Monash model predicts brain wiring from mice to humans
A Monash University-led study in Cell links brain wiring to the brain’s physical shape.
Researchers from the Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health built a mathematical model of the cortical connectome. In Cell, the cortical connectome refers to the brain’s complex wiring diagram.
According to the Monash University briefing, connections tend to form between locations that support natural, shape-driven “resonant patterns.”
Lead author Francis Normand worked on the study with Professor Alex Fornito and Dr James Pang. All 3 researchers are from the Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health at Monash University.
“Just as the physical shape of a bell or a drum determines its vibrations and the music that it produces, the physical geometry of the brain constrains the patterns of neural activity it can support,” Mr Normand said.
How the model works
Using publicly available datasets, the Monash team tested the formula across species from mice to humans. Across at least 90 million years of mammalian evolution, brain shape appears to have guided internal wiring.
Significantly, the Cell study links the formula to both topology and topography. Topology covers how the brain is wired, while topography covers where the wires physically go.
Previous theories did not predict both properties, according to the Monash University briefing.
“Traditional models treat the brain as a collection of distinct regions sending signals through their connections. Our model suggests that the cortex can be treated like a continuous physical medium through which waves of activity propagate,” Mr Normand said.
“The model assumes that connections are strengthened between locations that show coordinated activity fluctuations when the brain expresses certain resonant patterns that it prefers due to its shape, much like the ripples formed by a raindrop will be influenced by the shape of a pond,” Mr Normand said.
“Crucially, our model suggests the brain wires itself in an energy-efficient way to support these resonant patterns, strongly favouring low-frequency patterns, resembling a deep, low hum rather than a high-pitched chirp,” Mr Normand said. “These broad, brain-wide patterns require far less energy to sustain,” he said.
Following the Cell publication, the research could aid future brain modelling. Monash researchers also link the work to questions about psychiatric and neurological disorders.
In particular, the Monash team points to structural changes or malformations that may alter brain wiring. The research paper carries the DOI 10.1016/j.cell.2026.05.048.
Last updated: 29 June 2026, 11:45 am
