Brain Researchers Start Mapping the Human ‘Connectome’

A research effort called the Human Connectome Project is seeking to explore, define, and map the functional connections of the human brain. An update on progress in and upcoming plans for the Human Connectome Project appears in the July issue of Neurosurgery, official journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health. Analogous to the Human Genome Project — which mapped the human genetic code — the Human Connectome Project seeks to map “the complete, point-to-point spatial connectivity of neural pathways in the brain,” according to Arthur W. Toga, PhD, and colleagues of David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles. They write, “For neuroscientists and the lay public alike, the ability to assess, measure, and explore this wealth of layered information concerning how the brain is wired is a much sought after prize.”

July 2, 2012, ScienceDaily