Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
CHAPTER 5
Parallel Computation in Simulating
Diffusion and Deformation in
Human Brain
NING KANG, JUN ZHANG, and
ERIC S. CARLSON
The purpose of this chapter is to survey some recent developments in the application
of parallel and high-performance computation in simulating the diffusion pro-
cess in the human brain and in modeling the deformation of the human brain.
Computational neuroscience is a branch of biomedical science and engineering
in which sophisticated high-performance computing techniques can make a huge
difference in extracting brain anatomical information non-invasively and in assist-
ing minimal invasive neurosurgical interventions. This chapter will demonstrate that
there are lots of potential opportunities for computational scientists to work with
biomedical scientists to develop high-performance computing tools for biomedical
applications.
5.1 INTRODUCTION
We present a survey on two types of computer simulations conducted in the human
brain involving parallel computation. The first one is to simulate the anisotropic dif-
fusion process in the human brain, using the measured diffusion tensor magnetic
resonance imaging (DT-MRI) data. DT-MRI technique is the only non-invasive in
vivo approach available so far to investigate the three-dimensional architecture of
brain white matter with the potential to generate fiber tract trajectories in the white
matter. The simulation of the diffusion over the brain could play a critical role in
the development of improved approaches for the reconstruction of nerve fiber tracts
in the human brain. The second type is the simulation of brain deformation dur-
ing image-guided neurosurgery. The challenge that a neurosurgeon has to face is
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