White Matter Connectivity and Function

White matter is the myelinated highways of the brain providing connectivity and function. Several zones of function within the brain are not well understood anatomically in how they relate to a pathway or circuit. White matter tractography is the study of these tracts as they connect functional zones into a circuit. Importantly, this has profound implications not only white matter disease states including spinal cord injury, but also on surgical planning and on recovery and plasticity. We incorporate tools of cadaveric human white matter dissection, MR based diffusion tensor fiber tractography, human brain vascular modeling and neurostimulation.

Currently we studying (1) the vascular relationships of posterior fossa and white matter tracts in regards to disease states involving language, cognition, and movement disorders and (2) white matter disease progression after brain stem and spinal cord injury.

Collaborators:

Jeff Keller, Mario Zuccarello, Norberto Andaluz, Jim Leach, Rupa Radhakrishnan, Don Gilbert, Steve Wu, Dave Pruitt