Brain activity originates from the electrical communication between neurons and is typically recorded with two different types of measurement. The first, electrophysiological measurements, records the electrical activity generated from electrical signaling in various ways. Some measurements are Local Field Potential (LFP), Electroencephalogram (EEG), and cell spiking rate. The second type, neurovascular measurements, measure the downstream changes in the cerebral vasculature following electrical activity, like cerebral blood flow (CBF), hemoglobin levels, and the blood oxygen-level dependent (BOLD) signal. These downstream changes are connected to the electrical activity through the neurovascular coupling, which incorporates the pathways that link the electrical activity and the secretion of vasoactive substances. Many different types of pathways and neurons are involved in the neurovascular coupling and therefore it is very challenging to relate these measurements to one another.
In my research, I am identifying and evaluating the pathways included in the neurovascular coupling using mathematical modeling. I aim to create a framework that allows us to relate the electrophysiological and neurovascular measurements to each other.