Abstract
In my upcoming presentation, I will introduce an extension of the generalized Ising model that integrates metabolic activity as a key input, offering fresh insights into the metabolic basis of neurodegenerative diseases. This innovative approach acknowledges the critical influence of metabolic alterations on the progression of such disorders. By embedding the notion of local temperature to represent metabolic activity within the Ising model, we aim to enhance our understanding of how metabolic disturbances impact the brain's structural and functional dynamics in neurodegeneration.
This refined model allows us to directly feed metabolic activity data into the simulation and could possibly facilitate a more accurate prediction of the complex interplay between brain structure and function in the context of neurological diseases. Through this methodology, we seek to unravel the intricate relationship between metabolic changes and their effects on neural connectivity and brain states, thereby providing a robust framework for exploring the pathophysiology of neurodegenerative conditions. Our adaptation of the Ising model to include metabolic inputs could represent a significant advancement in modeling the structure-function relationship in the brain, particularly in the study of neurodegenerative diseases. This approach not only could broaden our comprehension of the underlying mechanisms of these disorders but also open new avenues for research and potential therapeutic interventions.
Bio
Andrea Soddu is an Associate Professor at the University of Western Ontario in the Department of Physics and Astronomy and Principal Investigator at the Western Institute for Neuroscience. His expertise is in resting state fMRI and FDG-PET with application to severe brain injury with disorders of consciousness. Since appointed at Western in 2013 his Lab has been focusing on modelling functional connectivity. One of his Lab’s recent research findings states that the brain is flat and claims the concept of dimensionality could bring important insights in the understanding of the way information is transferred across the brain with possible implication for disorders of consciousness.