Announcements - October 2, 2007
BrainMap has released Version 1.1 of its software (Sleuth, GingerALE, and Scribe). With the release of this version, we require that you manually login to Sleuth with your username and password, even if you previously set the software to remember these fields. This is a required action, since we are moving from an old version of the Oracle database to an improved database. Under this new database structure, it is now possible to perform all AND and OR searches at the Experiment level. This facilitates greater precision in obtaining search results.
Also in Version 1.1, we have released a new anatomical template used for viewing ALE results. This template corrects a small defect in the previous template and offers a better representation of Talairach space. We also updated the masks in GingerALE to match the revised template. GingerALE automatically changes the mask to match ALE images. Thus, if you open existing ALE files that were created prior to this release, GingerALE will utilize the mask that was previously implemented. Nevertheless, to ensure that your images are as accurate as possible, we suggest that re-run your meta-analysis using the new mask/template.
What is BrainMap?
BrainMap is an online database of published functional neuroimaging (fMRI and PET) experiments with coordinate-based (x,y,z) activation locations in Talairach space. The goal of BrainMap is to provide a vehicle to share methods and results of studies in specific research domains, such as language, memory, attention, emotion, and perception. BrainMap can also be used to perform meta-analyses of similar research studies.
BrainMap was created and developed at the Research Imaging Center of the University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio (UTHSCSA).
BrainMap Software
There are 3 different applications in the BrainMap software suite:
- Sleuth: database searches and Talairach coordinate plotting (this application requires a username and password)
- GingerALE: performs meta-analyses via the activation likelihood estimation (ALE) method; also converts coordinates between MNI and Talairach spaces using icbm2tal
- Scribe: database entry of published functional neuroimaging papers with coordinate results
BrainMap Web Application
A web application accessing the full set of database search criteria is also available, called BrainMapWeb. After a query, a list of citations meeting the search criteria is returned along with a limited set of metadata, including the imaging modality, number of subjects, and the name of the included contrasts.
Converting Between MNI and Talairach Spaces
In the past, BrainMap has utilized the Brett transform to convert MNI coordinates to Talairach space (mni2tal). However, we recently switched to a new MNI to Talairach transform called icbm2tal, developed by Jack Lancaster. You can use GingerALE to convert your coordinates using icbm2tal, or download our Matlab .m files.
Citing BrainMap
If you have used the BrainMap database in your research, please cite one or both of the following papers in your references.
- For citations concerning GingerALE and performing ALE meta-analyses:
Laird AR, Fox M, Price CJ, Glahn DC, Uecker AM, Lancaster JL, Turkeltaub PE, Kochunov P, Fox PT. ALE meta-analysis: Controlling the false discovery rate and performing statistical contrasts. Hum Brain Mapp 25, 155-164, 2005. [pdf] [PubMed]
- For citations concerning Sleuth, Scribe, and BrainMap meta-data:
Laird AR, Lancaster JL, Fox PT. (2005). BrainMap: The social evolution of a functional neuroimaging database. Neuroinformatics 3, 65-78. [pdf] [PubMed]
BrainMap® Copyright Policy
BrainMap is a registered trademark of the University of Texas. All software and curated data contained in, or used by, the BrainMap database are copyrighted by the University of Texas. BrainMap software and data are available for use, free of charge, for educational and scientific, non-commercial purposes. The BrainMap coding scheme and its taxonomy of experimental design are available for use without restriction. If BrainMap's data, software, or coding strategies are used in scientific publications, we request that one or more relevant publications of the development team be cited, as described above. The BrainMap development team welcomes collaborations. We will provide guidance and assistance in the execution of meta-analyses upon request. We encourage collaborations that develop new tools for meta-analysis or use BrainMap data to develop or validate other neuroinformatics tools and strategies. We do allow other databases and image-analysis environments to query BrainMap's data, but only with prior permission and as a joint development effort. BrainMap data may not be extracted for inclusion in other databases or redistributed in any manner without prior written permission.
