fsbrain
The fsbrain package provides visualization of neuroimaging data in R. The plots produced by fsbrain can be integrated into R notebooks or written to high-quality bitmap image files, ready for publication.
Cite this software
Description
The fsbrain R package provides a well-tested and consistent interface to neuroimaging data in R. It supports reading, writing, and visualizing various kinds of raw data and statistical results on brain surfaces and volumes. While the package provides a very convenient interface for working with data arranged in the standard FreeSurfer directory structure (SUBJECTS_DIR), fsbrain is not limited to this layout or FreeSurfer file formats. You can load brain meshes, volumes, and data from a range of other neuroimaging software packages and visualize them.
The plots produced by fsbrain can be integrated into R notebooks or written to high-quality bitmap image files, ready for publication. The rgl renderer used by fsbrain provides fast, hardware-accelerated rendering based on the OpenGL standard.
Reference papers
Mentions
- 1.Author(s): Luke W. Bonham, Daniel W. Sirkis, Alina P. S. Pang, Leo P. Sugrue, Hernando Santamaría-García, Agustín M. Ibáñez, Bruce L. Miller, Jennifer S. Yokoyama, Michael J. Corley, for the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging InitiativePublished in npj Dementia by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in 202510.1038/s44400-025-00007-1
 - 2.Author(s): Ana I. Silva, Ida E. Sønderby, George Kirov, Abdel Abdellaoui, Ingrid Agartz, David Ames, Nicola J. Armstrong, Eric Artiges, Tobias Banaschewski, Anne S. Bassett, Carrie E. Bearden, John Blangero, Rune Boen, Dorret I. Boomsma, Robin Bülow, Nancy J. Butcher, Vince Calhoun, Linda E. Campbell, Eva W.C. Chow, Simone Ciufolini, Michael C. Craig, Benedicto Crespo-Farroco, Adam C. Cunningham, Shareefa Dalvie, Eileen Daly, Paola Dazzan, Eco J.C. de Geus, Greig I. de Zubicaray, Joanne L. Doherty, Gary Donohoe, Mark Drakesmith, Thomas Espeseth, Vincent Frouin, Hugh Garavan, David C. Glahn, Naomi J. Goodrich-Hunsaker, Penny A. Gowland, Hans J. Grabe, Antoine Grigis, Maria Gudbrandsen, Boris A. Gutman, Jan Haavik, Asta K. Håberg, Jeremy Hall, Andreas Heinz, Sarah Hohmann, Jouke-Jan Hottenga, Sébastien Jacquemont, Neda Jahanshad, Rachel K. Jonas, Derek K. Jones, Erik G. Jönsson, Sanne Koops, Kuldeep Kumar, Stephanie Le Hellard, Herve Lemaitre, Jingyu Liu, Astri J. Lundervold, Jean-Luc Martinot, Karen A. Mather, Donna M. McDonald-McGinn, Katie L. McMahon, Allan F. McRae, Sarah E. Medland, Clara A. Moreau, Kieran C. Murphy, Declan Murphy, Robin M. Murray, Frauke Nees, Michael J. Owen, Marie-Laure Paillère Martinot, Diimitri Papadopoulos Orfanos, Tomas Paus, Luise Poustka, Tiago Reis Marques, David R. Roalf, Perminder S. Sachdev, Freda Scheffler, J. Eric Schmitt, Gunter Schumann, Vidar M. Steen, Dan J. Stein, Lachlan T. Strike, Alexander Teumer, Anbupalam Thalamuthu, Sophia I. Thomopoulos, Diana Tordesillas-Gutiérrez, Julian N. Trollor, Anne Uhlmann, Ariana Vajdi, Dennis van ’t Ent, Therese van Amelsvoort, Marianne B.M. van den Bree, Dennis van der Meer, Javier Vázquez-Bourgon, Julio E. Villalón-Reina, Uwe Völker, Henry Völzke, Jacob A.S. Vorstman, Lars T. Westlye, Nigel Williams, Katharina Wittfeld, Margaret J. Wright, Paul M. Thompson, Ole A. Andreassen, David E.J. LindenPublished in Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging by Elsevier BV in 2025, page: 1093-110610.1016/j.bpsc.2025.05.010
 - 3.Author(s): Noemí Hostalet, Pilar Salgado-Pineda, Yasser Alemán-Gómez, Lluís Cobos-Aumatell, Alejandro Sotero-Moreno, Irene París-Gómez, Ana Aquino-Servín, Erick J. Canales-Rodríguez, Amalia Guerrero-Pedraza, Salvador Sarró, Jordi Ortiz-Gil, Kiho Im, Neus Martínez-Abadías, Edith Pomarol-Clotet, Mar Fatjó-VilasPublished in Biology of Sex Differences by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in 202510.1186/s13293-025-00733-4
 - 4.Author(s): Leonard B Jung, Anya S Mirmajlesi, Jared Stearns, Katherine Breedlove, Omar John, Nicholas Kim, Alana Wickham, Yi Su, Hillary Protas, Zachary H Baucom, Fatima Tuz-Zahra, Yorghos Tripodis, Daniel H Daneshvar, Tim L T Wiegand, Tashrif Billah, Ofer Pasternak, Carina Heller, Brian S Im, Shae Datta, Michael J Coleman, Charles H Adler, Charles Bernick, Laura J Balcer, Michael L Alosco, Alexander P Lin, Jeffrey L Cummings, Eric M Reiman, Robert A Stern, Martha E Shenton, Sylvain Bouix, Inga K Koerte, Hector Arciniega, Eric Reiman, Yi Su, Kewei Chen, Hillary Protas, Connie Boker, Michael L Alosco, Rhoda Au, Robert C Cantu, Lindsay Farrer, Robert Helm, Douglas I Katz, Neil Kowall, Jesse Mez, Gustavo Mercier, James Otis, Robert A Stern, Jason Weller, Irene Simkin, Alondra Andino, Shannon Conneely, Courtney Diamond, Tessa Fagle, Olivia Haller, Tennyson Hunt, Nicole Gullotti, Megan Mariani, Brian Mayville, Kathleen McLaughlin, Mary Nanna, Taylor Platt, Surya Pulukuri, Fiona Rice, Madison Sestak, Michael McClean, Yorghos Tripodis, Douglas Annis, Christine Chaisson, Diane B Dixon, Carolyn Finney, Kerrin Gallagher, Kaitlin Hartlage, Jun Lu, Brett Martin, Emmanuel Ojo, Joseph N Palmisano, Brittany Pine, Janani Ramachandran, Sylvain Bouix, Jennifer Fitzsimmons, Alexander P Lin, Inga K Koerte, Ofer Pasternak, Martha E Shenton, Hector Arcinieago, Tashrif Billah, Elena Bonke, Katherine Breedlove, Eduardo Coello, Michael J Coleman, Leonhard Jung, Huijun Liao, Maria Loy, Elizabeth Rizzoni, Vivian Schultz, Annelise Silva, Brynn Vessey, Tim L T Wiegand, Sarah BanksPublished in 202510.1093/braincomms/fcaf345
 - 5.Author(s): Derek S. Andrews, Kersten Diers, Joshua K. Lee, Danielle J. Harvey, Brianna Heath, Devani Cordero, Sally J. Rogers, Martin Reuter, Marjorie Solomon, David G. Amaral, Christine Wu NordahlPublished in Molecular Psychiatry by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in 2024, page: 3440-345110.1038/s41380-024-02592-8
 - 6.Author(s): Joan Jiménez-Balado, Christian Habeck, Yaakov Stern, Teal EichPublished in Neurobiology of Aging by Elsevier BV in 2024, page: 129-13910.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2024.05.014
 - 7.Author(s): Hussain A. Jaber, Basma A. Al-Ghali, Muna M. Kareem, Ilyas Çankaya, Oktay AlginPublished in Al-Nahrain Journal for Engineering Sciences by Al-Nahrain Journal for Engineering Sciences in 2024, page: 491-50010.29194/njes.27040491
 - 8.Author(s): Xavier Bledsoe, Eric R. GamazonPublished in The American Journal of Human Genetics by Elsevier BV in 2024, page: 1559-157210.1016/j.ajhg.2024.06.002
 - 9.Author(s): Saurabh Sihag, Gonzalo Mateos, Corey McMillan, Alejandro RibeiroPublished in IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Signal Processing by Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) in 2024, page: 199-21510.1109/jstsp.2024.3378887
 - 10.Author(s): Sarah M. Weinstein, Simon N. Vandekar, Bin Li, Aaron F. Alexander‐Bloch, Armin Raznahan, Mingyao Li, Raquel E. Gur, Ruben C. Gur, David R. Roalf, Min Tae M. Park, Mallar Chakravarty, Erica B. Baller, Kristin A. Linn, Theodore D. Satterthwaite, Russell T. ShinoharaPublished in Human Brain Mapping by Wiley in 202410.1002/hbm.26714
 - 11.Author(s): Xavier Bledsoe, Eric R. GamazonPublished in BMC Bioinformatics by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in 202410.1186/s12859-024-05936-x
 - 12.Author(s): Tomoya Nakai, Shinji NishimotoPublished in NeuroImage by Elsevier BV in 2023, page: 11998010.1016/j.neuroimage.2023.119980
 - 13.Author(s): Giulia Debiasi, Ilaria Mazzonetto, Alessandra BertoldoPublished in Computer Methods and Programs in Biomedicine by Elsevier BV in 2023, page: 10782510.1016/j.cmpb.2023.107825
 - 14.Author(s): Sidhant Chopra, Loïc Labache, Elvisha Dhamala, Edwina R Orchard, Avram HolmesPublished in Aperture Neuro by Organization for Human Brain Mapping in 202310.52294/001c.85104
 - 15.Author(s): Tomoya Nakai, Shinji NishimotoPublished in European Journal of Neuroscience by Wiley in 2023, page: 1003-101710.1111/ejn.15925
 - 16.Author(s): Claire E. Kelly, Michelle Shaul, Deanne K. Thompson, Rheanna M. Mainzer, Joseph YM Yang, Thijs Dhollander, Jeanie LY Cheong, Terrie E. Inder, Lex W. Doyle, Peter J. AndersonPublished in Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews by Elsevier BV in 2023, page: 10508210.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105082
 - 17.Author(s): Filip Morys, Eric Yu, Mari Shishikura, Casey Paquola, Uku Vainik, Gideon Nave, Philipp Koellinger, Ziv Gan-Or, Alain DagherPublished in Translational Psychiatry by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in 202310.1038/s41398-022-02301-5
 - 18.Author(s): Claire E Kelly, Deanne K Thompson, Chris L Adamson, Gareth Ball, Thijs Dhollander, Richard Beare, Lillian G Matthews, Bonnie Alexander, Jeanie L Y Cheong, Lex W Doyle, Peter J Anderson, Terrie E InderPublished in Brain by Oxford University Press (OUP) in 2023, page: 1526-153810.1093/brain/awad348
 - 19.Author(s): Sarah M. Weinstein, Simon N. Vandekar, Erica B. Baller, Danni Tu, Azeez Adebimpe, Tinashe M. Tapera, Ruben C. Gur, Raquel E. Gur, John A. Detre, Armin Raznahan, Aaron F. Alexander-Bloch, Theodore D. Satterthwaite, Russell T. Shinohara, Jun Young ParkPublished in NeuroImage by Elsevier BV in 2022, page: 11971210.1016/j.neuroimage.2022.119712
 - 20.Author(s): Luis Flores Horgue, Alexis Assens, Leon Fodoulian, Leonardo Marconi, Joël Tuberosa, Alexander Haider, Madlaina Boillat, Alan Carleton, Ivan RodriguezPublished in Nature Communications by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in 202210.1038/s41467-022-30511-4
 - 21.Author(s): Ursula A. Tooley, Anne T. Park, Julia A. Leonard, Austin L. Boroshok, Cassidy L. McDermott, Matthew D. Tisdall, Dani S. Bassett, Allyson P. MackeyPublished in The Journal of Neuroscience by Society for Neuroscience in 2022, page: 8237-825110.1523/jneurosci.0511-22.2022
 - 22.Author(s): Alessandro Cagol, Sabine Schaedelin, Muhamed Barakovic, Pascal Benkert, Ramona-Alexandra Todea, Reza Rahmanzadeh, Riccardo Galbusera, Po-Jui Lu, Matthias Weigel, Lester Melie-Garcia, Esther Ruberte, Nina Siebenborn, Marco Battaglini, Ernst-Wilhelm Radue, Özgür Yaldizli, Johanna Oechtering, Tim Sinnecker, Johannes Lorscheider, Bettina Fischer-Barnicol, Stefanie Müller, Lutz Achtnichts, Jochen Vehoff, Giulio Disanto, Oliver Findling, Andrew Chan, Anke Salmen, Caroline Pot, Claire Bridel, Chiara Zecca, Tobias Derfuss, Johanna M. Lieb, Luca Remonda, Franca Wagner, Maria I. Vargas, Renaud Du Pasquier, Patrice H. Lalive, Emanuele Pravatà, Johannes Weber, Philippe C. Cattin, Claudio Gobbi, David Leppert, Ludwig Kappos, Jens Kuhle, Cristina GranzieraPublished in JAMA Neurology by American Medical Association (AMA) in 2022, page: 68210.1001/jamaneurol.2022.1025
 - 23.Author(s): Saurabh Sihag, Sébastien Naze, Foad Taghdiri, Melisa Gumus, Charles Tator, Robin Green, Brenda Colella, Kaj Blennow, Henrik Zetterberg, Luis Garcia Dominguez, Richard Wennberg, David J. Mikulis, Maria C. Tartaglia, James R. KozloskiPublished in Communications Medicine by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in 202210.1038/s43856-021-00065-5
 - 24.Author(s): Wesley T. Kerr, Hiroyuki Tatekawa, John K. Lee, Amir H. Karimi, Siddhika S. Sreenivasan, Joseph O'Neill, Jena M. Smith, L. Brian Hickman, Ivanka Savic, Nilab Nasrullah, Randall Espinoza, Katherine Narr, Noriko Salamon, Nicholas J. Beimer, Lubomir M. Hadjiiski, Dawn S. Eliashiv, William C. Stacey, Jerome Engel, Jamie D. Feusner, John M. SternPublished in Epilepsy & Behavior by Elsevier BV in 2022, page: 10885810.1016/j.yebeh.2022.108858
 - 25.Author(s): Damon D. Pham, John Muschelli, Amanda F. MejiaPublished in NeuroImage by Elsevier BV in 2022, page: 11887710.1016/j.neuroimage.2022.118877
 - 26.Author(s): Evelyn Medawar, Ronja Thieleking, Iryna Manuilova, Maria Paerisch, Arno Villringer, A. Veronica Witte, Frauke BeyerPublished in PLOS ONE by Public Library of Science (PLoS) in 2021, page: e023902110.1371/journal.pone.0239021
 - 27.Author(s): Philip S. Insel, Brian S. Mohlenhoff, Thomas C. Neylan, Andrew D. Krystal, R. Scott MackinPublished in JAMA Network Open by American Medical Association (AMA) in 2021, page: e211757310.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.17573
 - 28.Author(s): Gianpaolo Del Mauro, Nicola Del Maschio, Simone Sulpizio, Davide Fedeli, Daniela Perani, Jubin AbutalebiPublished in Brain Structure and Function by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in 2021, page: 11-2110.1007/s00429-021-02376-8
 - 29.Author(s): Daniel Brennan, Tingting Wu, Jin FanPublished in Cerebral Cortex by Oxford University Press (OUP) in 2021, page: 3641-364910.1093/cercor/bhab037
 
- 1.Author(s): Gianpaolo Del Mauro, Ze WangPublished by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in 202410.1101/2024.04.28.591371
 - 2.Author(s): Luke Bonham, Daniel Sirkis, Alina Pang, Leo Sugrue, Hernando Santamaría-García, Agustin Ibanez, Bruce Miller, Jennifer Yokoyama, Michael CorleyPublished by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in 202410.21203/rs.3.rs-5273529/v1
 - 3.Author(s): Xavier Bledsoe, Eric R. GamazonPublished by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in 202310.1101/2023.03.10.23287072
 - 4.Author(s): Sarah M. Weinstein, Simon N. Vandekar, Aaron F. Alexander-Bloch, Armin Raznahan, Mingyao Li, Raquel E. Gur, Ruben C. Gur, David R. Roalf, Min Tae M. Park, Mallar Chakravarty, Erica B. Baller, Kristin A. Linn, Theodore D. Satterthwaite, Russell T. ShinoharaPublished by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in 202310.1101/2023.11.10.566593
 - 5.Author(s): Sidhant Chopra, Loïc Labache, Elvisha Dhamala, Edwina R Orchard, Avram J HolmesPublished by Center for Open Science in 202310.31219/osf.io/mtvy9
 - 6.Author(s): Filip Morys, Eric Yu, Mari Shishikura, Casey Paquola, Uku Vainik, Gideon Nave, Philipp Koellinger, Ziv Gan-Or, Alain DagherPublished by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in 202210.1101/2022.06.07.22275937
 - 7.Author(s): Ursula A. Tooley, Anne T. Park, Julia A. Leonard, Austin L. Boroshok, Cassidy L. McDermott, M. Dylan Tisdall, Dani S. Bassett, Allyson P. MackeyPublished by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in 202210.1101/2022.07.07.499176
 - 8.Author(s): Sarah M. Weinstein, Simon N. Vandekar, Erica B. Baller, Danni Tu, Azeez Adebimpe, Tinashe M. Tapera, Ruben C. Gur, Raquel E. Gur, John A. Detre, Armin Raznahan, Aaron F. Alexander-Bloch, Theodore D. Satterthwaite, Russell T. Shinohara, Jun Young ParkPublished by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in 202210.1101/2022.04.25.489462
 - 9.Author(s): Tomoya Nakai, Shinji NishimotoPublished by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in 202210.1101/2022.04.18.488703
 - 10.Author(s): Tomoya Nakai, Shinji NishimotoPublished by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in 202210.1101/2022.06.06.494909
 - 11.Author(s): Ursula A. Tooley, Danielle S. Bassett, Allyson P. MackeyPublished by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in 202110.1101/2021.01.21.427677