Abteilung Prächirurgische Epilepsiediagnostik – EpilepsiezentrumKlinik für Neurochirurgie

Connectivity of the human cortex

Brain connectivity is of high relevance for an understanding of physiological brain processing as well as for propagation of epileptic activity and for cognitive impairments related to an epileptic focus. Our knowledge of brain connectivity is mostly based on studies in primates, whereas information on human brain connectivity is very limited.

At the Freiburg epilepsy center, human brain connectivity is studied using both, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), EEG-fMRI and cortico-cortical evoked potentials (CCEP). CCEP studies are performed in collaboration with the INSERM (University of Grenoble) and in the context of the Human Brain Project (HBP, SEEG-MIP). Research topics are the assessment of physiological information on brain connectivity based on high patient numbers to establish an brain atlas of connectivity, the assessment of biomarkers of brain excitability and epileptogenicity using analyses of the morphology of evoked potentials, and cognitive correlates of brain connectivity alterations in epilepsy.

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