An Integrated fNIRS/EEG Array to Enable New Neurobiological or Physiological Measurements from Free Swimming Marine Mammals
Abstract
Several research areas of Navy need, along with important basic research questions, require new neurobiological or physiological me"asurements from marine mammals. Just as invasive neurobiological methods are not appropriate for humans, so too the extra protection afforded marine mammals has sheltered them for decades from invasive neurobiological research. Modern non-invasive systems, like functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) and Electroencephalography (EEG), developed for measuring brain activity in humans provide new opportunities for neurobiological research that meet today~s standards formarine mammal welfare. fNIRS is a non-invasive method for measuring changes in activity of brain and other tissues (Ferrari and Quaresima 2012). EEG is another non-invasive technique for measuring the electrical fields generated by neural activity, and has better temporal resolution than either fNIRS or fMRI. EEG and fNIRS sensors can be integrated into one system that is better for recording the timingand location of neural activity in the brain (Leamy andWard 2010). To address the Navy~s current need for neurobiological or physiological measurements from marine mammals we propose to purchase a wearable multi-channel fNIRS system, customize the equipment to make it suitable for data collection in the marine environment, and to integrate the new sensor suite with a custom wearable multi-channel EEG for studying brain function in echolocating dolphins. This equipment will support current Navy funded projects that aim to use noninvasive methods (EEG, MEG, fMRI, and fNIRS) as appropriate to understand the brain network architecture and cognitive mechanisms that process, store, and manipulate acoustic information for scene understanding in marine mammals and humans. A key requirement for studying brain mechanisms of active sensing is that the system for recording brain activity can be carried by a freely moving and behaving subject. Of the non-invasive methods for sensing neural activity, EEG and fNIRS are the two that are most appropriate for a wearable system. We propose to purchase a portable multi-channel NIRS system for measurements on brain from Artinis, a company that is ~the world leader in wearable NIRS~ (https://www.artinis.com/#about-us-section). This system will then be combined with an EEG electrode array and bio-logging tag to create the combined system. This wearable system proposed for purchase in this DURIP will enhance the capacity of current Navy funded projects to measure brain metabolism in conjunction with electrical activity of the brain and animal motion during echolocation tasks.The proposed equipment will also enhance the ability of currently funded Navy projects that are investigating cardiorespiratory (heart rate, stroke volume, systemic and pulmoarterial pressures, respiratory flow and expired gas composition) function in a small cetacean, the bottlenose dolphin, at rest, during apnea, during recovery from apnea and during and following a stressful situation. The ability to directly measure metabolic function during these conditions will create new knowledge that can be used to aid in the understanding, interpretation, and monitoring physiological responses of marine mammals when exposed to anthropogenic noise and" may provide valuable information for human clinical medicine.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Aug 20, 2019
- Source ID
- N000141912670
Entities
People
- Kenneth Shorter
Organizations
- Board of Regents of the University of Michigan
- Office of Naval Research
- United States Navy