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Looking for patterns in brain signals

Nice to meet you: Borbála Hunyadi

Separating the noise from what you are really looking for: that is what associate professor Borbála Hunyadi does at MHeNs. With a background in computer engineering and neuroscience, she looks for patterns in brain signals to help neurologists in the diagnostic process of brain diseases. She also hopes to attract more women to a career in engineering: “Somehow girls grow up learning that math is not for them. I would like to change that.”

In Budapest, Hungary, Borbála studied computer and electronic engineering. “During my PhD in electrical engineering I used signal processing and machine learning to help with epilepsy diagnosis,” she says. “After my post doc I went to TU Delft, where I took a more theoretical direction and developed signal processing methods further. Last September I came to Maastricht because I wanted to be closer to a clinical environment again and work together with clinicians and neuroscientists.”
 

Separating the noise

What exactly is signal processing? “Electro encephalograms (EEGs) or imaging technology can be used to measure brain signals,” Borbála explains. “We perform these measurements because we want to understand something about the brain, so we are looking for something specific in these signals. The problem is that at the same time, we are also measuring noise: things we didn’t want to measure in the first place. Signal processing is trying to separate that noise from what we are really looking for.”

Finding patterns

Borbála uses signal processing for pattern recognition. “During my PhD, I tried to find epileptic seizures on an EEG. The seizures showed as a rhythmic oscillation in the brain signal, so that is a certain recognisable pattern,” she explains. “However, a pattern can take many forms. Sometimes it is a network of different brain regions which behave similarly, and therefore we call them functionally connected. These are interesting patterns to recognise, because there are many diseases where certain networks in the brain are abnormally connected or disconnected compared to a healthy individual. Epilepsy is an example of this. Changing those networks, via treatment like surgery or brain stimulation, can help patients.”

“Pattern recognition is not meant to replace doctors, but to be used in conversation with them.”

Clinical practice

By finding patterns which distinguish between patients, Borbála wants to aid the diagnostic process. “I hope to help the neurologist make certain decisions and improve clinical practice,” she says. “With the patterns, you might be able to make a better treatment plan which is really tailored to the patient. Pattern recognition is not meant to replace doctors, but to be used in conversation with them. Therefore I wouldn’t want to just say that based on the pattern, this patient belongs to a certain category, so this is what we have to do. I’d prefer to tell the neurologist that I found a certain pattern and see stronger connections between given brain regions, and ask if that makes sense to them. Then we can discuss together if those regions play a role in some cognitive function, or, when the regions are disconnected, whether it can explain some of the symptoms we see.”

Women in engineering

Borbála is also passionate about attracting more women to a career in engineering. “Already during my studies, I was only one of the very few women at the table,” she explains. “It would be much nicer if the ratio was fifty-fifty. It’s a pity to me that girls tend to say they are bad at math. I think it’s what they learned to say because they hear it from their peers. There is no difference in skills between girls and boys, but somehow girls grow up learning that math is not for them. That is what I would like to change because you can build a beautiful career in this field. I think many women are more concerned with their impact on society or care, and that is why they go for different paths. However, I think it is important to show them that with engineering, you can also contribute to people’s lives in a positive way.”

Football

The majority of Borbála’s free time is spent with her husband and two sons. “They inspired me to start playing football, so now I am playing in the women’s team,” she says. “It’s a lot of fun and a bit out of my comfort zone. I really enjoy being part of a team in which we fight for the same goal. We play outdoors, even in winter. The cold is one thing, rain is worse. Luckily it does not rain that often: we had a rainy training maybe two or three times.”

 

Text and photo: Joëlle van Wissen

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