Expanding the 3D Brain Map: A Functional Atlas of Electrode-Stimulation-Induced Modalities for Cognitive Assessment and Neurosurgical Planning
Abstract number :
2.011
Submission category :
11. Behavior/Neuropsychology/Language / 11A. Adult
Year :
2025
Submission ID :
101
Source :
www.aesnet.org
Presentation date :
12/7/2025 12:00:00 AM
Published date :
Authors :
Presenting Author: Vanessa Sun, Undergraduate Student – Emory College of Arts and Sciences
Emma Acerbo, PhD – Emory University
Richard Hou, Undergraduate Student – Emory College of Arts and Sciences
Adam Dickey, MD, PhD – Baylor College of Medicine
Greydon Gilmore, PhD – Emory University School of Medicine
Nealen Laxpati, MD, PhD – Emory University School of Medicine
Robert Gross, MD, PhD – Rutgers University
Daniel Drane, PhD – Emory University School of Medicine
Rationale: Rationale: Epilepsy affects 1% of the global population, with ~30% experiencing drug-resistant epilepsy. While seizure onset zone localization enables surgical intervention, preserving cognitive functions remains challenging. Our study aims to construct high-resolution, 3D functional maps based on SEEG to guide safer resections. Building on our 2023 dataset (N=23), we expand our analyses to 72 epilepsy patients, allowing a more comprehensive mapping of stimulation-induced cognitive disruptions.
Methods: Methods: All patients underwent comprehensive presurgical evaluation including structural MRI, CT, and stereoelectroencephalography (SEEG). Imaging was co-registered and normalized to MNI space to enable population-level analyses within a standardized reference frame. Stimulation contact coordinates were clustered using a 10 mm³ spatial resolution and anatomically labeled via the AAL3 atlas. Building on our 2023 dataset (5 modalities), we expanded the analysis to N=72 patients and 12 functional modalities, grouped1) language – deficits in visual/auditory naming and comprehension; (2) speech – motor and verbal output disruptions; (3) visual disruption – impairments in visual-spatial and visual-perceptual processing; (4) working memory – short-term memory task failure; (5) affective disruption – sudden emotional changes (e.g., anger, depression); (6) cognitive disruption – slowed thoughts/arrest; (7) motor disruption – sudden, involuntary movements; and (8) sensory disruptions – somatic auras/abnormal sensations.
Results: disruption patterns were found across cortical and subcortical regions. Language disruptions were commonly observed in the temporal pole, inferior, middle, and superior temporal gyri, rolandic operculum, and postcentral gyrus. Speech disruptions occurred in the pars orbitalis, frontal operculum, and ng the pars orbitalis, left gyrus rectus, and parahippocampal gyrus. Cognitive disruptions involved the middle temporal gyrus, superior temporal sulcus, parietal operculum, and fusiform gyrus. Motor disruptions emerged upon stimulation of the middle occipital gyrus, superior temporal gyrus, and parietal operculum. Lastly, sensory disruptions were induced in regions such as the middle temporal gyrus, posterior inferior temporal gyrus, middle occipital gyrus, parahippocampal gyrus, and collateral sulcus.
Conclusions: Conclusions: These findings establish the most detailed SEEG-derived 3D functional atlas to date. The resulting maps enhance spatial resolution and modality-specificity in identifying cognitive risk zones, offering critical insights for preserving eloquent regions during epilepsy surgery. Ongoing efforts focus on validating modality overlaps, predicting patient-specific cognitive outcomes, and expanding to multi-site datasets for standardization and reproducibility.
Funding: Funding. NIH/NINDS (R01 NS088748)
Behavior