Researchers in the Vanderbilt University Institute of Imaging Science (VUIIS) have achieved the first conclusive non-invasive measurement of neural signaling in the spinal cords of healthy human volunteers.<\/p>\n
The researchers used ultra-high field functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to detect for the first time “resting state” signals between neural circuits in the human spinal column.\u00a0The technique may be valuable for understanding how spinal cord injury changes the “functional connectivity” between neural circuits, for example, and for assessing and monitoring recovery that occurs spontaneously or following various interventions.<\/p>\n