Tremotopic mapping of the human thalamic reticular nucleus

The thalamic reticular nucleus is an important structure in the mammalian brain, participating in the coordination of large-scale processes such as sleep and attention. To date, this structure has not been investigated in the human brain. I developed a series of methods for anatomically and functionally localizing the visual regions of the thalamic reticular nucleus in the human brain using magnetic resonance imaging and the presentation of various flicker frequencies. First, I describe the results obtained from a modified retinotopy analysis. I next apply network theory to the data in an attempt to localize the TRN is a data-driven way. Third, I describe a lateral-inhibitory network the TRN participates in. I conclude the TRN plays a role in regulating interhemispheric activity in the brain, and that flicker can be used to probe the resonance properties of neural populations with magnetic resonance imaging.