Donald Doherty's blog

Tag: Brain Science

  • Google Body Browser: Information Portal for the Human Body?

    Google has released the Google Body Browser to Google Labs. Google Body Browser is implemented using WebGL, which enables the display and interaction with three-dimensional (3D) graphics that are fully integrated with Web browsers. WebGL is the Web version of the 3D graphics standard OpenGL and is displayed by the HTML5 canvas element.

    Figure 1. View the circulatory and central nervous systems in Google Body Browser using Google Chrome beta.

    I believe that the Google Chrome beta is currently the only browser that implements WebGL but the other browsers are certain to follow Google’s lead. High quality 3D graphics display has been the last great hurdle to providing visually compelling Web browser based applications. With WebGL expect the floodgates to amazing new Web-based applications to open.

    Figure 2. View the central nervous system in Google Body Browser using Google Chrome beta.

    The upper left part of the Google Body Browser window has a tool area. The complete body is initially shown by default. In addition, you may select from five systems including the muscular, skeletal, internal organ, circulatory, and central nervous systems.

    In the tool area, if the vertical “pill” below the brain and to the left is selected, then you may move the horizontal bar up (top complete human body) and down (bottom nervous system and very bottom nothing). See Figure 2 for an example showing just the central nervous system.

    In the tool area, if the vertical “pill” below the brain and to the right is selected, then you may move each of six vertical bars right and left. When a bar is all the way left, the associated system is completely transparent (it doesn’t show). As you move the bar right, the system fades in. This enables you to look at more than one system at the same time. See Figure 1 for an example showing the circulatory and central nervous systems.

    Wow! Great tool and, even though the only thing currently attached are labels, it’s clear that all sorts of data may be associated with the structures displayed in the Google Body Browser including the data we found associated with the brain in the Whole Brain Catalog (see my blog post Whole Brain Catalog: the Google Earth for the Brain). Looks like the Google Body Browser will be the portal for life sciences and medical data.

    Other related blog posts:

    Whole Brain Catalog: the Google Earth for the Brain

  • Whole Brain Catalog app for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch

    Earlier blog posts looked at the Whole Brain Catalog application, which provides a portal to a broad range of neuroscience data (see Other related blog posts below). Two days ago the Whole Brain Catalog team from the University of California San Diego released a version of the Whole Brain Catalog application for the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch.

    Figure 1. A close up view of a triple labeled cerebellum section on an iPhone using the Whole Brain Catalog app for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch.

    Note: If you run into any issues running the Whole Brain Catalog app, check to make sure your device is connected with the Internet.

    The introductory video is attractive and may be informative for those less familiar with neuroscience. On the iPhone and iPod touch the application opens to thirteen images that act as icons arrayed across the horizontal view. Each of these represents some aspect of the nervous system that you may examine in more detail by double tapping the icon.

    Note: The application is strictly horizontal on iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch.

    The icons represent the following:

    • Rat cerebellar cortex (triple labeled)
    • Another section from rat cerebellar cortex (triple labeled)
    • 3View mouse neuropil
    • Fruitfly DL1 cell
    • Mouse reference atlas (sagittal)
    • Mouse reference atlas (coronal)
    • Mouse RORB ISH marker
    • Developing mouse
    • Cat brainstage (sagital)
    • Embryonic 17a rat
    • Primate nissle stained brain section
    • Human brain section
    • Mouse brain section

    Each section may be viewed in beautiful detail except, for some reason, the human brain section. Some are stunning (see for example Figure 1). However, currently the Whole Brain Catalog app for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch is a sampler to entice the appetite. It’s not yet a tool for reference or serious research.

    Note: The Whole Brain Catalog app for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch is free and may be downloaded from the iTunes app store by clicking here.

    Other related blog posts:

    Whole Brain Catalog: the Google Earth for the Brain

    Whole Brain Catalog: Brain Cells and Molecules

    Whole Brain Catalog: Visualizing Neural Network Activity

  • Spiral Waves in the Brain

    Imaging brain activity using voltage sensitive dyes has revealed propagating waves of neuronal activity in the brain. It’s been hypothesized that propagating waves of activity may contribute to cerebral cortical signal processing by determining when and where the cortex is depolarized in relation to a sensory or motor event.

    Spiral waves are a particular kind of propagating wave that rotate around a center point. Spiral waves have been observed in turtle visual cortex and in brain slices but it wasn’t known if they may be found in the intact mammalian brain. Today’s paper “Spiral Wave Dynamics in Neocortex” (published December 9, 2010 in Neuron) reports on an investigation into the existence of spiral waves in intact rat brains.

    The research team placed rats into two states and then looked for spiral waves emerging from the cerebral cortex. One state was induced by applying carbachol and bicuculline to the brain. Local excitatory connections in the cerebral cortex were greatly enhanced in this condition and oscillations at around 10 Hertz were induced. The other state was achieved with low levels of pentobarbital anesthesia. In this state, the cortex alternated between theta (around 6 Hz) and delta (1-4 Hz) rhythms that resembled the rapid eye movement (REM) state in rodent natural sleep.

    Spiral waves were observed under both conditions. Furthermore, the emergence of spiral waves appeared to have a large impact on the oscillation frequency, spatial coherence, and amplitude of cortical activity.