Discrete Parcels and Continuous Gradients: Algorithmic Analyses of Cortical Areal Architecture and Function

Abstract

The human brain is characterized by a hierarchical system of organization that high-lights its complexity at various scales within numerous structural and functional contexts. One mode of hierarchical patterning captures the flow of information through the brain from the sensory cortices, to associative regions, and finally to more integrative cortical areas that underpin complex cognition. Another mode captures increasingly complex physical organization, transitioning from raw genetic material to complex neuronal structure. In the first part of this work, we discuss methods for mapping the human cortex in order to identify and delineate putative cortical areas characterized by unique, homogenous functional and structural organization properties. In the second part of this work, we examine the internal organization properties of these cortical areas in more depth, and show that connectivity patterns exist as a continuum along the cortical manifold, and that the degree of continuity is related to the functional integration capacity of each respective cortical area.