scholarly journals Sensing and seeing associated with overlapping occipitoparietal activation in simultaneous EEG-fMRI

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catriona L. Scrivener ◽  
Asad Malik ◽  
Michael Lindner ◽  
Etienne B. Roesch

AbstractThe presence of a change in a visual scene can influence brain activity and behaviour, even in the absence of full conscious report. It may be possible for us to sense that such a change has occurred, even if we cannot specify exactly where or what it was. Despite existing evidence from electroencephalogram (EEG) and eye-tracking data, it is still unclear how this partial level of awareness relates to fMRI BOLD activation. Using EEG, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and a change blindness paradigm, we found multi-modal evidence to suggest that sensing a change is distinguishable from being blind to it. Specifically, trials during which participants could detect the presence of a colour change but not identify the location of the change (sense trials), were compared to those where participants could both detect and localise the change (localise or see trials), as well as change blind trials. In EEG, late parietal positivity and N2 amplitudes were larger for localised changes only, when compared to change blindness. However, ERP-informed fMRI analysis found no voxels with activation that significantly co-varied with fluctuations in single-trial late positivity amplitudes. In fMRI, a range of visual (BA17,18), parietal (BA7,40), and midbrain (anterior cingulate, BA24) areas showed increased fMRI BOLD activation when a change was sensed, compared to change blindness. These visual and parietal areas are commonly implicated as the storage sites of visual working memory, and we therefore argue that sensing may not be explained by a lack of stored representation of the visual display. Both seeing and sensing a change were associated with an overlapping occipitoparietal network of activation when compared to blind trials, suggesting that the quality of the visual representation, rather than the lack of one, may result in partial awareness during the change blindness paradigm.

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Catriona L Scrivener ◽  
Asad Malik ◽  
Michael Lindner ◽  
Etienne B Roesch

Abstract The presence of a change in a visual scene can influence brain activity and behavior, even in the absence of full conscious report. It may be possible for us to sense that such a change has occurred, even if we cannot specify exactly where or what it was. Despite existing evidence from electroencephalogram (EEG) and eye-tracking data, it is still unclear how this partial level of awareness relates to functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) activation. Using EEG, fMRI, and a change blindness paradigm, we found multi-modal evidence to suggest that sensing a change is distinguishable from being blind to it. Specifically, trials during which participants could detect the presence of a colour change but not identify the location of the change (sense trials), were compared to those where participants could both detect and localise the change (localise or see trials), as well as change blind trials. In EEG, late parietal positivity and N2 amplitudes were larger for localised changes only, when compared to change blindness. However, ERP-informed fMRI analysis found no voxels with activation that significantly co-varied with fluctuations in single-trial late positivity amplitudes. In fMRI, a range of visual (BA17,18), parietal (BA7,40), and mid-brain (anterior cingulate, BA24) areas showed increased fMRI BOLD activation when a change was sensed, compared to change blindness. These visual and parietal areas are commonly implicated as the storage sites of visual working memory, and we therefore argue that sensing may not be explained by a lack of stored representation of the visual display. Both seeing and sensing a change were associated with an overlapping occipitoparietal network of activation when compared to blind trials, suggesting that the quality of the visual representation, rather than the lack of one, may result in partial awareness during the change blindness paradigm.


2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (7) ◽  
pp. 951
Author(s):  
Ching-Hsiung Liu ◽  
Yen-Ying Kung ◽  
Tzu-Chen Yeh ◽  
Pei-Shan Hsu ◽  
Ching-Ju Yang ◽  
...  

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) practitioners assess body constitution (BC) as a treatment basis for maintaining body homeostasis. We investigated patterns in spontaneous brain activity in different BC groups using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rsfMRI) and determined the relationship between these patterns and quality of life (QOL). Thirty-two healthy individuals divided into two groups (body constitution questionnaire (BCQ)-gentleness [BCQ-G] and BCQ-deficiency [BCQ-D]) based on the body constitution questionnaire (BCQ) underwent rsfMRI to analyze regional homogeneity (ReHo) and the amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF). The World Health Organization Quality of Life Instruments (brief edition) scale was used to evaluate the QOL. The BCQ-G group (n = 18) had significantly greater ReHo values in the right postcentral gyrus and lower ALFF values in the brainstem than the BCQ-D group (n = 14). In the BCQ-D group, decreased ReHo of the postcentral gyrus correlated with better physiological functioning; increased ALFF in the brainstem correlated with poor QOL. BCQ-subgroup analysis revealed a nonsignificant correlation between ReHo and Yang deficiency/phlegm and stasis (Phl & STA). Nonetheless, the BCQ-D group showed a positive correlation between ALFF and Phl & STA in the parahippocampus. This study identified differences between BCQ-G and BCQ-D types of healthy adults based on the rsfMRI analysis. The different BCQ types with varied brain endophenotypes may elucidate individualized TCM treatment strategies.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaclyn L. Farrens ◽  
Aaron M. Simmons ◽  
Steven J. Luck ◽  
Emily S. Kappenman

Abstract Electroencephalography (EEG) is one of the most widely used techniques to measure human brain activity. EEG recordings provide a direct, high temporal resolution measure of cortical activity from noninvasive scalp electrodes. However, the signals are small relative to the noise, and optimizing the quality of the recorded EEG data can significantly improve the ability to identify signatures of brain processing. This protocol provides a step-by-step guide to recording the EEG from human research participants using strategies optimized for producing the best quality EEG.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaclyn L. Farrens ◽  
Aaron M. Simmons ◽  
Steven J. Luck ◽  
Emily S. Kappenman

Abstract Electroencephalography (EEG) is one of the most widely used techniques to measure human brain activity. EEG recordings provide a direct, high temporal resolution measure of cortical activity from noninvasive scalp electrodes. However, the signals are small relative to the noise, and optimizing the quality of the recorded EEG data can significantly improve the ability to identify signatures of brain processing. This protocol provides a step-by-step guide to recording the EEG from human research participants using strategies optimized for producing the best quality EEG.


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. 216495612090609
Author(s):  
Chao Hsing Yeh ◽  
Keenan Caswell ◽  
Sonaali Pandiri ◽  
Haris Sair ◽  
Nada Lukkahatai ◽  
...  

Background The objective of this study was to investigate the dynamic brain activity following auricular point acupressure (APA) in chemotherapy-induced neuropathy (CIN). Methods Participants received 4 weeks of APA in an open-pilot trial with repeated observation. Along with the clinical self-reported CIN outcomes, objective outcomes were measured over the course of the treatment by physiological changes in pain sensory thresholds from quantitative sensory testing (QST) and repeated functional magnetic resonance imaging scans. Results After 4 weeks of APA, participants had reported clinically significant improvements (ie, ≥30%) in a reduction of CIN symptoms (including pain, numbness, tingling, and stiffness) in lower extremity stiffness (32%), reduced foot sensitivity (13%), and higher pain threshold (13%). Across the 11 intrinsic brain networks examined, there was a trend toward significance of the connectivity of the basal ganglia network (BGN) to the salience network (SAL), which was decreased pre-APA versus immediate-APA (effect size [ES] = 1.04, P = .07). The BGN also demonstrated decreased connectivity with the language network pre-APA versus delayed imaging post-APA (ES = −0.92, P = .07). Furthermore, there was increased executive control network (ECN) and SAL within-network connectivity comparing pre-APA to delayed imaging post-APA, trending toward significance (ES = 0.41, P = .09 and ES = 0.17, P = .09, respectively). Conclusion The changes in connectivity and activity within or between the ECN, SAL, and BGN from pre- to post-APA suggest ongoing alterations in brain functional connectivity following APA, particularly in the insula, anterior cingulate, and dorsolateral prefrontal cortices, which play significant roles in pain, memory, and cognitive function.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaclyn L. Farrens ◽  
Aaron M. Simmons ◽  
Steven J. Luck ◽  
Emily S. Kappenman

Abstract Electroencephalography (EEG) is one of the most widely used techniques to measure human brain activity. EEG recordings provide a direct, high temporal resolution measure of cortical activity from noninvasive scalp electrodes. However, the signals are small relative to the noise, and optimizing the quality of the recorded EEG data can significantly improve the ability to identify signatures of brain processing. This protocol provides a step-by-step guide to recording the EEG from human research participants using strategies optimized for producing the best quality EEG.


2005 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 238-245 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guillermo Campitelli ◽  
Fernand Gobet ◽  
Amanda Parker

A grandmaster and an international chess master were compared with a group of novices in a memory task with chess and non-chess stimuli, varying the structure and familiarity of the stimuli, while functional magnetic resonance images were acquired. The pattern of brain activity in the masters was different from that of the novices. Masters showed no differences in brain activity when different degrees of structure and familiarity where compared; however, novices did show differences in brain activity in such contrasts. The most important differences were found in the contrast of stimulus familiarity with chess positions. In this contrast, there was an extended brain activity in bilateral frontal areas such as the anterior cingulate and the superior, middle, and inferior frontal gyri; furthermore, posterior areas, such as posterior cingulate and cerebellum, showed great bilateral activation. These results strengthen the hypothesis that when performing a domain-specific task, experts activate different brain systems from that of novices. The use of the experts-versus-novices paradigm in brain imaging contributes towards the search for brain systems involved in cognitive processes.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olivia K. Harrison ◽  
Anja Hayen ◽  
Tor D. Wager ◽  
Kyle T. S. Pattinson

AbstractQuantifying pain currently relies upon subjective self-report. Alongside the inherent variability embedded within these metrics, added complications include the influence of ambiguous or prolonged noxious inputs, or in situations when communication may be compromised. As such, there is continued interest in the development of brain biomarkers of pain, such as in the form of neural ‘signatures’ of brain activity. However, issues pertaining to pain-related specificity remain, and by understanding the current limits of these signatures we can both progress their development and investigate the potentially generalizable properties of pain to other salient and/or somatomotor tasks. Here, we utilized two independent datasets to test one of the established Neural Pain Signatures (the NPS (Wager et al. 2013)). In Study 1, brain activity was measured using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in 40 healthy subjects during experimentally induced breathlessness, conditioned anticipation of breathlessness and a simple finger opposition task. In Study 2, brain activity was again measured during anticipation and breathlessness in 19 healthy subjects, as well as a modulation with the opioid remifentanil. We were able to identify significant NPS-related brain activity during anticipation and perception of breathlessness, as well as during finger opposition using the global NPS. Furthermore, localised NPS responses were found in early somatomotor regions, bilateral insula and dorsal anterior cingulate for breathlessness and finger opposition. In contrast, no conditions were able to activate the local signature in the dorsal posterior insula - thought to be critical for pain perception. These results provide properties of the present boundaries of the NPS, and offer insight into the overlap between breathlessness and somatomotor conditions with pain.


2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ziang Gao ◽  
Xixiang Chen ◽  
Rong Xiang ◽  
Wei Zhang ◽  
Lu Tan ◽  
...  

BackgroundAllergic rhinitis (AR) is an inflammatory disorder of the nose caused by immunoglobulin E (IgE)-mediated immune response to allergens. Apart from the typical symptoms of sneezing, itching, rhinorrhea, and nasal congestion, behavioral complications were also reported to be associated with the progression of AR, such as cognitive deficits, mood changes, memory decline, attention deficiency, poor school performance, anxiety, and depression. Recent human studies have suggested that alterations in brain function caused by allergen exposure may precipitate high levels of anxiety and emotional reactivity in asthma patients. But until now, there is no direct evidence of the relationship between brain activity and allergic rhinitis.MethodsResting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) was used to excavate whether there remain functional changes of brain activity in AR patients. We measured the amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF) and the z conversion of ALFF (zALFF) in 20 patients with AR and 20 age- and sex-matched healthy controls (HCs) using the rs-fMRI data.ResultsCompared with healthy controls, AR patients exhibited lower ALFF values in the precuneus (PCUN) and higher ALFF values in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). The ALFF values of these features were significantly correlated with the visual analog scale (VAS) scores, the Rhinoconjunctivitis Quality of Life Questionnaire (RQLQ) scores, the subscales of RQLQ, and specific IgE, partly.ConclusionWe found changes in resting-state spontaneous brain activity in AR patients with hypoactivity in the PCUN and hyperactivity of the ACC. The brain-related symptoms of AR might be another potential clinical intervention target for improving the life quality of AR patients. Further attention to brain activity is essential for a deeper understanding of AR.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaclyn L. Farrens ◽  
Aaron M. Simmons ◽  
Steven J. Luck ◽  
Emily S. Kappenman

Abstract Electroencephalography (EEG) is one of the most widely used techniques to measure human brain activity. EEG recordings provide a direct, high temporal resolution measure of cortical activity from noninvasive scalp electrodes. However, the signals are small relative to the noise, and optimizing the quality of the recorded EEG data can significantly improve the ability to identify signatures of brain processing. This protocol provides a step-by-step guide to recording the EEG from human research participants using strategies optimized for producing the best quality EEG.


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