Measuring the face-sensitive N170 with a gaming EEG system: A validation study.

BACKGROUND: The N170 is a "face-sensitive" event-related potential (ERP) that occurs at around 170ms over occipito-temporal brain regions. The N170's potential to provide insight into the neural processing of faces in certain populations (e.g., children and adults with cognitive impairments) is limited by its measurement in scientific laboratories that can appear threatening to some people. NEW METHOD: The advent of cheap, easy-to-use portable gaming EEG systems provides an opportunity to record EEG in new contexts and populations. This study tested the validity of the face-sensitive N170 ERP measured with an adapted commercial EEG system (the Emotiv EPOC) that is used at home by gamers. RESULTS: The N170 recorded through both the gaming EEG system and the research EEG system exhibited face-sensitivity, with larger mean amplitudes in response to the face stimuli than the non-face stimuli, and a delayed N170 peak in response to face inversion. COMPARISON WITH EXISTING METHOD: The EPOC system produced very similar N170 ERPs to a research-grade Neuroscan system, and was capable of recording face-sensitivity in the N170, validating its use as research tool in this arena. CONCLUSIONS: This opens new possibilities for measuring the face-sensitive N170 ERP in people who cannot travel to a traditional ERP laboratory (e.g., elderly people in care), who cannot tolerate laboratory conditions (e.g., people with autism), or who need to be tested in situ for practical or experimental reasons (e.g., children in schools).

Validation of the Emotiv EPOC EEG system for research quality auditory event-related potentials in children.

Background. Previous work has demonstrated that a commercial gaming electroencephalography (EEG) system, Emotiv EPOC, can be adjusted to provide valid auditory event-related potentials (ERPs) in adults that are comparable to ERPs recorded by a research-grade EEG system, Neuroscan. The aim of the current study was to determine if the same was true for children. Method. An adapted Emotiv EPOC system and Neuroscan system were used to make simultaneous EEG recordings in nineteen 6- to 12-year-old children under "passive" and "active" listening conditions. In the passive condition, children were instructed to watch a silent DVD and ignore 566 standard (1,000 Hz) and 100 deviant (1,200 Hz) tones. In the active condition, they listened to the same stimuli, and were asked to count the number of 'high' (i.e., deviant) tones. Results. Intraclass correlations (ICCs) indicated that the ERP morphology recorded with the two systems was very similar for the P1, N1, P2, N2, and P3 ERP peaks (r = .82 to .95) in both passive and active conditions, and less so, though still strong, for mismatch negativity ERP component (MMN; r = .67 to .74). There were few differences between peak amplitude and latency estimates for the two systems. Conclusions. An adapted EPOC EEG system can be used to index children's late auditory ERP peaks (i.e., P1, N1, P2, N2, P3) and their MMN ERP component.

Validation of the Emotiv EPOC(®) EEG gaming system for measuring research quality auditory ERPs.

Background. Auditory event-related potentials (ERPs) have proved useful in investigating the role of auditory processing in cognitive disorders such as developmental dyslexia, specific language impairment (SLI), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), schizophrenia, and autism. However, laboratory recordings of auditory ERPs can be lengthy, uncomfortable, or threatening for some participants - particularly children. Recently, a commercial gaming electroencephalography (EEG) system has been developed that is portable, inexpensive, and easy to set up. In this study we tested if auditory ERPs measured using a gaming EEG system (Emotiv EPOC(®), www.emotiv.com) were equivalent to those measured by a widely-used, laboratory-based, research EEG system (Neuroscan). Methods. We simultaneously recorded EEGs with the research and gaming EEG systems, whilst presenting 21 adults with 566 standard (1000 Hz) and 100 deviant (1200 Hz) tones under passive (non-attended) and active (attended) conditions. The onset of each tone was marked in the EEGs using a parallel port pulse (Neuroscan) or a stimulus-generated electrical pulse injected into the O1 and O2 channels (Emotiv EPOC(®)). These markers were used to calculate research and gaming EEG system late auditory ERPs (P1, N1, P2, N2, and P3 peaks) and the mismatch negativity (MMN) in active and passive listening conditions for each participant. Results. Analyses were restricted to frontal sites as these are most commonly reported in auditory ERP research. Intra-class correlations (ICCs) indicated that the morphology of the research and gaming EEG system late auditory ERP waveforms were similar across all participants, but that the research and gaming EEG system MMN waveforms were only similar for participants with non-noisy MMN waveforms (N = 11 out of 21). Peak amplitude and latency measures revealed no significant differences between the size or the timing of the auditory P1, N1, P2, N2, P3, and MMN peaks. Conclusions. Our findings suggest that the gaming EEG system may prove a valid alternative to laboratory ERP systems for recording reliable late auditory ERPs (P1, N1, P2, N2, and the P3) over the frontal cortices. In the future, the gaming EEG system may also prove useful for measuring less reliable ERPs, such as the MMN, if the reliability of such ERPs can be boosted to the same level as late auditory ERPs.

Biomedical signal acquisition with streaming wireless communication for recording evoked potentials.

BACKGROUND: Commercial electrophysiology systems for recording evoked potentials always connect patients to the acquisition unit via long wires. Wires guarantee timely transfer of signals for synchronization with the stimuli, but they are susceptible to electromagnetic and electrostatic interferences. Though wireless solutions are readily available (e.g. Bluetooth), they introduce high delay variability that will distort the evoked potential traces. We developed a complete wireless acquisition system with a fixed delay. METHODS: The system supports up to 4 bipolar channels; each is amplified by 20,000× and digitized to 24 bits. The system incorporates the "driven-right-leg" circuit to lower the common noise. Data are continuously streamed using radio-frequency transmission operating at 915 MHz and then tagged with the stimulus SYNC signal at the receiver. The delay, noise level and transmission error rate were measured. Flash visual evoked potentials were recorded monocularly from both eyes of six adults with normal vision. The signals were acquired via wireless and wired transmissions simultaneously. The recording was repeated on some participants within 2 weeks. RESULTS: The delay was constant at 20 ms. The system noise was white and Gaussian (2 microvolts RMS). The transmission error rate was about one per million packets. The VEPs recorded with wireless transmission were consistent with those with wired transmission. The VEP amplitudes and shapes showed good intra-session and inter-session reproducibility and were consistent across eyes. CONCLUSIONS: The wireless acquisition system can reliably record visual evoked potentials. It has a constant delay of 20 ms and very low error rate.

Normalization of visual evoked potentials using underlying electroencephalogram levels improves amplitude reproducibility in rats.

PURPOSE: The visual evoked potential (VEP) is a frequently used noninvasive measurement of visual function. However, high-amplitude variability has limited its potential for evaluating axonal damage in both laboratory and clinical research. This study was conducted to improve the reliability of VEP amplitude measurement in rats by using electroencephalogram (EEG)-based signal correction. METHODS: VEPs of Sprague-Dawley rats were recorded on three separate days within 2 weeks. The original VEP traces were normalized by EEG power spectrum, which was evaluated by Fourier transform. A comparison of intersession reproducibility and intersubject variability was made between the original and corrected signals. RESULTS: Corrected VEPs showed lower amplitude intersession within-subject SD (Sw), coefficient of variation (CoV), and repeatability (R(95)) than the original signals (P < 0.001). The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of the corrected traces (0.90) was also better than the original potentials (0.82). For intersubject variability, the EEG-based normalization improved the CoV from 44.64% to 30.26%. A linear correlation was observed between the EEG level and the VEP amplitude (r = 0.71, P < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Underlying EEG signals should be considered in measuring the VEP amplitude. In this study, a useful technique was developed for VEP data processing that could also be used for other cortical evoked potential recordings and for clinical VEP interpretation in humans.

Gaussian wavelet transform and classifier to reliably estimate latency of multifocal visual evoked potentials (mfVEP).

This paper describes a method to reliably estimate latency of multifocal visual evoked potential (mfVEP) and a classifier to automatically separate reliable mfVEP traces from noisy traces. We also investigated which mfVEP peaks have reproducible latency across recording sessions. The proposed method performs cross-correlation between mfVEP traces and second order Gaussian wavelet kernels and measures the timing of the resulting peaks. These peak times offset by the wavelet kernel's peak time represents the mfVEP latency. The classifier algorithm performs an exhaustive series of leave-one-out classifications to find the champion mfVEP features which are most frequently selected to infer reliable traces from noisy traces. Monopolar mfVEP recording was performed on 10 subjects using the Accumap1™ system. Pattern-reversal protocol was used with 24 sectors and eccentricity upto 33°. A bipolar channel was recorded at midline with electrodes placed above and below the inion. The largest mfVEP peak and the immediate peak prior had the smallest latency variability across recording sessions, about ±2ms. The optimal classifier selected three champion features, namely, signal-to-noise ratio, the signal's peak magnitude response from 5 to 15Hz and the peak-to-peak amplitude of the trace between 70 and 250 ms. The classifier algorithm can separate reliable and noisy traces with a high success rate, typically 93%.

Improving reproducibility of VEP recording in rats: electrodes, stimulus source and peak analysis.

The aims of this study were to evaluate and improve the reproducibility of visual evoked potential (VEP) measurement in rats and to develop a mini-Ganzfeld stimulator for rat VEP recording. VEPs of Sprague-Dawley rats were recorded on one randomly selected eye on three separate days within a week, and the recordings were repeated three times on the first day to evaluate the intrasession repeatability and intersession reproducibility. The VEPs were recorded with subdermal needle and implanted skull screw electrodes, respectively, to evaluate the effect of electrode configuration on VEP reproducibility. We also designed a mini-Ganzfeld stimulator for rats, which provided better eye isolation than the conventional visual stimuli such as flash strobes and large Ganzfeld systems. The VEP responses from mini-Ganzfeld were compared with PS33-PLUS photic strobe and single light-emitting diode (LED). The latencies of P1, N1, P2, N2, and P3 and the amplitude of each component were measured and analysed. Intrasession and intersession within-subject standard deviations (Sw), coefficient of variation, repeatability (R95) and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) were calculated. The VEPs recorded using the implanted skull electrodes showed significantly larger amplitude and higher reproducibility compared to the needle electrodes (P<0.05). The mini-Ganzfeld stimulator showed superior repeatability and reproducibility in VEP recording. The intra/intersession ICCs of latency were 0.85/0.70 for mini-Ganzfeld, 0.72/0.62 for PS33-PLUS and only 0.59/0.42 for single LED. The latencies of the early peaks (N1 and P2) demonstrated better reproducibility than the later waves. The mean intrasession and intersession ICCs were 0.96 and 0.86 for the early peaks. Using a combination of skull screw electrodes, mini-Ganzfeld stimulator and early peak analysis, we achieved a high reproducibility in the rat VEP measurement. The latencies of the early peaks of rat VEPs were more consistent, which may be due to their generation in the primary visual cortex via the retino-geniculate fibres.

Latency delay of visual evoked potential is a real measurement of demyelination in a rat model of optic neuritis.

PURPOSE: To investigate the relationship between size of demyelinated lesion, extent of axonal loss, and degree of latency delay of visual evoked potentials (VEPs) in a rat model of experimental demyelination. METHODS: Lysolecithin 1% (0.4 or 0.8 µL) was microinjected into an optic nerve of each of 14 rats 2 mm posterior to the globe. Standard flash VEPs were recorded with skull-implanted electrodes before and 2, 4, and 6 days after the microinjection. The optic nerves were stained with Luxol-fast blue and Bielschowsky's silver to assess demyelination and axonal pathology, respectively. Demyelinated areas were measured on serial sections, and lesion volumes were deduced by three-dimensional reconstruction. RESULTS: Focal lesions of demyelination and variable axonal loss were observed. The mean volume of the lesion was 3.2 ± 1.1 × 10⁻² mm³. The injected eye showed a significant latency delay and amplitude decrease. Regression analysis demonstrated a strong correlation between N1 latency delay and lesion volume (r = 0.863, P < 0.0001), which remained significant after adjustment for axonal loss (r = 0.829, P < 0.001). N1 latency delay also showed a correlation with axonal loss (r = 0.552, P = 0.041), but the correlation became nonsignificant when controlling for demyelination (r = 0.387, P = 0.191). A linear association between N1-P2 amplitude decrease and axonal loss (r = 0.681, P = 0.007) was also observed. CONCLUSIONS: The latency of the VEP accurately reflected the amount of demyelination in the visual pathway, whereas the amplitude correlated with axonal damage. This study supports the concept that the VEP provides a highly sensitive tool with which to measure demyelination in optic neuritis.

Optimal erasure protection strategy for scalably compressed data with tree-structured dependencies.

This paper is concerned with the transmission of scalably compressed data sources over lossy channels. Specifically, this paper is concerned with packet networks or, more generally, erasure channels. Previous work has generally assumed that the source elements form linear dependencies. The contribution of this paper is an unequal erasure protection algorithm which is able to take advantage of scalable data with more general dependency structures. In particular, the proposed scheme is adapted to data with tree-structured dependencies. The source elements are allocated to clusters of packets according to their dependency structure, subject to constraints on packet size and channel code-word length. Given a packet cluster arrangement, source elements are assigned optimal channel codes subject to a constraint on the total transmission length. Experimental results confirm the benefit associated with exploiting the actual dependency structure of the data.

Optimal erasure protection for scalably compressed video streams with limited retransmission.

This paper shows how the priority encoding transmission (PET) framework may be leveraged to exploit both unequal error protection and limited retransmission for RD-optimized delivery of streaming media. Previous work on scalable media protection with PET has largely ignored the possibility of retransmission. Conversely, the PET framework has not been harnessed by the substantial body of previous work on RD optimized hybrid forward error correction/automatic repeat request schemes. We limit our attention to sources which can be modeled as independently compressed frames (e.g., video frames), where each element in the scalable representation of each frame can be transmitted in one or both of two transmission slots. An optimization algorithm determines the level of protection which should be assigned to each element in each slot, subject to transmission bandwidth constraints. To balance the protection assigned to elements which are being transmitted for the first time with those which are being retransmitted, the proposed algorithm formulates a collection of hypotheses concerning its own behavior in future transmission slots. We show how the PET framework allows for a decoupled optimization algorithm with only modest complexity. Experimental results obtained with Motion JPEG2000 compressed video demonstrate that substantial performance benefits can be obtained using the proposed framework.