New BESA^® Research 5.3 – now with direct interface to MATLAB^®

MEGIS Software GmbH announces the upcoming upgrade version of the BESA software. One highlight of the new release BESA Research 5.3 is a direct interface to the MATLAB program. Additional new features include CLARA, a new iterative 3D imaging method, and the calculation of intertrial phase locking.

The BESA software has earned a reputation as a user-friendly, highly interactive program for a comprehensive EEG and MEG data analysis. While being widely known for high-end techniques of source analysis and source imaging, BESA Research is a powerful package that covers the whole range of EEG/MEG data processing steps.

BESA Research includes advanced tools for raw data import and preprocessing, data review and mapping, artifact detection and correction, ERP analysis and averaging, creation of surface and source montages, source localization and source imaging, source coherence and time-frequency analysis, batch scripting, and many more.

Direct MATLAB interface

This range of features has now been extended by a direct interface to the MATLAB program. This new interface allows the combination of the high-end data analysis capabilities of BESA Research and MATLAB.

Final or intermediate results of EEG/MEG data analysis can be transferred directly to MATLAB® (for example, for cross-subject statistical analysis.) This includes raw or averaged data, source waveforms, source models, 3D source images, peak scores, FFT, and time-frequency results.

MATLAB commands, scripts, or functions can be called directly from BESA Research and applied to the provided data using BESA batch functions. Sample scripts for a quick batch-guided analysis of an EEG/MEG study will be made available at the BESA website.

CLARA – a new iterative 3D source imaging method

BESA Research 5.3 presents CLARA, a newly developed iterative distributed imaging technique. This extends the range of already available 3D imaging techniques like minimum norm, LAURA, LORETA, sLORETA, SSLOFO, and others. This iterative 3D imaging method aims to reduce the blurring of focal brain activity that is inherent to distributed imaging techniques while keeping the advantage of a predefined distributed source model.

Like all other imaging techniques implemented in BESA Resarch, CLARA images can be directly sent sent to MATLAB (for example, to create grand average 3D images or statistically compare brain responses of different conditions or subject groups.)

Intertrial phase locking

In the time-frequency domain, intertrial phase locking (ITPL) can be computed and displayed. ITPL is a measure for the stability of the phase of a given oscillatory response of a single surface or source channel across multiple trials. As such, ITPL is a measure that distinguishes evoked from induced brain responses.

Additional improvements of the new version

The montage editor now allows the rereferencing of the recorded data to the average of user-specified multiple montage channels. A new menu entry allows for a convenient way to quickly check for for updates and install them. Many additional minor improvements have been implemented based on customer requests. BESA Research supports Windows 7 in addition to Vista, XP, and 2000.

The new MATLAB interface of BESA Research 5.3 allows the combination of the advanced analysis features of BESA Research with individualized analysis requirements specified in MATLAB scripts and functions.

Above: discrete and distributed source analysis of an AEP experiment in BESA Research, cross-subject bootstrap statistics on source waveforms in MATLAB.