their BCIs. The objective of this study is to enhance the online performance of MI-BCIs in a personalized, biomarker-driven approach using transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS).

APPROACH: Previous studies have identified that the peak power spectral density (PSD) value in sensorimotor idling rhythms is a neural correlate of participants' upper limb MI-BCI performances. In this active-controlled, single-blind study, we applied 20 minutes of tACS at the participant-specific, peak µ frequency in resting-state sensorimotor rhythms (SMRs), with the goal of enhancing resting-state µ SMRs.

MAIN RESULTS: After tACS, we observed significant improvements in event-related desynchronizations (ERDs) of µ sensorimotor rhythms (SMRs), and in the performance of an online MI-BCI that decodes left versus right hand commands in healthy participants (N=10) -but not in an active control-stimulation control group (N=10). Lastly, we showed a significant correlation between the resting-state µ SMRs and µ ERD, offering a mechanistic interpretation behind the observed changes in online BCI performances.

SIGNIFICANCE: Our research lays the groundwork for future non-invasive interventions designed to enhance BCI performances, thereby improving the independence and interactions of individuals who rely on these systems.

RevDate: 2025-01-14

Kim KH, Jeong JH, Ko MJ, et al (2024)

Using Artificial Intelligence in the Comprehensive Management of Spinal Cord Injury.

Korean journal of neurotrauma, 20(4):215-224.

Spinal cord injury (SCI) frequently results in persistent motor, sensory, or autonomic dysfunction, and the outcomes are largely determined by the location and severity of the injury. Despite significant technological progress, the intricate nature of the spinal cord anatomy and the difficulties associated with neuroregeneration make full recovery from SCI uncommon. This review explores the potential of artificial intelligence (AI), with a particular focus on machine learning, to enhance patient outcomes in SCI management. The application of AI, specifically machine learning, has revolutionized the diagnosis, treatment, prognosis, and rehabilitation of patients with SCI. By leveraging large datasets and identifying complex patterns, AI contributes to improved diagnostic accuracy, optimizes surgical procedures, and enables the personalization of therapeutic interventions. AI-driven prognostic models provide accurate predictions of recovery, facilitating improved planning and resource allocation. Additionally, AI-powered rehabilitation systems, including robotic devices and brain-computer interfaces, increase the effectiveness and accessibility of therapy. However, realizing the full potential of AI in SCI care requires ongoing research, interdisciplinary collaboration, and the development of comprehensive datasets. As AI continues to evolve, it is expected to play an increasingly vital role in enhancing the outcomes of patients with SCI.

RevDate: 2025-01-14

Gu C, Jin X, Zhu L, et al (2025)

Cross-session SSVEP brainprint recognition using attentive multi-sub-band depth identity embedding learning network.

Cognitive neurodynamics, 19(1):15.

Brainprint recognition technology, regarded as a promising biometric technology, encounters challenges stemming from the time-varied, low signal-to-noise ratio of brain signals, such as electroencephalogram (EEG). Steady-state visual evoked potentials (SSVEP) exhibit high signal-to-noise ratio and frequency locking, making them a promising paradigm for brainprint recognition. Consequently, the extraction of time-invariant identity information from SSVEP EEG signals is essential. In this paper, we propose an Attentive Multi-sub-band Depth Identity Embedding Learning Network for stable cross-session SSVEP brainprint recognition. To address the issue of low recognition accuracy across sessions, we introduce the Sub-band Attentive Frequency mechanism, which integrates the frequency-domain relevant characteristics of the SSVEP paradigm and focuses on exploring depth-frequency identity embedding information. Also, we employ Attentive Statistic Pooling to enhance the stability of frequency domain feature distributions across sessions. Extensive experimentation and validation were conducted on two multi-session SSVEP benchmark datasets. The experimental results show that our approach outperforms other state-of-art models on 2-second samples across sessions and has the potential to serve as a benchmark in multi-subject biometric recognition systems.

RevDate: 2025-01-14

Zhou Y, Wang P, Gong P, et al (2025)

Cross-subject mental workload recognition using bi-classifier domain adversarial learning.

Cognitive neurodynamics, 19(1):16.

To deploy Electroencephalogram (EEG) based Mental Workload Recognition (MWR) systems in the real world, it is crucial to develop general models that can be applied across subjects. Previous studies have utilized domain adaptation to mitigate inter-subject discrepancies in EEG data distributions. However, they have focused on reducing global domain discrepancy, while neglecting local workload-categorical domain divergence. This degrades the workload-discriminating ability of subject-invariant features. To deal with this problem, we propose a novel joint category-wise and domain-wise alignment Domain Adaptation (cdaDA) algorithm, using bi-classifier learning and domain discriminative adversarial learning. The bi-classifier learning approach is adopted to address the similarities and differences between categories, helping to align EEG data within the same mental workload categories. Additionally, the domain discriminative adversarial learning technique is adopted to consider global domain information by minimizing global domain discrepancy. By integrating both local category information and global domain information, the cdaDA model performs a coarse-to-fine alignment and achieves promising cross-subject MWR results.

RevDate: 2025-01-14

Wang J, Zhang L, Chen S, et al (2025)

Individuals with high autistic traits exhibit altered interhemispheric brain functional connectivity patterns.

Cognitive neurodynamics, 19(1):9.

Individuals with high autistic traits (AT) encounter challenges in social interaction, similar to autistic persons. Precise screening and focused interventions positively contribute to improving this situation. Functional connectivity analyses can measure information transmission and integration between brain regions, providing neurophysiological insights into these challenges. This study aimed to investigate the patterns of brain networks in high AT individuals to offer theoretical support for screening and intervention decisions. EEG data were collected during a 4-min resting state session with eyes open and closed from 48 participants. Using the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ) scale, participants were categorized into the high AT group (HAT, n = 15) and low AT groups (LAT, n = 15). We computed the interhemispheric and intrahemispheric alpha coherence in two groups. The correlation between physiological indices and AQ scores was also examined. Results revealed that HAT exhibited significantly lower alpha coherence in the homologous hemispheres of the occipital cortex compared to LAT during the eyes-closed resting state. Additionally, significant negative correlations were observed between the degree of AT (AQ scores) and the alpha coherence in the occipital cortex, as well as in the right frontal and left occipital regions. The findings indicated that high AT individuals exhibit decreased connectivity in the occipital region, potentially resulting in diminished ability to process social information from visual inputs. Our discovery contributes to a deeper comprehension of the neural underpinnings of social challenges in high AT individuals, providing neurophysiological signatures for screening and intervention strategies for this population.

RevDate: 2025-01-17

Wu L, Jiang M, Zhao M, et al (2025)

Right inferior frontal cortex and preSMA in response inhibition: An investigation based on PTC model.

NeuroImage, 306:121004 pii:S1053-8119(25)00004-7 [Epub ahead of print].

Response inhibition is an essential component of cognitive function. A large body of literature has used neuroimaging data to uncover the neural architecture that regulates inhibitory control in general and movement cancelation. The presupplementary motor area (preSMA) and the right inferior frontal cortex (rIFC) are the key nodes in the inhibitory control network. However, how these two regions contribute to response inhibition remains controversial. Based on the Pause-then-Cancel Model (PTC), this study employed functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate the functional specificity of two regions in the stopping process. The Go/No-Go task (GNGT) and the Stop Signal Task (SST) were administered to the same group of participants. We used the GNGT to dissociate the pause process and both the GNGT and the SST to investigate the inhibition mechanism. Imaging data revealed that response inhibition produced by both tasks activated the preSMA and rIFC. Furthermore, an across-participants analysis showed that increased activation in the rIFC was associated with a delay in the go response in the GNGT. In contrast, increased activation in the preSMA was associated with good inhibition efficiency via the striatum in both GNGT and SST. These behavioral and imaging findings support the PTC model of the role of rIFC and preSMA, that the former is involved in a pause process to delay motor responses, whereas the preSMA is involved in the stopping of motor responses.

RevDate: 2025-01-13
CmpDate: 2025-01-11

Chio N, E Quiles-Cucarella (2024)

A Bibliometric Review of Brain-Computer Interfaces in Motor Imagery and Steady-State Visually Evoked Potentials for Applications in Rehabilitation and Robotics.

Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 25(1):.

In this paper, a bibliometric review is conducted on brain-computer interfaces (BCI) in non-invasive paradigms like motor imagery (MI) and steady-state visually evoked potentials (SSVEP) for applications in rehabilitation and robotics. An exploratory and descriptive approach is used in the analysis. Computational tools such as the biblioshiny application for R-Bibliometrix and VOSViewer are employed to generate data on years, sources, authors, affiliation, country, documents, co-author, co-citation, and co-occurrence. This article allows for the identification of different bibliometric indicators such as the research process, evolution, visibility, volume, influence, impact, and production in the field of brain-computer interfaces for MI and SSVEP paradigms in rehabilitation and robotics applications from 2000 to August 2024.

RevDate: 2025-01-13
CmpDate: 2025-01-11

Özkahraman A, Ölmez T, Z Dokur (2024)

Performance Improvement with Reduced Number of Channels in Motor Imagery BCI System.

Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 25(1):.

Classifying Motor Imaging (MI) Electroencephalogram (EEG) signals is of vital importance for Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) systems, but challenges remain. A key challenge is to reduce the number of channels to improve flexibility, portability, and computational efficiency, especially in multi-class scenarios where more channels are needed for accurate classification. This study demonstrates that combining Electrooculogram (EOG) channels with a reduced set of EEG channels is more effective than relying on a large number of EEG channels alone. EOG channels provide useful information for MI signal classification, countering the notion that they only introduce eye-related noise. The study uses advanced deep learning techniques, including multiple 1D convolution blocks and depthwise-separable convolutions, to optimize classification accuracy. The findings in this study are tested on two datasets: dataset 1, the BCI Competition IV Dataset IIa (4-class MI), and dataset 2, the Weibo dataset (7-class MI). The performance for dataset 1, utilizing 3 EEG and 3 EOG channels (6 channels total), is of 83% accuracy, while dataset 2, with 3 EEG and 2 EOG channels (5 channels total), achieves an accuracy of 61%, demonstrating the effectiveness of the proposed channel reduction method and deep learning model.

RevDate: 2025-01-10

Chang A, Poeppel D, X Teng (2025)

Temporally dissociable neural representations of pitch height and chroma.

The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience pii:JNEUROSCI.1567-24.2024 [Epub ahead of print].

The extraction and analysis of pitch underpin speech and music recognition, sound segregation, and other auditory tasks. Perceptually, pitch can be represented as a helix composed of two factors: height monotonically aligns with frequency, while chroma cyclically repeats at doubled frequencies. Although the early perceptual and neurophysiological mechanisms for extracting pitch from acoustic signals have been extensively investigated, the equally essential subsequent stages that bridge to high-level auditory cognition remain less well understood. How does the brain represent perceptual attributes of pitch at higher-order processing stages and how are the neural representations formed over time? We used a machine learning approach to decode time-resolved neural responses of human listeners (10 females and 7 males) measured by magnetoencephalography across different pitches, hypothesizing that different pitches sharing similar neural representations would result in reduced decoding performance. We show that pitch can be decoded from lower-frequency neural responses within auditory-frontal cortical regions. Specifically, linear mixed-effect modeling reveals that height and chroma explain decoding performance of delta band (0.5-4 Hz) neural activity at distinct latencies: a long-lasting height effect precedes a transient chroma effect, followed by a recurrence of height after chroma, indicating sequential processing stages associated with unique perceptual and neural characteristics. Furthermore, the localization analyses of the decoder demonstrate that height and chroma are associated with overlapping cortical regions, with differences observed in the right orbital and polar frontal cortex. The data provide a perspective motivating new hypotheses on the mechanisms of pitch representation.Significance Statement Pitch is fundamental to various facets of human hearing, including music appreciation, speech comprehension, vocal learning, and sound source differentiation. How does the brain encode the perceptual features of pitch? By applying machine learning techniques to time-resolved neuroimaging data of individuals listening to different pitches, our findings reveal that pitch height and chroma-two distinct features of pitch-are associated with different neural dynamics within the auditory-frontal cortical network, with height playing a more prominent role. This offers a unified theoretical framework for understanding the perceptual and neural characteristics of pitch perception and opens new avenues for noninvasively decoding human auditory perception to develop brain-computer interfaces.

RevDate: 2025-01-10

Peters B, Celik B, Gaines D, et al (2025)

RSVP Keyboard with Inquiry Preview: mixed performance and user experience with an adaptive, multimodal typing interface combining EEG and switch input.

Journal of neural engineering [Epub ahead of print].

OBJECTIVE: The RSVP Keyboard is a non-implantable, event-related potential-based brain-computer interface (BCI) system designed to support communication access for people with severe speech and physical impairments. Here we introduce Inquiry Preview, a new RSVP Keyboard interface incorporating switch input for users with some voluntary motor function, and describe its effects on typing performance and other outcomes.

APPROACH: Four individuals with disabilities participated in the collaborative design of possible switch input applications for the RSVP Keyboard, leading to the development of Inquiry Preview and a method of fusing switch input with language model and electroencephalography (EEG) evidence for typing. Twenty-four participants without disabilities and one potential end user with incomplete locked-in syndrome took part in two experiments investigating the effects of Inquiry Preview and two modes of switch input on typing accuracy and speed during a copy-spelling task.

MAIN RESULTS: For participants without disabilities, Inquiry Preview and switch input tended to worsen typing performance compared to the standard RSVP Keyboard condition, with more consistent effects across participants for speed than for accuracy. However, there was considerable variability, with some participants demonstrating improved typing performance and better user experience with Inquiry Preview and switch input. Typing performance for the potential end user was comparable to that of participants without disabilities. He typed most quickly and accurately with Inquiry Preview and switch input and gave favorable user experience ratings to those conditions, but preferred standard RSVP Keyboard.

SIGNIFICANCE: Inquiry Preview is a novel multimodal interface for the RSVP Keyboard BCI, incorporating switch input as an additional control signal. Typing performance and user experience and preference varied widely across participants, reinforcing the need for flexible, customizable BCI systems that can adapt to individual users.

CLINICALTRIALS: gov Identifier: NCT04468919.

RevDate: 2025-01-15

Zhang F, Pu Y, XZ Kong (2025)

Parallel vector memories or single memory updating?.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 122(1):e2422788121.

RevDate: 2025-01-15
CmpDate: 2025-01-10

Chivukula S, Aflalo T, Zhang C, et al (2025)

Population encoding of observed and actual somatosensations in the human posterior parietal cortex.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 122(1):e2316012121.

Cognition relies on transforming sensory inputs into a generalizable understanding of the world. Mirror neurons have been proposed to underlie this process, mapping visual representations of others' actions and sensations onto neurons that mediate our own, providing a conduit for understanding. However, this theory has limitations. Here, we hypothesize that mirror-like responses represent one facet of a broader framework in which our brains engage internal models for cognition. We recorded populations of single neurons in the human posterior parietal cortex (PPC) of a brain-machine interface clinical trial participant implanted with a microelectrode array while she either experienced actual touch, or observed diverse tactile stimuli applied to other individuals. Two body locations were tested, on each of the participant and other individuals. Some neurons exhibited mirror-like properties, consistent with earlier literature. However, they were fragile, breaking with increased task complexity. Population responses were better characterized by generalizable and compositional basic-level features encoded within neural subspaces. These features enable the population to respond to diverse actual and observed touch stimuli and are recruited similarly for similar forms of touch. Mirror-like neurons belong within these subspaces, contributing more globally to compositionality and generalizability. We speculate that at a population-level, human PPC manifests an internal model for touch, and that cognition unfolds in the high-level human cortex by versatility in its representational building blocks. In a broad sense, we speculate that the population features we demonstrate support a broad mechanism by which the high-level human cortex enables understanding.

RevDate: 2025-01-10

Lin N, Wang S, Li Y, et al (2025)

Resistive memory-based zero-shot liquid state machine for multimodal event data learning.

Nature computational science [Epub ahead of print].

The human brain is a complex spiking neural network (SNN) capable of learning multimodal signals in a zero-shot manner by generalizing existing knowledge. Remarkably, it maintains minimal power consumption through event-based signal propagation. However, replicating the human brain in neuromorphic hardware presents both hardware and software challenges. Hardware limitations, such as the slowdown of Moore's law and Von Neumann bottleneck, hinder the efficiency of digital computers. In addition, SNNs are characterized by their software training complexities. Here, to this end, we propose a hardware-software co-design on a 40 nm 256 kB in-memory computing macro that physically integrates a fixed and random liquid state machine SNN encoder with trainable artificial neural network projections. We showcase the zero-shot learning of multimodal events on the N-MNIST and N-TIDIGITS datasets, including visual and audio data association, as well as neural and visual data alignment for brain-machine interfaces. Our co-design achieves classification accuracy comparable to fully optimized software models, resulting in a 152.83- and 393.07-fold reduction in training costs compared with state-of-the-art spiking recurrent neural network-based contrastive learning and prototypical networks, and a 23.34- and 160-fold improvement in energy efficiency compared with cutting-edge digital hardware, respectively. These proof-of-principle prototypes demonstrate zero-shot multimodal events learning capability for emerging efficient and compact neuromorphic hardware.

RevDate: 2025-01-09

An D, You Y, Ma Q, et al (2025)

Deficiency of histamine H2 receptors in parvalbumin-positive neurons leads to hyperactivity, impulsivity, and impaired attention.

Neuron pii:S0896-6273(24)00880-8 [Epub ahead of print].

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), affecting 4% of the population, is characterized by inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity; however, its neurophysiological mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we discovered that deficiency of histamine H2 receptor (H2R) in parvalbumin-positive neurons in substantia nigra pars recticulata (PV[SNr]) attenuates PV[+] neuronal activity and induces hyperactivity, impulsivity, and inattention in mice. Moreover, decreased H2R expression was observed in PV[SNr] in patients with ADHD symptoms and dopamine-transporter-deficient mice, whose behavioral phenotypes were alleviated by H2R agonist treatment. Dysfunction of PV[SNr] efferents to the substantia nigra pars compacta dopaminergic neurons and superior colliculus differently contributes to H2R-deficiency-induced behavioral disorders. Collectively, our results demonstrate that H2R deficiency in PV[+] neurons contributes to hyperactivity, impulsivity, and inattention by dampening PV[SNr] activity and involving different efferents in mice. It may enhance understanding of the molecular and circuit-level basis of ADHD and afford new potential therapeutic targets for ADHD-like psychiatric diseases.

RevDate: 2025-01-09

Li L, Menendez-Lustri DM, Hartzler A, et al (2025)

Systemically administered platelet-inspired nanoparticles to reduce inflammation surrounding intracortical microelectrodes.

Biomaterials, 317:123082 pii:S0142-9612(25)00001-8 [Epub ahead of print].

Intracortical microelectrodes (IMEs) are essential for neural signal acquisition in neuroscience and brain-machine interface (BMI) systems, aiding patients with neurological disorders, paralysis, and amputations. However, IMEs often fail to maintain robust signal quality over time, partly due to neuroinflammation caused by vascular damage during insertion. Platelet-inspired nanoparticles (PIN), which possess injury-targeting functions, mimic the adhesion and aggregation of active platelets through conjugated collagen-binding peptides (CBP), von Willebrand Factor-binding peptides (VBP), and fibrinogen-mimetic peptides (FMP). Systemically administered PINs can potentially enhance hemostasis and promote the resealing of IME insertion-induced leaky blood-brain barrier (BBB), thereby attenuating the influx of blood-derived proteins into the brain parenchyma that trigger neuroinflammation. This study explores the potential of PINs to mitigate neuroinflammation at implant sites. Male Sprague Dawley rats underwent craniotomies and IME implantations, followed by a single dose of Cy5 labeled PINs (2 mg/kg). Rats were sacrificed at intervals from 0 to 4 days post-implantation (DPI) for biodistribution analysis using an in vivo live imaging system (IVIS) and immunohistochemistry (IHC) to assess neuroinflammation, BBB permeability, and active platelet distribution. Another cohort of rats received weekly PINs, trehalose buffer (TH, diluent control), or control nanoparticles (CP, PEG-coated liposomes) for 4 weeks, with similar endpoint analyses. Results indicated that PIN concentrations were significantly elevated near IME interfaces acutely (0-4 DPI) and after 4 weeks of repeated dosing. At 3 DPI, peak intensities of active platelets (CD62P), activated microglia/macrophages (CD68), and PINs were observed. Immunoglobulin G (IgG) was upregulated during the first 24 h near implant sites but declined thereafter. At 4 weeks, the PINs group exhibited higher intensities of active platelets and PINs, and reduced CD68 and IgG levels compared to controls. PINs effectively targeted the IME-tissue interface, alongside endogenous activated platelets, resulting in reduced neuroinflammatory and BBB-leakage markers compared to the diluent-only-infused control group. Repeated dosing of PINs presents a promising approach for enhancing the quality of neural recordings in future studies.

RevDate: 2025-01-17
CmpDate: 2025-01-17

Elsohaby I, Kostoulas P, Fayez M, et al (2025)

Bayesian estimation of diagnostic accuracy of fecal smears, fecal PCR and serum ELISA for detecting Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis infections in four domestic ruminant species in Saudi Arabia.

Veterinary microbiology, 301:110377.

Paratuberculosis, a chronic wasting disease affecting domestic and wild ruminants worldwide, is caused by Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP). Various diagnostic tests exist for detecting MAP infection; however, none of them possess perfect accuracy to be qualified as a reference standard test, particularly due to their notably low sensitivity. Therefore, we used Bayesian latent class models (BLCMs) to estimate diagnostic accuracy of fecal smears (FS), fecal PCR and serum ELISA for detecting MAP infections in sheep, goats, cattle, and camels older than 2 years in Saudi Arabia. Data from a cross-sectional study conducted in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia on 31 different farms with a history of MAP infection were analyzed. Fecal and blood samples from all animals older than 2 years in each farm were collected, resulting in a total of 220 sheep, 123 goats, 66 cattle, and 240 camels sampled. FS and IS900-PCR were performed on fecal samples to detect acid-fast bacilli and MAP DNA, respectively. The IDEXX ELISA kit was used to detect MAP antibodies in serum samples. For each ruminant species population, a BLCM was fitted to obtain posterior estimates [medians and 95 % Bayesian credible intervals (95 % BCI)] for sensitivity (Se) and specificity (Sp) of the three tests. We assumed FS and PCR to be conditionally dependent on the true animal MAP status. Prior distributions for test accuracy were used if available. FS had the highest Se among all tests and across all species with median values around 80 % in sheep, goats and camels, and near 50 % in cattle. Median Sp estimates of ELISA and PCR were higher than 90 % for all species. FS yielded the lowest Sp of the study when applied in camels, sheep, and goats. Using the prevalence observed in this study, median positive predictive value (PPV) was higher for PCR and ELISA than FS for camels, sheep, and goats. In cattle, PPV of all tests was similar with median estimates > 95 %. In camels, sheep, and goats, median negative predicative value (NPV) of all tests were > 60 %. The lowest median NPV for all tests were observed in cattle (< 30 %). Our results suggest that ELISA is a suitable option to identify MAP infected animals in farms with previous history of MAP in the Eastern region of Saudi Arabia.

RevDate: 2025-01-09

Alkawadri CI, Yan Q, Kocuglu Kinal AG, et al (2024)

Comparison of EEG Signal Characteristics of Subdural and Depth Electrodes.

Journal of clinical neurophysiology : official publication of the American Electroencephalographic Society pii:00004691-990000000-00194 [Epub ahead of print].

OBJECTIVES: Our study aimed to compare signal characteristics of subdural electrodes (SDE) and depth stereo EEG placed within a 5-mm vicinity in patients with drug-resistant epilepsy. We report how electrode design and placement collectively affect signal content from a shared source between these electrode types.

METHODS: In subjects undergoing invasive intracranial EEG evaluation at a surgical epilepsy center from 2012 to 2018, stereo EEG and SDE electrode contacts placed within a 5-mm vicinity were identified. Of these, 24 contacts (12 pairs) met our criteria for signal-to-noise ratio and data availability for final analysis. We used Welch method to analyze the correlation of power spectral densities of EEG segments, root mean square of 1-second windows, and fast-Fourier transform to calculate coherence across conventional frequency bands.

RESULTS: We observed a median distance of 3.7 mm between the electrode contact pairs. Time-aware analysis highlighted the coherence's strength primarily in the high-gamma band, where the median (r) was 0.889. In addition, the median power ratios between the SDE and stereo EEG signal was 1.99. This ratio decreased from high-gamma to infra-low frequencies, with medians of 2.07 and 0.97, respectively. The power spectral densities for the stereo EEG and SDE electrodes demonstrated a strong correlation, with a median correlation coefficient (r) of 0.99 and an interquartile range from 0.915 to 0.996.

CONCLUSIONS: Signals captured by standard subdural and depth (intracranial EEG) electrodes within a 5-mm radius exhibit band-specific coherence and are not identical. The association was most pronounced in the high-gamma band, with coherence decreasing with lower frequencies. Our findings underscore the combined effects of electrode size, design, placement, preferred bandwidth, and the nature of the activity source on signal recording. Particularly, SDE employed herein may offer advantages for high-frequency signals, but the impact of electrode size on recordings necessitates careful consideration in context-specific situations.

SIGNIFICANCE: The findings relate to surgical epilepsy care and may inform the design of brain-computer interface.

RevDate: 2025-01-09

Cai Z, Li P, Cheng L, et al (2025)

A high performance heterogeneous hardware architecture for brain computer interface.

Biomedical engineering letters, 15(1):217-227.

Brain-computer interface (BCI) has been widely used in human-computer interaction. The introduction of artificial intelligence has further improved the performance of BCI system. In recent years, the development of BCI has gradually shifted from personal computers to embedded devices, which boasts lower power consumption and smaller size, but at the cost of limited device resources and computing speed, thus can hardly improve the support of complex algorithms. This paper proposes a heterogeneous BCI architecture based on ARM + FPGA, enabling real-time processing of electroencephalogram (EEG) signals. Adopting data quantization, layer fusion and data augmentation to optimize the compact neural network model EEGNet, and design dedicated hardware engines to accelerate the network. Experimental results show that the system achieves 93.3% classification accuracy for steady-state visual evoked potential signals, with a time delay of 0.2 ms per trail, and a power consumption of approximately (1.91 W). That is 31.5 times faster acceleration is realized at the cost of only 0.7% lower accuracy compared with the conventional processor. The results show that the BCI architecture proposed in this study has strong practicability and high research significance.

RevDate: 2025-01-11
CmpDate: 2025-01-09

Shelishiyah R, Thiyam DB, Margaret MJ, et al (2025)

A hybrid CNN model for classification of motor tasks obtained from hybrid BCI system.

Scientific reports, 15(1):1360.

The Hybrid-Brain Computer Interface (BCI) has shown improved performance, especially in classifying multi-class data. Two non-invasive BCI modules are combined to achieve an improved classification which are Electroencephalogram (EEG) and functional Near Infra-red Spectroscopy (fNIRS). Classifying contralateral and ipsilateral motor movements is found challenging among the other mental activity signals. The current work focuses on the performance of deep learning methods like - Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) and Bidirectional Long-Short term memory (Bi-LSTM) in classifying a four-class motor execution of Right Hand, Left Hand, Right Arm and Left Arm taken from the CORE dataset. The model performance was evaluated using metrics such as Accuracy, F1 - score, Precision, Recall, AUC and ROC curve. The CNN and Hybrid CNN models have resulted in 98.3% and 99% accuracy respectively.

RevDate: 2025-01-08

Ahmadi S, Desain P, J Thielen (2024)

A Bayesian dynamic stopping method for evoked response brain-computer interfacing.

Frontiers in human neuroscience, 18:1437965.

INTRODUCTION: As brain-computer interfacing (BCI) systems transition fromassistive technology to more diverse applications, their speed, reliability, and user experience become increasingly important. Dynamic stopping methods enhance BCI system speed by deciding at any moment whether to output a result or wait for more information. Such approach leverages trial variance, allowing good trials to be detected earlier, thereby speeding up the process without significantly compromising accuracy. Existing dynamic stopping algorithms typically optimize measures such as symbols per minute (SPM) and information transfer rate (ITR). However, these metrics may not accurately reflect system performance for specific applications or user types. Moreover, many methods depend on arbitrary thresholds or parameters that require extensive training data.

METHODS: We propose a model-based approach that takes advantage of the analytical knowledge that we have about the underlying classification model. By using a risk minimization approach, our model allows precise control over the types of errors and the balance between precision and speed. This adaptability makes it ideal for customizing BCI systems to meet the diverse needs of various applications.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: We validate our proposed method on a publicly available dataset, comparing it with established static and dynamic stopping methods. Our results demonstrate that our approach offers a broad range of accuracy-speed trade-offs and achieves higher precision than baseline stopping methods.

RevDate: 2025-01-08

Zeng X, Kang T, Huang W, et al (2025)

How Should the BCI and BOOI Index be Correctly Applied in Patients With Low-Compliance Bladder?.

RevDate: 2025-01-08
CmpDate: 2025-01-08

Alzahrani S, Banjar H, R Mirza (2024)

Systematic Review of EEG-Based Imagined Speech Classification Methods.

Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 24(24):.

This systematic review examines EEG-based imagined speech classification, emphasizing directional words essential for development in the brain-computer interface (BCI). This study employed a structured methodology to analyze approaches using public datasets, ensuring systematic evaluation and validation of results. This review highlights the feature extraction techniques that are pivotal to classification performance. These include deep learning, adaptive optimization, and frequency-specific decomposition, which enhance accuracy and robustness. Classification methods were explored by comparing traditional machine learning with deep learning and emphasizing the role of brain lateralization in imagined speech for effective recognition and classification. This study discusses the challenges of generalizability and scalability in imagined speech recognition, focusing on subject-independent approaches and multiclass scalability. Performance benchmarking across various datasets and methodologies revealed varied classification accuracies, reflecting the complexity and variability of EEG signals. This review concludes that challenges remain despite progress, particularly in classifying directional words. Future research directions include improved signal processing techniques, advanced neural network architectures, and more personalized, adaptive BCI systems. This review is critical for future efforts to develop practical communication tools for individuals with speech and motor impairments using EEG-based BCIs.

RevDate: 2025-01-08
CmpDate: 2025-01-08

Khabti J, AlAhmadi S, A Soudani (2024)

Enhancing Deep-Learning Classification for Remote Motor Imagery Rehabilitation Using Multi-Subject Transfer Learning in IoT Environment.

Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 24(24):.

One of the most promising applications for electroencephalogram (EEG)-based brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) is motor rehabilitation through motor imagery (MI) tasks. However, current MI training requires physical attendance, while remote MI training can be applied anywhere, facilitating flexible rehabilitation. Providing remote MI training raises challenges to ensuring an accurate recognition of MI tasks by healthcare providers, in addition to managing computation and communication costs. The MI tasks are recognized through EEG signal processing and classification, which can drain sensor energy due to the complexity of the data and the presence of redundant information, often influenced by subject-dependent factors. To address these challenges, we propose in this paper a multi-subject transfer-learning approach for an efficient MI training framework in remote rehabilitation within an IoT environment. For efficient implementation, we propose an IoT architecture that includes cloud/edge computing as a solution to enhance the system's efficiency and reduce the use of network resources. Furthermore, deep-learning classification with and without channel selection is applied in the cloud, while multi-subject transfer-learning classification is utilized at the edge node. Various transfer-learning strategies, including different epochs, freezing layers, and data divisions, were employed to improve accuracy and efficiency. To validate this framework, we used the BCI IV 2a dataset, focusing on subjects 7, 8, and 9 as targets. The results demonstrated that our approach significantly enhanced the average accuracy in both multi-subject and single-subject transfer-learning classification. In three-subject transfer-learning classification, the FCNNA model achieved up to 79.77% accuracy without channel selection and 76.90% with channel selection. For two-subject and single-subject transfer learning, the application of transfer learning improved the average accuracy by up to 6.55% and 12.19%, respectively, compared to classification without transfer learning. This framework offers a promising solution for remote MI rehabilitation, providing both accurate task recognition and efficient resource usage.

RevDate: 2025-01-08
CmpDate: 2025-01-08

Mikhaylov D, Saeed M, Husain Alhosani M, et al (2024)

Comparison of EEG Signal Spectral Characteristics Obtained with Consumer- and Research-Grade Devices.

Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 24(24):.

Electroencephalography (EEG) has emerged as a pivotal tool in both research and clinical practice due to its non-invasive nature, cost-effectiveness, and ability to provide real-time monitoring of brain activity. Wearable EEG technology opens new avenues for consumer applications, such as mental health monitoring, neurofeedback training, and brain-computer interfaces. However, there is still much to verify and re-examine regarding the functionality of these devices and the quality of the signal they capture, particularly as the field evolves rapidly. In this study, we recorded the resting-state brain activity of healthy volunteers via three consumer-grade EEG devices, namely PSBD Headband Pro, PSBD Headphones Lite, and Muse S Gen 2, and compared the spectral characteristics of the signal obtained with that recorded via the research-grade Brain Product amplifier (BP) with the mirroring montages. The results showed that all devices exhibited higher mean power in the low-frequency bands, which are characteristic of dry-electrode technology. PSBD Headband proved to match BP most precisely among the other examined devices. PSBD Headphones displayed a moderate correspondence with BP and signal quality issues in the central group of electrodes. Muse demonstrated the poorest signal quality, with extremely low alignment with BP. Overall, this study underscores the importance of considering device-specific design constraints and emphasizes the need for further validation to ensure the reliability and accuracy of wearable EEG devices.

RevDate: 2025-01-08
CmpDate: 2025-01-08

Novičić M, Djordjević O, Miler-Jerković V, et al (2024)

Improving the Performance of Electrotactile Brain-Computer Interface Using Machine Learning Methods on Multi-Channel Features of Somatosensory Event-Related Potentials.

Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 24(24):.

Traditional tactile brain-computer interfaces (BCIs), particularly those based on steady-state somatosensory-evoked potentials, face challenges such as lower accuracy, reduced bit rates, and the need for spatially distant stimulation points. In contrast, using transient electrical stimuli offers a promising alternative for generating tactile BCI control signals: somatosensory event-related potentials (sERPs). This study aimed to optimize the performance of a novel electrotactile BCI by employing advanced feature extraction and machine learning techniques on sERP signals for the classification of users' selective tactile attention. The experimental protocol involved ten healthy subjects performing a tactile attention task, with EEG signals recorded from five EEG channels over the sensory-motor cortex. We employed sequential forward selection (SFS) of features from temporal sERP waveforms of all EEG channels. We systematically tested classification performance using machine learning algorithms, including logistic regression, k-nearest neighbors, support vector machines, random forests, and artificial neural networks. We explored the effects of the number of stimuli required to obtain sERP features for classification and their influence on accuracy and information transfer rate. Our approach indicated significant improvements in classification accuracy compared to previous studies. We demonstrated that the number of stimuli for sERP generation can be reduced while increasing the information transfer rate without a statistically significant decrease in classification accuracy. In the case of the support vector machine classifier, we achieved a mean accuracy over 90% for 10 electrical stimuli, while for 6 stimuli, the accuracy decreased by less than 7%, and the information transfer rate increased by 60%. This research advances methods for tactile BCI control based on event-related potentials. This work is significant since tactile stimulation is an understudied modality for BCI control, and electrically induced sERPs are the least studied control signals in reactive BCIs. Exploring and optimizing the parameters of sERP elicitation, as well as feature extraction and classification methods, is crucial for addressing the accuracy versus speed trade-off in various assistive BCI applications where the tactile modality may have added value.

RevDate: 2025-01-08
CmpDate: 2025-01-08

Víg L, Zátonyi A, Csernyus B, et al (2024)

Optically Controlled Drug Delivery Through Microscale Brain-Machine Interfaces Using Integrated Upconverting Nanoparticles.

Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 24(24):.

The aim of this work is to incorporate lanthanide-cored upconversion nanoparticles (UCNP) into the surface of microengineered biomedical implants to create a spatially controlled and optically releasable model drug delivery device in an integrated fashion. Our approach enables silicone-based microelectrocorticography (ECoG) implants holding platinum/iridium recording sites to serve as a stable host of UCNPs. Nanoparticles excitable in the near-infrared (lower energy) regime and emitting visible (higher energy) light are utilized in a study. With the upconverted higher energy photons, we demonstrate the induction of photochemical (cleaving) reactions that enable the local release of specific dyes as a model system near the implant. The modified ECoG electrodes can be implanted in brain tissue to act as an uncaging system that releases small amounts of substance while simultaneously measuring the evoked neural response upon light activation. In this paper, several technological challenges like the surface modification of UCNPs, the immobilization of particles on the implantable platform, and measuring the stability of integrated UCNPs in in vitro and in vivo conditions are addressed in detail. Besides the chemical, mechanical, and optical characterization of the ready-to-use devices, the effect of nanoparticles on the original electrophysiological function is also evaluated. The results confirm that silicone-based brain-machine interfaces can be efficiently complemented with UCNPs to facilitate local model drug release.

RevDate: 2025-01-08
CmpDate: 2025-01-08

Fang F, Gao T, J Wu (2024)

Humanity Test-EEG Data Mediated Artificial Intelligence Multi-Person Interactive System.

Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 24(24):.

Artificial intelligence (AI) systems are widely applied in various industries and everyday life, particularly in fields such as virtual assistants, healthcare, and education. However, this paper highlights that existing research has often overlooked the philosophical and media aspects. To address this, we developed an interactive system called "Human Nature Test". In this context, "human nature" refers to emotion and consciousness, while "test" involves a critical analysis of AI technology and an exploration of the differences between humanity and technicality. Additionally, through experimental research and literature analysis, we found that the integration of electroencephalogram (EEG) data with AI systems is becoming a significant trend. The experiment involved 20 participants, with two conditions: C1 (using EEG data) and C2 (without EEG data). The results indicated a significant increase in immersion under the C1 condition, along with a more positive emotional experience. We summarized three design directions: enhancing immersion, creating emotional experiences, and expressing philosophical concepts. Based on these findings, there is potential for further developing EEG data as a medium to enrich interactive experiences, offering new insights into the fusion of technology and human emotion.

RevDate: 2025-01-08
CmpDate: 2025-01-08

Khalil AEK, Perez-Diaz JA, Cantoral-Ceballos JA, et al (2024)

Unlocking Security for Comprehensive Electroencephalogram-Based User Authentication Systems.

Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 24(24):.

With recent significant advancements in artificial intelligence, the necessity for more reliable recognition systems has rapidly increased to safeguard individual assets. The use of brain signals for authentication has gained substantial interest within the scientific community over the past decade. Most previous efforts have focused on identifying distinctive information within electroencephalogram (EEG) recordings. In this study, an EEG-based user authentication scheme is presented, employing a multi-layer perceptron feedforward neural network (MLP FFNN). The scheme utilizes P300 potentials derived from EEG signals, focusing on the user's intent to select specific characters. This approach involves two phases: user identification and user authentication. Both phases utilize EEG recordings of brain signals, data preprocessing, a database to store and manage these recordings for efficient retrieval and organization, and feature extraction using mutual information (MI) from selected EEG data segments, specifically targeting power spectral density (PSD) across five frequency bands. The user identification phase employs multi-class classifiers to predict the identity of a user from a set of enrolled users. The user authentication phase associates the predicted user identities with user labels using probability assessments, verifying the claimed identity as either genuine or an impostor. This scheme combines EEG data segments with user mapping, confidence calculations, and claimed user verification for robust authentication. It also accommodates new users by transforming EEG data into feature vectors without the need for retraining. The model extracts selected features to identify users and to classify the input based on these features to authenticate the user. The experiments show that the proposed scheme can achieve 97% accuracy in EEG-based user identification and authentication.

RevDate: 2025-01-08

Mahmoud TSM, Munawar A, Nawaz MZ, et al (2024)

Enhancing Multispectral Breast Imaging Quality Through Frame Accumulation and Hybrid GA-CPSO Registration.

Bioengineering (Basel, Switzerland), 11(12):.

Multispectral transmission imaging has emerged as a promising technique for imaging breast tissue with high resolution. However, the method encounters challenges such as low grayscale, noisy transmission images with weak signals, primarily due to the strong absorption and scattering of light in breast tissue. A common approach to improve the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and overall image quality is frame accumulation. However, factors such as camera jitter and respiratory motion during image acquisition can cause frame misalignment, degrading the quality of the accumulated image. To address these issues, this study proposes a novel image registration method. A hybrid approach combining a genetic algorithm (GA) and a constriction factor-based particle swarm optimization (CPSO), referred to as GA-CPSO, is applied for image registration before frame accumulation. The efficiency of this hybrid method is enhanced by incorporating a squared constriction factor (SCF), which speeds up the registration process and improves convergence towards optimal solutions. The GA identifies potential solutions, which are then refined by CPSO to expedite convergence. This methodology was validated on the sequence of breast frames taken at 600 nm, 620 nm, 670 nm, and 760 nm wavelength of light and proved the enhancement of accuracy by various mathematical assessments. It demonstrated high accuracy (99.93%) and reduced registration time. As a result, the GA-CPSO approach significantly improves the effectiveness of frame accumulation and enhances overall image quality. This study explored the groundwork for precise multispectral transmission image segmentation and classification.

RevDate: 2025-01-08

Geravanchizadeh M, Shaygan Asl A, S Danishvar (2024)

Selective Auditory Attention Detection Using Combined Transformer and Convolutional Graph Neural Networks.

Bioengineering (Basel, Switzerland), 11(12):.

Attention is one of many human cognitive functions that are essential in everyday life. Given our limited processing capacity, attention helps us focus only on what matters. Focusing attention on one speaker in an environment with many speakers is a critical ability of the human auditory system. This paper proposes a new end-to-end method based on the combined transformer and graph convolutional neural network (TraGCNN) that can effectively detect auditory attention from electroencephalograms (EEGs). This approach eliminates the need for manual feature extraction, which is often time-consuming and subjective. Here, the first EEG signals are converted to graphs. We then extract attention information from these graphs using spatial and temporal approaches. Finally, our models are trained with these data. Our model can detect auditory attention in both the spatial and temporal domains. Here, the EEG input is first processed by transformer layers to obtain a sequential representation of EEG based on attention onsets. Then, a family of graph convolutional layers is used to find the most active electrodes using the spatial position of electrodes. Finally, the corresponding EEG features of active electrodes are fed into the graph attention layers to detect auditory attention. The Fuglsang 2020 dataset is used in the experiments to train and test the proposed and baseline systems. The new TraGCNN approach, as compared with state-of-the-art attention classification methods from the literature, yields the highest performance in terms of accuracy (80.12%) as a classification metric. Additionally, the proposed model results in higher performance than our previously graph-based model for different lengths of EEG segments. The new TraGCNN approach is advantageous because attenuation detection is achieved from EEG signals of subjects without requiring speech stimuli, as is the case with conventional auditory attention detection methods. Furthermore, examining the proposed model for different lengths of EEG segments shows that the model is faster than our previous graph-based detection method in terms of computational complexity. The findings of this study have important implications for the understanding and assessment of auditory attention, which is crucial for many applications, such as brain-computer interface (BCI) systems, speech separation, and neuro-steered hearing aid development.

RevDate: 2025-01-08

Ma Y, Huang Z, Yang Y, et al (2024)

Emotion Recognition Model of EEG Signals Based on Double Attention Mechanism.

Brain sciences, 14(12):.

BACKGROUND: Emotions play a crucial role in people's lives, profoundly affecting their cognition, decision-making, and interpersonal communication. Emotion recognition based on brain signals has become a significant challenge in the fields of affective computing and human-computer interaction.

METHODS: Addressing the issue of inaccurate feature extraction and low accuracy of existing deep learning models in emotion recognition, this paper proposes a multi-channel automatic classification model for emotion EEG signals named DACB, which is based on dual attention mechanisms, convolutional neural networks, and bidirectional long short-term memory networks. DACB extracts features in both temporal and spatial dimensions, incorporating not only convolutional neural networks but also SE attention mechanism modules for learning the importance of different channel features, thereby enhancing the network's performance. DACB also introduces dot product attention mechanisms to learn the importance of spatial and temporal features, effectively improving the model's accuracy.

RESULTS: The accuracy of this method in single-shot validation tests on the SEED-IV and DREAMER (Valence-Arousal-Dominance three-classification) datasets is 99.96% and 87.52%, 90.06%, and 89.05%, respectively. In 10-fold cross-validation tests, the accuracy is 99.73% and 84.26%, 85.40%, and 85.02%, outperforming other models.

CONCLUSIONS: This demonstrates that the DACB model achieves high accuracy in emotion classification tasks, demonstrating outstanding performance and generalization ability and providing new directions for future research in EEG signal recognition.

RevDate: 2025-01-08

Adolf A, Köllőd CM, Márton G, et al (2024)

The Effect of Processing Techniques on the Classification Accuracy of Brain-Computer Interface Systems.

Brain sciences, 14(12):.

Background/Objectives: Accurately classifying Electroencephalography (EEG) signals is essential for the effective operation of Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCI), which is needed for reliable neurorehabilitation applications. However, many factors in the processing pipeline can influence classification performance. The objective of this study is to assess the effects of different processing steps on classification accuracy in EEG-based BCI systems. Methods: This study explores the impact of various processing techniques and stages, including the FASTER algorithm for artifact rejection (AR), frequency filtering, transfer learning, and cropped training. The Physionet dataset, consisting of four motor imagery classes, was used as input due to its relatively large number of subjects. The raw EEG was tested with EEGNet and Shallow ConvNet. To examine the impact of adding a spatial dimension to the input data, we also used the Multi-branch Conv3D Net and developed two new models, Conv2D Net and Conv3D Net. Results: Our analysis showed that classification accuracy can be affected by many factors at every stage. Applying the AR method, for instance, can either enhance or degrade classification performance, depending on the subject and the specific network architecture. Transfer learning was effective in improving the performance of all networks for both raw and artifact-rejected data. However, the improvement in classification accuracy for artifact-rejected data was less pronounced compared to unfiltered data, resulting in reduced precision. For instance, the best classifier achieved 46.1% accuracy on unfiltered data, which increased to 63.5% with transfer learning. In the filtered case, accuracy rose from 45.5% to only 55.9% when transfer learning was applied. An unexpected outcome regarding frequency filtering was observed: networks demonstrated better classification performance when focusing on lower-frequency components. Higher frequency ranges were more discriminative for EEGNet and Shallow ConvNet, but only when cropped training was applied. Conclusions: The findings of this study highlight the complex interaction between processing techniques and neural network performance, emphasizing the necessity for customized processing approaches tailored to specific subjects and network architectures.

RevDate: 2025-01-08

Beck S, Liberman Y, V Dubljević (2024)

Media Representation of the Ethical Issues Pertaining to Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) Technology.

Brain sciences, 14(12):.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) are a rapidly developing technology that captures and transmits brain signals to external sources, allowing the user control of devices such as prosthetics. BCI technology offers the potential to restore physical capabilities in the body and change how we interact and communicate with computers and each other. While BCI technology has existed for decades, recent developments have caused the technology to generate a host of ethical issues and discussions in both academic and public circles. Given that media representation has the potential to shape public perception and policy, it is necessary to evaluate the space that these issues take in public discourse.

METHODS: We conducted a rapid review of media articles in English discussing ethical issues of BCI technology from 2013 to 2024 as indexed by LexisNexis. Our searches yielded 675 articles, with a final sample containing 182 articles. We assessed the themes of the articles and coded them based on the ethical issues discussed, ethical frameworks, recommendations, tone, and application of technology.

RESULTS: Our results showed a marked rise in interest in media articles over time, signaling an increased focus on this topic. The majority of articles adopted a balanced or neutral tone when discussing BCIs and focused on ethical issues regarding privacy, autonomy, and regulation.

CONCLUSIONS: Current discussion of ethical issues reflects growing news coverage of companies such as Neuralink, and reveals a mounting distrust of BCI technology. The growing recognition of ethical considerations in BCI highlights the importance of ethical discourse in shaping the future of the field.

RevDate: 2025-01-06

Zhai H, Li P, Wang H, et al (2025)

DMSO-promoted α-bromination of α-aryl ketones for the construction of 2-aryl-2-bromo-cycloketones.

Organic & biomolecular chemistry [Epub ahead of print].

A DMSO-promoted practical one-step α-bromination reaction of α-aryl ketones with NBS has been developed for the construction of 2-aryl-2-bromo-cycloketones. The desired regioselective α-bromination products were isolated in moderate to good yields, with a maximum tested scale of 15 mmol. Notably, ketamine derivatives could be smoothly synthesized in two steps.

RevDate: 2025-01-06

Zhu L, Wang Y, Huang A, et al (2025)

A multi-branch, multi-scale, and multi-view CNN with lightweight temporal attention mechanism for EEG-based motor imagery decoding.

Computer methods in biomechanics and biomedical engineering [Epub ahead of print].

Convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have been widely utilized for decoding motor imagery (MI) from electroencephalogram (EEG) signals. However, extracting discriminative spatial-temporal-spectral features from low signal-to-noise ratio EEG signals remains challenging. This paper proposes MBMSNet , a multi-branch, multi-scale, and multi-view CNN with a lightweight temporal attention mechanism for EEG-Based MI decoding. Specifically, MBMSNet first extracts multi-view representations from raw EEG signals, followed by independent branches to capture spatial, spectral, temporal-spatial, and temporal-spectral features. Each branch includes a domain-specific convolutional layer, a variance layer, and a temporal attention layer. Finally, the features derived from each branch are concatenated with weights and classified through a fully connected layer. Experiments demonstrate MBMSNet outperforms state-of-the-art models, achieving accuracies of 84.60% on BCI Competition IV 2a, 87.80% on 2b, and 74.58% on OpenBMI, showcasing its potential for robust BCI applications.

RevDate: 2025-01-07

Cisotto G, Zancanaro A, Zoppis IF, et al (2024)

hvEEGNet: a novel deep learning model for high-fidelity EEG reconstruction.

Frontiers in neuroinformatics, 18:1459970.

INTRODUCTION: Modeling multi-channel electroencephalographic (EEG) time-series is a challenging tasks, even for the most recent deep learning approaches. Particularly, in this work, we targeted our efforts to the high-fidelity reconstruction of this type of data, as this is of key relevance for several applications such as classification, anomaly detection, automatic labeling, and brain-computer interfaces.

METHODS: We analyzed the most recent works finding that high-fidelity reconstruction is seriously challenged by the complex dynamics of the EEG signals and the large inter-subject variability. So far, previous works provided good results in either high-fidelity reconstruction of single-channel signals, or poor-quality reconstruction of multi-channel datasets. Therefore, in this paper, we present a novel deep learning model, called hvEEGNet, designed as a hierarchical variational autoencoder and trained with a new loss function. We tested it on the benchmark Dataset 2a (including 22-channel EEG data from 9 subjects).

RESULTS: We show that it is able to reconstruct all EEG channels with high-fidelity, fastly (in a few tens of epochs), and with high consistency across different subjects. We also investigated the relationship between reconstruction fidelity and the training duration and, using hvEEGNet as an anomaly detector, we spotted some data in the benchmark dataset that are corrupted and never highlighted before.

DISCUSSION: Thus, hvEEGNet could be very useful in several applications where automatic labeling of large EEG dataset is needed and time-consuming. At the same time, this work opens new fundamental research questions about (1) the effectiveness of deep learning models training (for EEG data) and (2) the need for a systematic characterization of the input EEG data to ensure robust modeling.

RevDate: 2025-01-07

Zhao X, Xu S, Geng K, et al (2024)

MP: A steady-state visual evoked potential dataset based on multiple paradigms.

iScience, 27(11):111030.

In the field of steady-state visual evoked potential (SSVEP), stimulus paradigms are regularly arranged or mimic the style of a keyboard with the same size. However, stimulation paradigms have important effects on the performance of SSVEP systems, which correlate with the electroencephalogram (EEG) signal amplitude and recognition accuracy. This paper provides MP dataset that was acquired using a 12-target BCI speller. MP dataset contains 9-channel EEG signals from the occipital region of 24 subjects under 5 stimulation paradigms with different stimulus sizes and arrangements. Stimuli were encoded using joint frequency and phase modulation (JFPM) method. Subjects completed an offline prompted spelling task using a speller under 5 paradigms. Each experiment contains 8 blocks, and each block contains 12 trials. Designers can use this dataset to test the performance of algorithms considering "stimulus size" and "stimulus arrangement". EEG data showed SSVEP features through amplitude-frequency analysis. FBCCA and TRCA confirmed its suitability.

RevDate: 2025-01-07

Ammar A, Salem A, Simak ML, et al (2025)

Acute effects of motor learning models on technical efficiency in strength-coordination exercises: a comparative analysis of Olympic snatch biomechanics in beginners.

Biology of sport, 42(1):151-161.

Despite the development of various motor learning models over many decades, the question of which model is most effective under which conditions to optimize the acquisition of skills remains a heated and recurring debate. This is particularly important in connection with learning sports movements with a high strength component. This study aims to examine the acute effects of various motor learning models on technical efficiency and force production during the Olympic snatch movement. In a within-subject design, sixteen highly active male participants (mean age: 23.13 ± 2.09 years), who were absolute beginners regarding the learning task, engaged in randomized snatch learning bouts, consisting of 36 trials across different learning models: differential learning (DL), contextual interference (serial, sCI; and blocked, bCI), and repetitive learning (RL). Kinematic and kinetic data were collected from three snatch trials executed following each learning bout. Discrete data from the most commonly monitored biomechanical parameters in Olympic weightlifting were analyzed using inferential statistics to identify differences between learning models. The statistical analysis revealed no significant differences between the learning models across all tested parameters, with p-values ranging from 0.236 to 0.99. However, it was observed that only the bouts with an exercise sequence following the DL model resulted in an average antero-posterior displacement of the barbell that matched the optimal displacement. This was characterized by a mean positive displacement towards the lifter during the pulling phases, a negative displacement away from the lifter in the turnover phase, and a return to positive displacement in the catch phase. These findings indicate the limited acute impact of the exercise sequences based on the three motor learning models on Olympic snatch technical efficiency in beginners, yet they hint at a possible slight advantage for the DL model. Coaches might therefore consider incorporating the DL model to potentially enhance technical efficiency, especially during the early stages of skill acquisition. Future research, involving even bigger amounts of exercise noise, longer learning periods, or a greater number of total learning trials and sessions, is essential to verify the potential advantages of the DL model for weightlifting technical efficiency.

RevDate: 2025-01-17

Wang B, Zhang Y, Li H, et al (2025)

Biologically inspired heterogeneous learning for accurate, efficient and low-latency neural network.

National science review, 12(1):nwae301.

The pursuit of artificial neural networks that mirror the accuracy, efficiency and low latency of biological neural networks remains a cornerstone of artificial intelligence (AI) research. Here, we incorporated recent neuroscientific findings of self-inhibiting autapse and neuron heterogeneity for innovating a spiking neural network (SNN) with enhanced learning and memorizing capacities. A bi-level programming paradigm was formulated to respectively learn neuron-level biophysical variables and network-level synapse weights for nested heterogeneous learning. We successfully demonstrated that our biologically inspired neuron model could reproduce neural statistics at both individual and group levels, contributing to the effective decoding of brain-computer interface data. Furthermore, the heterogeneous SNN showed higher accuracy (1%-10% improvement), superior efficiency (maximal 17.83-fold reduction in energy) and lower latency (maximal 5-fold improvement) in performing several AI tasks. For the first time, we benchmarked SNN for conducting cell type identification from scRNA-seq data. The proposed model correctly identified very rare cell types associated with severe brain diseases where typical SNNs failed.

RevDate: 2025-01-13
CmpDate: 2025-01-06

Kim MS, Park H, Kwon I, et al (2025)

Efficacy of brain-computer interface training with motor imagery-contingent feedback in improving upper limb function and neuroplasticity among persons with chronic stroke: a double-blinded, parallel-group, randomized controlled trial.

Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitation, 22(1):1.

BACKGROUND: Brain-computer interface (BCI) technology can enhance neural plasticity and motor recovery in persons with stroke. However, the effects of BCI training with motor imagery (MI)-contingent feedback versus MI-independent feedback remain unclear. This study aimed to investigate whether the contingent connection between MI-induced brain activity and feedback influences functional and neural plasticity outcomes. We hypothesized that BCI training, with MI-contingent feedback, would result in greater improvements in upper limb function and neural plasticity compared to BCI training, with MI-independent feedback.

METHODS: This randomized controlled trial included persons with chronic stroke who underwent BCI training involving functional electrical stimulation feedback on the affected wrist extensor. Primary outcomes included the Medical Research Council (MRC) scale score for muscle strength in the wrist extensor (MRC-WE) and active range of motion in wrist extension (AROM-WE). Resting-state electroencephalogram recordings were used to assess neural plasticity.

RESULTS: Compared to the MI-independent feedback BCI group, the MI-contingent feedback BCI group showed significantly greater improvements in MRC-WE scores (mean difference = 0.52, 95% CI = 0.03-1.00, p = 0.036) and demonstrated increased AROM-WE at 4 weeks post-intervention (p = 0.019). Enhanced functional connectivity in the affected hemisphere was observed in the MI-contingent feedback BCI group, correlating with MRC-WE and Fugl-Meyer assessment-distal scores. Improvements were also observed in the unaffected hemisphere's functional connectivity.

CONCLUSIONS: BCI training with MI-contingent feedback is more effective than MI-independent feedback in improving AROM-WE, MRC, and neural plasticity in individuals with chronic stroke. BCI technology could be a valuable addition to conventional rehabilitation for stroke survivors, enhancing recovery outcomes.

TRIAL REGISTRATION: CRIS (KCT0009013).

RevDate: 2025-01-10

Vogeley AO, Livinski AA, Dabaghi Varnosfaderani S, et al (2025)

Temporal dynamics of affective scene processing in the healthy adult human brain.

Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews, 169:106003 pii:S0149-7634(25)00003-X [Epub ahead of print].

Understanding how the brain distinguishes emotional from neutral scenes is crucial for advancing brain-computer interfaces, enabling real-time emotion detection for faster, more effective responses, and improving treatments for emotional disorders like depression and anxiety. However, inconsistent research findings have arisen from differences in study settings, such as variations in the time windows, brain regions, and emotion categories examined across studies. This review sought to compile the existing literature on the timing at which the adult brain differentiates basic affective from neutral scenes in less than one second, as previous studies have consistently shown that the brain can begin recognizing emotions within just a few milliseconds. The review includes studies that used electroencephalography (EEG) or magnetoencephalography (MEG) in healthy adults to examine brain responses to emotional versus neutral images within one second. Articles of interest were limited to the English language but not to any publication year. Excluded studies involved only patients (of any diagnosis), participants under age 18 (since emotional processing can differ between adults and younger individuals), non-passive tasks, low temporal resolution techniques, time intervals over one second, and animals. Of the 3045 screened articles, 19 met these criteria. Despite the variations between studies, the earliest onset for heightened brain responses to basic affective scenes compared to neutral ones was most commonly observed within the 250-300 ms time window. To the best of our knowledge, this review is the first to synthesize data on the timing of brain differentiation between emotional and neutral scenes in healthy adults.

RevDate: 2025-01-16

Ma X, Xue S, Ma H, et al (2025)

Esketamine alleviates LPS-induced depression-like behavior by activating Nrf2-mediated anti-inflammatory response in adolescent mice.

Neuroscience, 567:294-307 pii:S0306-4522(24)00775-9 [Epub ahead of print].

BACKGROUND: The mechanisms underlying esketamine's therapeutic effects remain elusive. The study aimed to explore the impact of single esketamine treatment on LPS-induced adolescent depressive-like behaviors and the role of Nrf2 regulated neuroinflammatory response in esketamine-produced rapid antidepressant efficacy.

METHODS: Adolescent male C57BL/6J mice were randomly assigned to three groups: control, LPS, and LPS + esketamine (15 mg/kg, i.p.). Depressive-like behaviors were evaluated via the OFT, NFST, and TST. Protein expression of Nrf2 and inflammatory cytokines, including TNF-α, IL-1β, and iNOS in the hippocampus and mPFC, were measured by western blot. Moreover, the Nrf2 inhibitor, ML385, was also applied in the current study. The depressive-like behaviors and the protein expression of Nrf2, TNF-α, IL-1β, and iNOS in mPFC and hippocampus were also measured. Additionally, the plasma's pro-inflammatory cytokines and anti-inflammatory cytokines were assessed using ELISA methods with or without ML385.

RESULTS: A single administration of esketamine treatment alleviated the LPS-induced depressive-like behaviors. Esketamine increased the expression of Nrf2 and reduced the expression of the inflammatory cytokines, including TNF-α, IL-1β, and iNOS, in the mPFC and hippocampus. Notably, pharmacological inhibition of Nrf2 via ML385 administration abrogated the antidepressive-like behaviors and anti-inflammatory effects induced by esketamine. In the periphery, esketamine mitigated the LPS-induced elevation of pro-inflammatory cytokines, and the reduction of anti-inflammatory cytokines, and this effect was reversed by Nrf2 inhibition.

CONCLUSION: Esketamine treatment exerts rapid antidepressant effects and attenuates neuroinflammation in LPS-induced adolescent depressive-like behaviors, potentially through the activation of Nrf2-mediated anti-inflammatory signaling.

RevDate: 2025-01-08

Huang J, Wei S, Gao Z, et al (2025)

Local structural-functional coupling with counterfactual explanations for epilepsy prediction.

NeuroImage, 306:120978 pii:S1053-8119(24)00475-0 [Epub ahead of print].

The structural-functional brain connections coupling (SC-FC coupling) describes the relationship between white matter structural connections (SC) and the corresponding functional activation or functional connections (FC). It has been widely used to identify brain disorders. However, the existing research on SC-FC coupling focuses on global and regional scales, and few studies have investigated the impact of brain disorders on this relationship from the perspective of multi-brain region cooperation (i.e., local scale). Here, we propose the local SC-FC coupling pattern for brain disorders prediction. Compared with previous methods, the proposed patterns quantify the relationship between SC and FC in terms of subgraphs rather than whole connections or single brain regions. Specifically, we first construct structural and functional connections using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) data, subsequently organizing them into a multimodal brain network. Then, we extract subgraphs from these multimodal brain networks and select them based on their frequencies to generate local SC-FC coupling patterns. Finally, we employ these patterns to identify brain disorders while refining abnormal patterns to generate counterfactual explanations. Results on a real epilepsy dataset suggest that the proposed method not only outperforms existing methods in accuracy but also provides insights into the local SC-FC coupling pattern and their changes in brain disorders. Code available at https://github.com/UAIBC-Brain/Local-SC-FC-coupling-pattern.

RevDate: 2025-01-05

Chu T, Si X, Song X, et al (2025)

Understanding structural-functional connectivity coupling in patients with major depressive disorder: A white matter perspective.

Journal of affective disorders, 373:219-226 pii:S0165-0327(24)02070-6 [Epub ahead of print].

PURPOSE: To elucidate the structural-functional connectivity (SC-FC) coupling in white matter (WM) tracts in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD).

METHODS: A total of 178 individuals diagnosed with MDD and 173 healthy controls (HCs) were recruited for this study. The Euclidean distance was calculated to assess SC-FC coupling. The primary analyses focused on investigating alterations in SC-FC coupling in WM tracts of individuals with MDD. Additionally, we explored the association between coupling and clinical symptoms. Secondary analyses examined differences among three subgroups of MDD: those with suicidal ideation (SI), those with a history of suicidal attempts (SA), and those non-suicidal (NS).

RESULTS: The study revealed increased SC-FC coupling mainly in the middle cerebellar peduncle and bilateral corticospinal tract (PFDR < 0.05) in patients with MDD compared with HCs. Additionally, right cerebral peduncle coupling strength exhibited a significant positive correlation with Hamilton Anxiety Scale scores (r = 0.269, PFDR = 0.041), while right cingulum (hippocampus) coupling strength showed a significant negative correlation with Nurses' Global Assessment of Suicide Risk scores (r = -0.159, PFDR = 0.036). An increase in left anterior limb of internal capsule (PBonferroni < 0.01) and left corticospinal tract (PBonferroni < 0.05) coupling has been observed in MDD with SI. Additionally, a decrease in right posterior limb of internal capsule coupling has been found in MDD with SA (PBonferroni < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS: This study emphasizes the variations in SC-FC coupling in WM tracts in individuals with MDD and its subgroups, highlighting the crucial role of WM networks in the pathophysiology of MDD.

RevDate: 2025-01-08
CmpDate: 2025-01-06

Qiu C, Zhang D, Wang M, et al (2025)

Peripheral Single-Cell Immune Characteristics Contribute to the Diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease and Dementia With Lewy Bodies.

CNS neuroscience & therapeutics, 31(1):e70204.

OBJECTIVE: Alzheimer's disease (AD) and dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) are common neurodegenerative diseases with distinct but overlapping pathogenic mechanisms. The clinical similarities between these diseases often result in high misdiagnosis rates, leading to serious consequences. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) are easy to collect and can accurately reflect the immune characteristics of both DLB and AD.

METHODS: We utilized time-of-flight mass cytometry (CyTOF) with single-cell resolution to quantitatively analyze peripheral PBMCs, identifying 1228 immune characteristics. Based on the top-selected immune features, we constructed immunological elastic net (iEN) models.

RESULTS: These models demonstrated high diagnostic efficacy in distinguishing diseased samples from healthy donors as well as distinguishing AD and DLB cases. The selected features reveal that the primary peripheral immune characteristic of AD is a decrease in total T cells, while DLB is characterized by low expression of I-kappa-B-alpha (IKBα) in the classical monocyte subset.

CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that peripheral immune characteristics could serve as potential biomarkers, facilitating the diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases.

RevDate: 2025-01-03

Pang Y, Zhao S, Zhang Z, et al (2024)

Individual structural covariance connectome reveals aberrant brain developmental trajectories associated with childhood maltreatment.

Journal of psychiatric research, 181:709-715 pii:S0022-3956(24)00734-9 [Epub ahead of print].

BACKGROUND: The long-term impact of childhood maltreatment (CM) on an individual's physical and mental health is suggested to be mediated by altered neurodevelopment. However, the exact neurobiological consequences of CM remain unclear.

METHODS: The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between CM and brain age based on structural magnetic resonance imaging data from a sample of 214 adults. The participants were divided into CM and non_CM groups according to Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. For each participant, brain connectome age was estimated from a large-scale structural covariance network through relevance vector regression. Brain predicted age difference (brain_PAD) was then calculated for each participant.

RESULTS: The brain connectome age matched well with chronological age in young adults (age range: 18-25 years) and adults (age range: 26-44 years) without CM, but not in individuals with CM. Compared with non_CM group, CM group was characterized by higher brain_PAD scores in young adults, whereas lower brain_PAD scores in adults. The finding revealed that brain development in individuals with CM seems to be accelerated in younger adults but retardation with increasing age. Moreover, individuals who suffered child abuse (but not neglect) showed higher brain_PAD scores than non_CM group, suggesting the different influence of abuse and neglect on neurodevelopment. Finally, the brain_PAD was positively correlated with attentional impulsivity in CM group.

CONCLUSIONS: CM affects different stages of adult brain development differently, and abuse and neglect have different influenced patterns, which may provide new evidence for the impact of CM on structural brain development.

RevDate: 2025-01-05
CmpDate: 2025-01-03

Ding C, Kim Geok S, Sun H, et al (2025)

Does music counteract mental fatigue? A systematic review.

PloS one, 20(1):e0316252.

INTRODUCTION: Mental fatigue, a psychobiological state induced by prolonged and sustained cognitive tasks, impairs both cognitive and physical performance. Several studies have investigated strategies to counteract mental fatigue. However, potential health risks and contextual restrictions often limit these strategies, which hinder their practical application. Due to its noninvasive and portable nature, music has been proposed as a promising strategy to counteract mental fatigue. However, the effects of music on performance decrements vary with different music styles. Synthesizing studies that systematically report music style and its impact on counteracting performance decrements is crucial for theoretical and practical applications.

OBJECTIVES: This review aims to provide a comprehensive systematic analysis of different music styles in counteracting mental fatigue and their effects on performance decrements induced by mental fatigue. Additionally, the mechanisms by which music counteracts mental fatigue will be discussed.

METHODS: A comprehensive search was conducted across five databases-Web of Science, PubMed, SCOPUS, SPORTDiscus via EBSCOhost, and the Psychological and Behavioral Sciences Collection via EBSCOhost-up to November 18, 2023. The selected studies focused solely on music interventions, with outcomes including subjective feelings of mental fatigue, physiological markers, and both cognitive and behavioral performance.

RESULTS: Nine studies met the predetermined criteria for inclusion in this review. The types of music interventions that counteract mental fatigue include relaxing, exciting, and personal preference music, all of which were associated with decreased subjective feelings of mental fatigue and changes in objective physiological markers. Cognitive performance, particularly in inhibition and working memory tasks impaired by mental fatigue, was countered by both relaxing and exciting music. Exciting music was found to decrease reaction time more effectively than relaxing music in working memory tasks. The physiological marker of steady-state visually evoked potential-based brain-computer interface (SSVEP-BCI) amplitude increased, confirming that exciting music counteracts mental fatigue more effectively than relaxing music. Behavioral performance in tasks such as arm-pointing, the Yo-Yo intermittent test, and the 5 km time-trial, which were impaired by mental fatigue, were counteracted by personal preference music.

CONCLUSION: Relaxing music, exciting music, and personal preference music effectively counteract mental fatigue by reducing feelings of fatigue and mitigating performance decrements. Individuals engaged in mentally demanding tasks can effectively counteract concurrent or subsequent cognitive performance decrements by simultaneously listening to relaxing or exciting music without lyrics or by using music during recovery from mental fatigue. Exciting music is more effective than relaxing music in counteracting mental fatigue. Personal preference music is effective in counteracting behavioral performance decrements in motor control and endurance tasks. Mentally fatigued individuals could apply personal preference music to counteract subsequent motor control performance decrements or simultaneously listen to it to counteract endurance performance decrements. Future studies should specify and examine the effects of different music genres, tempos, and intensities in counteracting mental fatigue. Additionally, the role of music in counteracting mental fatigue in contexts such as work productivity, traffic accident risk, and sports requires further investigation, along with the underlying mechanisms.

RevDate: 2025-01-03

Xin Q, H Hu (2025)

To Attack or Not: A Neural Circuit Coding Sexually Dimorphic Aggression.

Neuroscience bulletin [Epub ahead of print].

RevDate: 2025-01-05
CmpDate: 2025-01-03

Wu JY, Zhang JY, Xia WQ, et al (2025)

Predicting autoimmune thyroiditis in primary Sjogren's syndrome patients using a random forest classifier: a retrospective study.

Arthritis research & therapy, 27(1):1.

BACKGROUND: Primary Sjogren's syndrome (pSS) and autoimmune thyroiditis (AIT) share overlapping genetic and immunological profiles. This retrospective study evaluates the efficacy of machine learning algorithms, with a focus on the Random Forest Classifier, to predict the presence of thyroid-specific autoantibodies (TPOAb and TgAb) in pSS patients.

METHODS: A total of 96 patients with pSS were included in the retrospective study. All participants underwent a complete clinical and laboratory evaluation. All participants underwent thyroid function tests, including TPOAb and TgAb, and were accordingly divided into positive and negative thyroid autoantibody groups. Four machine learning algorithms were then used to analyze the risk factors affecting patients with pSS with positive and negative for thyroid autoantibodies.

RESULTS: The results indicated that the Random Forest Classifier algorithm (AUC = 0.755) outperformed the other three machine learning algorithms. The random forest classifier indicated Age, IgG, C4 and dry mouth were the main factors influencing the prediction of positive thyroid autoantibodies in pSS patients. It is feasible to predict AIT in pSS using machine learning algorithms.

CONCLUSIONS: Analyzing clinical and laboratory data from 96 pSS patients, the Random Forest model demonstrated superior performance (AUC = 0.755), identifying age, IgG levels, complement component 4 (C4), and absence of dry mouth as primary predictors. This approach offers a promising tool for early identification and management of AIT in pSS patients.

TRIAL REGISTRATION: This retrospective study was approved and monitored by the Ethics Committee of The Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University (No.II2023-254-02).

RevDate: 2025-01-05
CmpDate: 2025-01-03

Wei Q, Li C, Wang Y, et al (2025)

Enhancing the performance of SSVEP-based BCIs by combining task-related component analysis and deep neural network.

Scientific reports, 15(1):365.

Steady-State Visually Evoked Potential (SSVEP) signals can be decoded by either a traditional machine learning algorithm or a deep learning network. Combining the two methods is expected to enhance the performance of an SSVEP-based brain-computer interface (BCI) by exploiting their advantages. However, an efficient strategy for integrating the two methods has not yet been established. To address this issue, we propose a classification framework named eTRCA + sbCNN that combines an ensemble task-related component analysis (eTRCA) algorithm and a sub-band convolutional neural network (sbCNN) for recognizing the frequency of SSVEP signals. The two models are first trained separately, then their classification score vectors are added together, and finally the frequency corresponding to the maximal summed score is decided as the frequency of SSVEP signals. The proposed framework can effectively exploit the complementarity between the two kinds of feature signals and significantly improve the classification performance of SSVEP-based BCIs. The performance of the proposed method is validated on two SSVEP BCI datasets and compared with that of eTRCA, sbCNN and other state-of-the-art models. Experimental results indicate that the proposed method significantly outperform the compared algorithms, and thus helps to promote the practical application of SSVEP- BCI systems.

RevDate: 2025-01-07
CmpDate: 2025-01-03

Anderson L, De Ridder D, Glue P, et al (2025)

A safety and feasibility randomized placebo controlled trial exploring electroencephalographic effective connectivity neurofeedback treatment for fibromyalgia.

Scientific reports, 15(1):209.

Fibromyalgia is a chronic pain condition contributing to significant disability worldwide. Neuroimaging studies identify abnormal effective connectivity between cortical areas responsible for descending pain modulation (pregenual anterior cingulate cortex, pgACC) and sensory components of pain experience (primary somatosensory cortex, S1). Neurofeedback, a brain-computer interface technique, can normalise dysfunctional brain activity, thereby improving pain and function. This study evaluates the safety, feasibility, and acceptability of a novel electroencephalography-based neurofeedback training, targeting effective alpha-band connectivity from the pgACC to S1 and exploring its effect on pain and function. Participants with fibromyalgia (N = 30; 15 = active, 15 = placebo) received 12 sessions of neurofeedback. Feasibility and outcome measures of pain (Brief Pain Inventory) and function (Revised Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire) were collected at baseline and immediately, ten-days, and one-month post-intervention. Descriptive statistics demonstrate effective connectivity neurofeedback training is feasible (recruitment rate: 6 participants per-month, mean adherence: 80.5%, dropout rate: 20%), safe (no adverse events) and highly acceptable (average 8.0/10) treatment approach for fibromyalgia. Active and placebo groups were comparable in their decrease in pain and functional impact. Future fully powered clinical trial is warranted to test the efficacy of the effective connectivity neurofeedback training in people with fibromyalgia with versus without chronic fatigue.

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RJR Experience and Expertise

Researcher

Robbins holds BS, MS, and PhD degrees in the life sciences. He served as a tenured faculty member in the Zoology and Biological Science departments at Michigan State University. He is currently exploring the intersection between genomics, microbial ecology, and biodiversity — an area that promises to transform our understanding of the biosphere.

Educator

Robbins has extensive experience in college-level education: At MSU he taught introductory biology, genetics, and population genetics. At JHU, he was an instructor for a special course on biological database design. At FHCRC, he team-taught a graduate-level course on the history of genetics. At Bellevue College he taught medical informatics.

Administrator

Robbins has been involved in science administration at both the federal and the institutional levels. At NSF he was a program officer for database activities in the life sciences, at DOE he was a program officer for information infrastructure in the human genome project. At the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, he served as a vice president for fifteen years.

Technologist

Robbins has been involved with information technology since writing his first Fortran program as a college student. At NSF he was the first program officer for database activities in the life sciences. At JHU he held an appointment in the CS department and served as director of the informatics core for the Genome Data Base. At the FHCRC he was VP for Information Technology.

Publisher

While still at Michigan State, Robbins started his first publishing venture, founding a small company that addressed the short-run publishing needs of instructors in very large undergraduate classes. For more than 20 years, Robbins has been operating The Electronic Scholarly Publishing Project, a web site dedicated to the digital publishing of critical works in science, especially classical genetics.

Speaker

Robbins is well-known for his speaking abilities and is often called upon to provide keynote or plenary addresses at international meetings. For example, in July, 2012, he gave a well-received keynote address at the Global Biodiversity Informatics Congress, sponsored by GBIF and held in Copenhagen. The slides from that talk can be seen HERE.

Facilitator

Robbins is a skilled meeting facilitator. He prefers a participatory approach, with part of the meeting involving dynamic breakout groups, created by the participants in real time: (1) individuals propose breakout groups; (2) everyone signs up for one (or more) groups; (3) the groups with the most interested parties then meet, with reports from each group presented and discussed in a subsequent plenary session.

Designer

Robbins has been engaged with photography and design since the 1960s, when he worked for a professional photography laboratory. He now prefers digital photography and tools for their precision and reproducibility. He designed his first web site more than 20 years ago and he personally designed and implemented this web site. He engages in graphic design as a hobby.

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Rajesh Rao has written the perfect introduction to the exciting world of brain-computer interfaces. The book is remarkably comprehensive — not only including full descriptions of classic and current experiments but also covering essential background concepts, from the brain to Bayes and back. Brain-Computer Interfacing will be welcomed by a wide range of intelligent readers interested in understanding the first steps toward the symbiotic merger of brains and computers. Eberhard E. Fetz, UW

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Collection of publications by R J Robbins

Reprints and preprints of publications, slide presentations, instructional materials, and data compilations written or prepared by Robert Robbins. Most papers deal with computational biology, genome informatics, using information technology to support biomedical research, and related matters.

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