N2 and P3 modulation during partial inhibition in a modified go/nogo task

Inhibitory control of gait initiation in humans: An electroencephalography study

Response inhibition is a crucial component of executive control. Although mainly studied in upper limb tasks, it is fully implicated in gait initiation. Here, we assessed the influence of proactive and reactive inhibitory control during gait initiation in healthy adult participants. For this purpose, we measured kinematics and electroencephalography (EEG) activity (event-related potential [ERP] and time-frequency data) during a modified Go/NoGo gait initiation task in 23 healthy adults. The task comprised Go-certain, Go-uncertain, and NoGo conditions. Each trial included preparatory and imperative stimuli. Our results showed that go-uncertainty resulted in delayed reaction time, without any difference for the other parameters of gait initiation. Proactive inhibition, that is, Go uncertain versus Go certain conditions, influenced EEG activity as soon as the preparatory stimulus. Moreover, both proactive and reactive inhibition influenced the amplitude of the ERPs (central P1, occipito-parietal N1, and N2/P3) and theta and alpha/low beta band activities in response to the imperative-Go-uncertain versus Go-certain and NoGo versus Go-uncertain-stimuli. These findings demonstrate that the uncertainty context; induced proactive inhibition, as reflected in delayed gait initiation. Proactive and reactive inhibition elicited extended and overlapping modulations of ERP and time-frequency activities. This study shows the protracted influence of inhibitory control in gait initiation.

Monetary reward enhances response inhibition processes manifested in No-go P3

This study investigated the impact of motivational valence on No-go P3 and N2 by incorporating monetary rewards based on response outcomes. We also investigated how personality differences in terms of the behavioral inhibition system (BIS) and behavioral approach system (BAS) influenced No-go N2 and No-go P3. Twenty-eight participants performed Go/No-go tasks (80 % Go and 20 % No-go) under two conditions. In the reward condition, each correct-rejection trial for the No-go stimulus was rewarded with 10 yen (∼6 cents), whereas in the neutral condition, neither monetary rewards nor punishments were contingent on response outcomes. Individual responsiveness to punishment and rewards was evaluated using the BIS and BAS scales. The error rate was significantly lower in the reward condition than in the neutral condition. P3 amplitude for correct-rejection trials (i.e., preceding erroneous muscular activity on the wrong hand) was larger in the reward condition than in the neutral condition; however, N2 amplitudes did not differ between the two conditions. These results suggest that monetary rewards may enhance motor inhibition control. Individuals with a higher BIS score exhibited a larger No-go N2 for correct-rejection in the neutral condition. We conclude that No-go N2 amplitude is modulated by avoidance motivation.

Distinct mechanisms underlying cross-modal semantic conflict and response conflict processing

Interference from task-irrelevant stimuli can occur during the semantic and response processing stages. Previous studies have shown both common and distinct mechanisms underlying semantic conflict processing and response conflict processing in the visual domain. However, it remains unclear whether common and/or distinct mechanisms are involved in semantic conflict processing and response conflict processing in the cross-modal domain. Therefore, the present electroencephalography study adopted an audiovisual 2-1 mapping Stroop task to investigate whether common and/or distinct mechanisms underlie semantic conflict and response conflict. Behaviorally, significant cross-modal semantic conflict and significant cross-modal response conflict were observed. Electroencephalography results revealed that the frontal N2 amplitude and theta power increased only in the semantic conflict condition, while the parietal N450 amplitude increased only in the response conflict condition. These findings indicated that distinct neural mechanisms were involved in cross-modal semantic conflict and response conflict processing, supporting the domain-specific cognitive control mechanisms from a cross-modal multistage conflict processing perspective.

Unraveling the social hierarchy: Exploring behavioral and neural dynamics in shaping inhibitory control

Inhibitory control is crucial for regulating emotions, suppressing biases, and inhibiting inappropriate responses in social interactions. Social rank, or perceived position in the hierarchy, can influence inhibitory control, with high-rank individuals requiring it to regulate dominant behavior and low-rank individuals requiring it to regulate emotional reactions or avoid submissive behaviors. Furthermore, research suggests that social status can affect the neural mechanisms underlying inhibitory control, leading to differences in abilities and strategies based on perceived rank. In this study, we investigated the effects of social rank on inhibitory control using a dot estimation task to prime social hierarchy. Subsequently, we assessed the inhibitory control of the participants using a Go/Nogo task with photos of individuals in different social ranks. The study recruited a total of 43 students (22 males and 21 females), with a mean age of 26.8 years (SD=4.08). We measured both behavioral (reaction time and response accuracy) and electrophysiological (N200 and P300 event-related potentials) responses to investigate the neural correlates of inhibitory control. Results showed that participants responded slower to lower-rank individuals but had higher accuracy when inhibiting their response to them. The N200 amplitude was greater when presented with higher ranks stimuli in Go trials, indicating greater conflict monitoring, while the P300 amplitude was significantly higher in Nogo trials compared to Go trials. These findings suggest that social rank can influence inhibitory control and highlight the importance of considering the impact of social hierarchy in social interactions.

Impulsivity in Major Depressive Disorder Patients with Suicidal Ideation: Event-related Potentials in a GoNogo Task

Objective

: Suicidal ideation is one of the strongest predictors of suicide, and its relevance to impulsivity in depressed patients has been accumulated. Furthermore, high impulsivity patients show the attenuation of the Nogo amplitude in the GoNogo event-related potential (ERP). The purpose of the current study is to determine the correlation of Nogo ERP to the suicidal ideation depending on the condition of its presence or absence in major depressive disorder (MDD) patients.

Methods

: A total 162 participants (104 patients with suicidal ideation, 31 patients without suicidal ideation, and 27 healthy controls) were recruited, and performed GoNogo tasks during the electroencephalogram measurement. Depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation and impulsivity were assessed by self-rating scales. The clinical measures, behavioral data and Nogo ERP were compared among groups.

Results

: The MDD with suicidal ideation (SI) group showed significantly decreased Nogo P3 amplitudes compared to MDD without SI (Fz and Cz electrodes) and control group (all electrodes). The MDD with SI group also had significantly low accuracy of both Go and Nogo trails, compared to the MDD without group. The Nogo P3 amplitudes showed the negative relation to the scores of impulsivity, depression, anxiety and SI.

Conclusion

: Our results concluded that the Nogo P3 ERP amplitude was decreased in MDD patients with SI compared to MDD patients without SI and controls. These findings suggest that the decreased Nogo P3 amplitude is the one of the candidate biomarker for impulsivity in MDD patients to evaluating SI.

Emotional Modulation of Response Inhibition in Adolescents During Acute Suicidal Crisis: Event-Related Potentials in an Emotional Go/NoGo Task

Objectives. Suicide is the second leading cause of adolescent deaths and may be linked to difficulties with inhibitory and emotional processing. This study assessed the neural correlates of cognitive inhibition during emotional processing in adolescents hospitalized for a suicidal crisis. Methods. Event-related potentials were recorded during an emotional Go/NoGo task in 12 adolescents who attempted suicide and 12 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Results. Compared to the control group, the suicidal group showed significantly reduced positivity at the time of the P3d (difference waveform reflecting NoGo minus Go trials) in response to happy and neutral, but not sad stimuli. For happy stimuli, this group difference was restricted to the right hemisphere. Further analyses indicated that the suicidal group had a reversed pattern of P3 amplitude in response to inhibition, with lower amplitudes in the NoGo compared to the Go conditions. Suicidal symptoms severity strongly correlated with lower amplitude of the P3d in response to neutral faces. Conclusions. These findings provide more insight into inhibition difficulties in adolescents with acute suicidal risk. Interactions between emotional and inhibition processing should be considered when treating acutely suicidal youths.

Negative inhibition is poor in sub-threshold depression individuals: Evidence from ERP and a Go/No-go task

In this study, Go/No-go task combined with ERP technology were used to explore the characteristics of negative emotion inhibition in SD and healthy individuals and whether there are differences between negative emotion inhibition and neutral emotion inhibition in SD. The results showed that SD showed the same poor negative inhibition as depressive patients in behavior, but there was no significant difference between SD and CG in ERPs. Overall, compared with neutral emotional information, negative emotional information would reduce attention control in conflict processing, lead to faster conflict processing, attract attention, occupy more cognitive resources, and be more difficult to inhibit. It is concluded that the negative attention bias of SD individuals is only reflected in the bottom-up stimulation processing, but has not developed into the top-down cognitive control, which also suggests that the corresponding intervention measures at the early stage of depression may have better effects.

Response inhibition and error-monitoring in cystinosis (CTNS gene mutations): Behavioral and electrophysiological evidence of a diverse set of difficulties

Cystinosis, a rare lysosomal storage disease, is characterized by cystine crystallization and accumulation within tissues and organs, including the kidneys and brain. Its impact on neural function appears mild relative to its effects on other organs, but therapeutic advances have led to substantially increased life expectancy, necessitating deeper understanding of its impact on neurocognitive function. Behaviorally, some deficits in executive function have been noted in this population, but the underlying neural processes are not understood. Using standardized cognitive assessments and a Go/No-Go response inhibition task in conjunction with high-density electrophysiological recordings (EEG), we sought to investigate the behavioral and neural dynamics of inhibition of a prepotent response and of error monitoring (critical components of executive function) in individuals with cystinosis, when compared to age-matched controls. Thirty-seven individuals diagnosed with cystinosis (7-36 years old, 24 women) and 45 age-matched controls (27 women) participated in this study. Analyses focused on N2 and P3 No-Go responses and error-related positivity (Pe). Atypical inhibitory processing was shown behaviorally. Electrophysiological differences were additionally found between the groups, with individuals with cystinosis showing larger No-Go P3s. Error-monitoring was likewise different between the groups, with those with cystinosis showing reduced Pe amplitudes.

Young adults who improve performance during dual-task walking show more flexible reallocation of cognitive resources: a mobile brain-body imaging (MoBI) study

INTRODUCTION

In young adults, pairing a cognitive task with walking can have different effects on gait and cognitive task performance. In some cases, performance clearly declines whereas in others compensatory mechanisms maintain performance. This study investigates the preliminary finding of behavioral improvement in Go/NoGo response inhibition task performance during walking compared with sitting, which was observed at the piloting stage.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Mobile brain/body imaging (MoBI) was used to record electroencephalographic (EEG) activity, 3-dimensional (3D) gait kinematics and behavioral responses in the cognitive task, during sitting or walking on a treadmill.

RESULTS

In a cohort of 26 young adults, 14 participants improved in measures of cognitive task performance while walking compared with sitting. These participants exhibited walking-related EEG amplitude reductions over frontal scalp regions during key stages of inhibitory control (conflict monitoring, control implementation, and pre-motor stages), accompanied by reduced stride-to-stride variability and faster responses to stimuli compared with those who did not improve. In contrast, 12 participants who did not improve exhibited no EEG amplitude differences across physical condition.

DISCUSSION

The neural activity changes associated with performance improvement during dual tasking hold promise as cognitive flexibility markers that can potentially help assess cognitive decline in aging and neurodegeneration.

Usability of the REHOME Solution for the Telerehabilitation in Neurological Diseases: Preliminary Results on Motor and Cognitive Platforms

The progressive aging of the population and the consequent growth of individuals with neurological diseases and related chronic disabilities, will lead to a general increase in the costs and resources needed to ensure treatment and care services. In this scenario, telemedicine and e-health solutions, including remote monitoring and rehabilitation, are attracting increasing interest as tools to ensure the sustainability of the healthcare system or, at least, to support the burden for health care facilities. Technological advances in recent decades have fostered the development of dedicated and innovative Information and Communication Technology (ICT) based solutions, with the aim of complementing traditional care and treatment services through telemedicine applications that support new patient and disease management strategies. This is the background for the REHOME project, whose technological solution, presented in this paper, integrates innovative methodologies and devices for remote monitoring and rehabilitation of cognitive, motor, and sleep disorders associated with neurological diseases. One of the primary goals of the project is to meet the needs of patients and clinicians, by ensuring continuity of treatment from healthcare facilities to the patient's home. To this end, it is important to ensure the usability of the solution by elderly and pathological individuals. Preliminary results of usability and user experience questionnaires on 70 subjects recruited in three experimental trials are presented here.

Kinematic Studies of the Go/No-Go Task as a Dynamic Sensorimotor Inhibition Task for Assessment of Motor and Executive Function in Stroke Patients: An Exploratory Study in a Neurotypical Sample

Inhibition of reaching and grasping actions as an element of cognitive control and executive function is a vital component of sensorimotor behaviour that is often impaired in patients who have lost sensorimotor function following a stroke. To date, there are few kinematic studies detailing the fine spatial and temporal upper limb movements associated with the millisecond temporal trajectory of correct and incorrect responses to visually driven Go/No-Go reaching and grasping tasks. Therefore, we aimed to refine the behavioural measurement of correct and incorrect inhibitory motor responses in a Go/No-Go task for future quantification and personalized rehabilitation in older populations and those with acquired motor disorders, such as stroke. An exploratory study mapping the kinematic profiles of hand movements in neurotypical participants utilizing such a task was conducted using high-speed biological motion capture cameras, revealing both within and between subject differences in a sample of healthy participants. These kinematic profiles and differences are discussed in the context of better assessment of sensorimotor function impairment in stroke survivors.

Alpha-beta decoupling relevant to inhibition deficits leads to suicide attempt in major depressive disorder

BACKGROUND

One devastating outcome of major depressive disorder (MDD) is high suicidality, especially for patients with suicide attempt (SA). Evidence indicated that SA may be strongly associated with inhibitory control deficits. We hypothesized that the inhibition function deficits of patient with SA might be underpinned by abnormal neuronal oscillations.

METHODS

Our study recruited 111 subjects including 74 patients and 37 controls, who performed a GO/NOGO task during magnetoencephalography recording. Time-frequency-representations and phase-amplitude-coupling were measured for the brain circuits involved in the inhibitory function. Phase-slope-indexes were calculated between regions to determine the direction of power flow.

RESULTS

Significant increased reaction time and decreased judgment accuracy were observed in SA group. During the perception stage of GO task (approximately 125 ms), SA group manifested elevated alpha power in ventral prefrontal cortex (VPFC) and attenuated beta power in dorsal anterior cingulate (dACC) compared with other groups (p < 0.01). In the processing stage of NOGO task (approximately 300 ms), they showed decreased beta power in VPFC and increased alpha power in dACC (p < 0.01). Alpha-beta decoupling during both tasks was observed in SA group. Furthermore, the decoupling from VPFC to dACC under NOGO tasks was significantly correlated with suicide risk level.

LIMITATIONS

The number of participants was relatively small, and psychological elements were not involved in current study.

CONCLUSION

Dysregulated oscillatory activities of dACC and VPFC suggested deficits in execution and inhibition functions triggering high suicide risks. The alpha-beta decoupling from VPFC to dACC could be served as a neuro-electrophysiological biomarker for identifying potential suicide risk.

Acute Exercise Improves Inhibitory Control but Not Error Detection in Male Violent Perpetrators: An ERPs Study With the Emotional Stop Signal Task

Violence has been linked to the co-occurrence of cognitive dysfunction and altered activations in several brain regions. Empirical evidence demonstrated the benefits of acute exercise on motor inhibition and error detection and their neuronal processing. However, whether such effects also hold for the population with violent behaviors remains unknown. This study examined the effects of acute aerobic exercise on inhibitory control and error monitoring among violent offenders. Fifteen male violent offenders were counterbalanced into experimental protocols, which comprised a 30-min moderately aerobic exercise [60% heart rate (HR) reserve] and a 30-min reading control session. After each session, participants performed an emotional stop signal task while event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded simultaneously. Results showed insignificant changes in ERPs components [i.e., N2, P3, error-related negativity (ERN), and error-positivity (Pe) amplitudes] and the behavioral performance in go condition, stop accuracy, and post-error adjustments by exercise. However, the current study demonstrated that the acute exercise facilitated stop signal reaction time (SSRT) when compared to the control session regardless of emotional conditions. This is the first research to exhibit the improvements in inhibitory performance by acute exercise for violent offenders. Most importantly, this effect was independent of affective settings, expanding the existing knowledge of the influences of acute exercise on cognition. Our findings implicate the perspective of acute exercise for clinical and correctional practices.

Neural processes during response inhibition in complex posttraumatic stress disorder

BACKGROUND

A common feature of complex posttraumatic stress disorder (CPTSD) is impulsivity. Despite the importance of this characteristic in functional difficulties in CPTSD, little is known about its mechanisms. The aim of this study was to identify the distinctive neural profile of CPTSD during attempted inhibition.

METHODS

The present study examined functional alterations in neural networks involved in inhibitory control across functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and electroencephalogram (EEG) paradigms in CPTSD (n = 30), PTSD (n = 40), and healthy control (n = 40) participants who completed a Go/NoGo response inhibition task during separate fMRI and EEG sessions. Brain activations were calculated during the NoGo trials relative to the baseline to evaluate response inhibition functioning.

RESULTS

There was reduced bilateral thalamic activation in participants with CPTSD relative to PTSD and controls during inhibition trials, but no activation differences between PTSD and controls for this brain region. There were no differences in functional connectivity between the thalamus and other regions involved in cognitive control between groups. No differences were observed between groups on EEG responses.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings provide initial evidence of aberrant functioning in the neurocircuitry of inhibitory control, involving the thalamus, in CPTSD. This evidence suggests that CPTSD is distinguished from PTSD by impaired neural processes implicated in response inhibition.

A possibility of error-related processing contamination in the No-go N2: The effect of partial-error trials on response inhibition processing

This study investigated whether error‐related negativity (ERN) elicited by partial errors and No‐go N2 represent distinct or similar components. We also investigated whether the error positivity (Pe) and No‐go P3 represent distinct or similar components. Partial‐error trials are behaviourally classified as correct trials but preceded by covert muscular activities. Recent studies have reported that analysing partial‐error trials is useful for investigating the functional roles of ERN and No‐go N2. In this study, 23 participants performed a Go/No‐go flanker task. They performed nine blocks of 60 trials each. Stimulus‐locked event‐related potentials (ERPs) were averaged separately for Go‐congruent pure‐correct trials, Go‐incongruent pure‐correct trials and No‐go pure‐correct trials. In addition, we compared the stimulus‐locked ERPs among No‐go pure‐correct trials, No‐go partial‐error trials, Go‐incongruent pure‐correct trials and Go‐incongruent partial‐error trials. Electromyogram (EMG)‐locked ERPs were averaged separately for correct trials, overt errors in No‐go trials, partial errors in No‐go trials, overt errors in incongruent trials and partial errors in incongruent trials. N2 was remarkably larger in No‐go partial‐error trials than in No‐go pure‐correct trials. Consistent with previous findings, the No‐go partial‐error N2 might reflect error‐related processing. P3 amplitudes were larger in the No‐go trials than in both the Go‐congruent and Go‐incongruent trials. These results suggest that the No‐go P3, but not the No‐go N2, might reflect inhibition of overt movement. The present findings provide further evidence that the previously reported increase in No‐go N2 may be due to an overlap of the ERN elicited by partial errors.

Electrophysiological Changes Between Patients With Suicidal Ideation and Suicide Attempts: An Event-Related Potential Study

INTRODUCTION

Inhibitory control is regarded as an important ability related to the transition from suicidal ideation to suicide attempts. In event-related potential, patients with dysfunction of inhibitory control demonstrate a reduction in the no-go amplitude. This study aimed to determine the association between the no-go event-related potential component and suicidal behaviors among suicide attempters and ideators who never attempted suicide.

METHODS

Overall, 150 patients who visited the emergency room by suicide attempts or patients who visited the psychiatric department with suicidal ideation were recruited and instructed to perform a go/no-go task during electroencephalography recording. The Beck Depression Inventory, Beck Anxiety Inventory, Barratt Impulsivity Scale, Difficulties in Emotional Regulation Scale, and Acquired Capability for Suicide Scale were used. Individuals were divided into two groups: those with suicide attempt group) and with suicidal ideation (SI group) without SA. The psychological characteristics and event-related potentials of the two groups were compared. Correlation analyses were conducted to test the association between the clinical characteristics and event-related potentials.

RESULTS

The SA group had significantly decreased no-go P3 amplitudes at all electrodes compared to the SI group. In the correlation analysis between the clinical measurements and event-related potentials in all the participants, no-go P3 amplitudes in whole electrode sites were negatively correlated with the scores of the acquired capability for the suicide scale.

CONCLUSIONS

This study revealed that suicide attempters have dysfunction in controlling inhibition compared to suicide ideators reflected in the no-go P3. Our findings suggested that no-go P3 can be a biomarker associated suicide attempts in suicide ideators.

The Effect of Odour Valence and Odour Detection Threshold on the Withholding and Cancellation of Reach-to-Press Responses

Introduction

Withholding uninitiated actions and cancelling ongoing ones are two main components of response inhibition, a key element of the executive control. Inhibitory performance is sensitive to emotional contexts elicited by subliminal and supraliminal visual material. However, whether stimuli from other sensory modalities, such as odours, would equally modulate response inhibition remains unclear. Here, we aimed to assess the effect of task-irrelevant odours as a function of their valence and threshold on both action withholding and action cancellation of reach-to-press movements.

Method

Thirty-two healthy participants performed a Go/No-Go task that included the presentation of pleasant (orange) and unpleasant (trimethyloxazole) odour primes at supra- and sub-threshold levels; clean air was included as a control condition. The reach-to-press responses were composed of an initial release phase and a subsequent reaching phase.

Results

Only the supra-threshold pleasant (vs. control) odour impaired action withholding. Moreover, the pleasant (vs. control) odour—presented at both sub- and supra-threshold levels—elicited more accurate Go responses, whereas the sub- and supra-threshold pleasant and unpleasant (vs. control) odours triggered faster responses in the release phase. Additionally, only the supra-threshold pleasant (vs. unpleasant) odour impaired action cancellation in the reaching phase. Furthermore, reaching responses were slower following the supra-threshold unpleasant (vs. control) odour.

Conclusions

Our findings extend the sparse literature on the impact of odour stimuli on goal-directed behaviour, highlighting the role of both odour valence and threshold in the modulation of response inhibition.

Implications

Determining the mechanisms by which odour stimuli modulate response inhibition lays the foundations for research on odour-triggered disinhibition.

The fronto-central N2 but not parietal P3 reflects response inhibition in the count/no-count task

This study aimed to investigate whether the N2 or P3 component in the count/no-count task reflects response inhibition. The participants were asked to count/withhold counting the number of O/X letters in the count/no-count task, and to calculate the sum of all digits (i.e., 1/0) in the digital accumulation task. Therefore, four conditions were obtained in this study: count, no-count, Add 1, and Add 0. In the count and Add 1 conditions, the counting/calculation number need to be updated. In both no-count and Add 0 conditions, the memory of counting/calculation number need not to be updated; a No-go (withhold) instruction was given in the no-count condition, but a Go instruction was given in the Add 0 condition. Results showed that an enhanced fronto-central N2 was evoked in the no-count than in the Add 0 condition, indicating that a stronger response conflict or stronger inhibition might be triggered in the No-count condition. The frontocentral P3 showed no differences between no-count and Add 0 conditions, however, an enhanced centro-parietal P3 component was observed for the count relative to the no-count condition and for the Add 1 relative to the Add 0 condition, indicating that a greater amount of attentional resources might be consumed during memory updating process. Taken together, in the count/no-count task, the fronto-central N2 might reflect response inhibition or conflict and the parietal P3 might reflect attentional resource allocation but not response inhibition.

Electrophysiological correlates of improved executive function following EEG neurofeedback in adult attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

OBJECTIVE

Event-related potentials (ERPs) are reported to be altered in relation to cognitive processing deficits in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, this evidence is mostly limited to cross-sectional data. The current study utilized neurofeedback (NFB) as a neuromodulatory tool to examine the ERP correlates of attentional and inhibitory processes in adult ADHD using a single-session, within-subject design.

METHODS

We recorded high-density EEG in 25 adult ADHD patients and 22 neurotypical controls during a Go/NoGo task, before and after a 30-minute NFB session designed to down-regulate the alpha (8-12 Hz) rhythm.

RESULTS

At baseline, ADHD patients demonstrated impaired Go/NoGo performance compared to controls, while Go-P3 amplitude inversely correlated with ADHD-associated symptomatology in childhood. Post NFB, task performance improved in both groups, significantly enhancing stimulus detectability (d-prime) and reducing reaction time variability, while increasing N1 and P3 ERP component amplitudes. Specifically for ADHD patients, the pre-to-post enhancement in Go-P3 amplitude correlated with measures of improved executive function, i.e., enhanced d-prime, reduced omission errors and reduced reaction time variability.

CONCLUSIONS

A single-session of alpha down-regulation NFB was able to reverse the abnormal neurocognitive signatures of adult ADHD during a Go/NoGo task.

SIGNIFICANCE

The study demonstrates for the first time the beneficial neurobehavioral effect of a single NFB session in adult ADHD, and reinforces the notion that ERPs could serve as useful diagnostic/prognostic markers of executive dysfunction.

The Effect of Prior Knowledge of Color on Behavioral Responses and Event-Related Potentials During Go/No-go Task

In daily life, the meaning of color plays an important role in execution and inhibition of a motor response. For example, the symbolism of traffic light can help pedestrians and drivers to control their behavior, with the color green/blue meaning go and red meaning stop. However, we don't always stop with a red light and sometimes start a movement with it in such a situation as drivers start pressing the brake pedal when a traffic light turns red. In this regard, we investigated how the prior knowledge of traffic light signals impacts reaction times (RTs) and event-related potentials (ERPs) in a Go/No-go task. We set up Blue Go/Red No-go and Red Go/Blue No-go tasks with three different go signal (Go) probabilities (30, 50, and 70%), resulting in six different conditions. The participants were told which color to respond (Blue or Red) just before each condition session but didn't know the Go probability. Neural responses to Go and No-go signals were recorded at Fz, Cz, and Oz (international 10-20 system). We computed RTs for Go signal and N2 and P3 amplitudes from the ERP data. We found that RT was faster when responding to blue than red light signal and also was slower with lower Go probability. Overall, N2 amplitude was larger in Red Go than Blue Go trial and in Red No-go than Blue No-go trial. Furthermore, P3 amplitude was larger in Red No-go than Blue No-go trial. Our findings of RT and N2 amplitude for Go ERPs could indicate the presence of Stroop-like interference, that is a conflict between prior knowledge about traffic light signals and the meaning of presented signal. Meanwhile, the larger N2 and P3 amplitudes in Red No-go trial as compared to Blue No-go trial may be due to years of experience in stopping an action in response to a red signal and/or attention. This study provides the better understanding of the effect of prior knowledge of color on behavioral responses and its underlying neural mechanisms.

Neural activity during response inhibition in mild traumatic brain injury and posttraumatic stress disorder

Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) is often characterized by deficits in response inhibition, which can contribute to marked social and occupational dysfunction. mTBI often occurs in the context of psychologically traumatic events. This can cause posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which also impedes response inhibition. The overlap or distinction in these inhibitory deficits in mTBI and PTSD is unclear. This study aimed to assess behavioral, neurophysiological, and neuroimaging indices of response inhibition in mTBI by also assessing these parameters in healthy controls (HC) and PTSD participants. Participants with mTBI (without PTSD) (n = 46), PTSD (without mTBI) (n = 41), and HC (n = 40) were assessed during a response inhibition task (the Go/NoGo task) during neuropsychological testing and separate functional magnetic imaging and event-related potentials sessions. PTSD symptom severity was assessed with the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale. Both mTBI and PTSD participants performed more omission errors on the Go/NoGo task and were associated with greater N2 amplitude, greater left inferior parietal activation and reduced connectivity of the left inferior parietal cluster and left angular gyrus compared to HC. There were no differences between mTBI and PTSD on any of these measures. These findings highlight that both mTBI and PTSD contribute to neural dysfunction during response inhibition, and arguably these occur due to distinct mechanisms. In the context of the common comorbidity between these two conditions, strategies to address response inhibition deficits in mTBI may need to consider causative factors underpinning neurological insult of mTBI and psychological effects associated with PTSD.

Neural activity during response inhibition associated with improvement of dysphoric symptoms of PTSD after trauma-focused psychotherapy-an EEG-fMRI study

Although trauma-focused cognitive behavioural therapy (TF-CBT) is the frontline treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), up to one half of patients do not respond optimally to this treatment. Inhibitory functions are important for successful management of PTSD, yet there is a dearth of knowledge regarding the extent to which neural mechanisms unpinning response inhibition are associated with TF-CBT response. Treatment-seeking PTSD patients (n = 40) were assessed during a response inhibition task (the Go/No-Go task) while undergoing functional magnetic imaging (fMRI) and event-related potentials (ERP) in separate sessions. PTSD symptom severity was assessed with the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale, before undergoing nine sessions of TF-CBT. They were then reassessed post-treatment to estimate reduction in fear and dysphoric symptoms of PTSD. Although neural responses during the inhibitory task did not predict overall symptom change, reduced activation in the left precuneus and the right superior parietal cortex predicted greater improvement in dysphoric symptoms. ERP responses during response inhibition indicated that lower P3 peak latency predicted greater reduction of dysphoric symptoms. There were no significant predictors of changes of fear symptoms. These findings indicate that neural activity associated with response inhibition can act as a predictive biomarker of TF-CBT response for PTSD symptoms. This pattern of findings underscores the importance of delineating the role of biomarkers to predict remission of subtypes of PTSD.

The effects of poverty stereotype threat on inhibition ability in individuals from different income-level families

INTRODUCTION

Poverty is characterized by a scarcity of resources and a threat of certain stereotypes. However, the effects of stereotype threat are largely dependent on various factors, both negative and positive. Few psychophysiological studies have studied the effects of poverty stereotype threats on inhibition ability in wealth and impoverished individuals.

METHODS

To fill this gap in the literature, this study used the event-related potential (ERP) technique to explore the brain mechanisms associated with stereotype threat in 135 participants.

RESULTS

Behavioral results showed that the rich group (participants from higher-income families) had better inhibition ability than the impoverished group (participants from lower-income families), with significantly shorter reaction time and significantly greater accuracy for poverty-related stimuli when in the nonthreat condition. Additionally, poverty stereotype threat could improve performance of the impoverished group for poverty-related stimuli. The electrophysiological results showed significantly larger P3 mean amplitude and significantly longer P3 latency in the rich group than the impoverished group in the nonthreat condition. Although no significant between-group differences were found in the threat condition, the results show that the effect of poverty stereotype threat varies with different income-level persons, for both behavioral and P3 data.

CONCLUSION

These findings suggest that impoverished people have worse inhibition abilities. Further, poverty stereotype threat has different effects on people according to their income level and could help to explain irrational consumption behaviors in people.

A review on the electroencephalography markers of Stroop executive control processes

The present article on executive control addresses the issue of the locus of the Stroop effect by examining neurophysiological components marking conflict monitoring, interference suppression, and conflict resolution. Our goal was to provide an overview of a series of determining neurophysiological findings including neural source reconstruction data on distinct executive control processes and sub-processes involved in the Stroop task. Consistently, a fronto-central N2 component is found to reflect conflict monitoring processes, with its main neural generator being the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). Then, for cognitive control tasks that involve a linguistic component like the Stroop task, the N2 is followed by a centro-posterior N400 and subsequently a late sustained potential (LSP). The N400 is mainly generated by the ACC and the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and is thought to reflect interference suppression, whereas the LSP plausibly reflects conflict resolution processes. The present overview shows that ERP constitute a reliable methodological tool for tracing with precision the time course of different executive processes and sub-processes involved in experimental tasks involving a cognitive conflict. Future research should shed light on the fine-grained mechanisms of control respectively involved in linguistic and non-linguistic tasks.

Fast fronto-parietal cortical dynamics of conflict detection and context updating in a flanker task

Recent research has found that the traditional target P3 consists of a family of P3-like positivities that can be functionally and topographically dissociated from one another. The current study examined target N2 and P3-like subcomponents indexing conflict detection and context updating at low- and high-order levels in the neural hierarchy during cognitive control. Electroencephalographic signals were recorded from 45 young adults while they completed a hybrid go/nogo flanker task, and Residue Iteration Decomposition (RIDE) was applied to functionally dissociate these peaks. Analyses showed a stimulus-locked frontal N2 revealing early detection and fast perceptual categorization of nogo, congruent and incongruent trials, resulting in frontal P3-like activity elicited by nogo trials in the latency-variable RIDE cluster, and by incongruent trials in the response-locked cluster. The congruent trials did not elicit frontal P3-like activity. These findings suggest that behavioral incongruency effects are related to intermediate and later stages of motor response re-programming.

Motor output matters: Evidence of a continuous relationship between Stop/No-go P300 amplitude and peak force on failed inhibitions at the trial-level

Motor actions can be suppressed with varying degrees of success, but this variability is not often captured as responses are typically represented as binary (response vs. no-response). Although the Stop/No-go P300 has been implicated as an index of inhibitory-control, it is unclear how the range of motor outputs relates to the P300. We examined the nature of this association in two experiments using an Anticipatory Timing and a Go/No-go Task, while measuring peak force, movement onset time, and P300. In both experiments, our results showed that trial-by-trial P300 amplitude on Failed Inhibitions were continuously related to peak force, where higher force (reflecting a greater degree of error) was associated with smaller P300 amplitude. Compared to Successful Inhibitions, P300 amplitude and onset latency on Failed Inhibitions were significantly reduced and delayed. Although the binary categorization of inhibition-success (Successful vs. Failed) accounts for significant variance in the P300, it misses a reliable linear relationship that can be captured by continuous measures of motor output. Overall, the results provide evidence that P300 may reflect the continuously varying engagement of inhibitory-control. We present an activation model to visualize the P300-force association and to illustrate how motor output might be modeled in the context of inhibitory-control. Our results highlight the relevance of P300 amplitude and the importance of studying the spectrum of motor output and the need for future models to account for motor output.

Aesthetic appreciation of musical intervals enhances behavioural and neurophysiological indexes of attentional engagement and motor inhibition

From Kant to current perspectives in neuroaesthetics, the experience of beauty has been described as disinterested, i.e. focusing on the stimulus perceptual features while neglecting self-referred concerns. At a neurophysiological level, some indirect evidence suggests that disinterested aesthetic appreciation might be associated with attentional enhancement and inhibition of motor behaviour. To test this hypothesis, we performed three auditory-evoked potential experiments, employing consonant and dissonant two-note musical intervals. Twenty-two volunteers judged the beauty of intervals (Aesthetic Judgement task) or responded to them as fast as possible (Detection task). In a third Go-NoGo task, a different group of twenty-two participants had to refrain from responding when hearing intervals. Individual aesthetic judgements positively correlated with response times in the Detection task, with slower motor responses for more appreciated intervals. Electrophysiological indexes of attentional engagement (N1/P2) and motor inhibition (N2/P3) were enhanced for more appreciated intervals. These findings represent the first experimental evidence confirming the disinterested interest hypothesis and may have important applications in research areas studying the effects of stimulus features on learning and motor behaviour.

On Why Targets Evoke P3 Components in Prediction Tasks: Drawing an Analogy between Prediction and Matching Tasks

P3 is the most conspicuous component in recordings of stimulus-evoked EEG potentials from the human scalp, occurring whenever some task has to be performed with the stimuli. The process underlying P3 has been assumed to be the updating of expectancies. More recently, P3 has been related to decision processing and to activation of established stimulus-response associations (S/R-link hypothesis). However, so far this latter approach has not provided a conception about how to explain the occurrence of P3 with predicted stimuli, although P3 was originally discovered in a prediction task. The present article proposes such a conception. We assume that the internal responses right or wrong both become associatively linked to each predicted target and that one of these two response alternatives gets activated as a function of match or mismatch of the target to the preceding prediction. This seems similar to comparison tasks where responses depend on the matching of the target stimulus with a preceding first stimulus (S1). Based on this idea, this study compared the effects of frequencies of first events (predictions or S1) on target-evoked P3s in prediction and comparison tasks. Indeed, frequencies not only of targets but also of first events had similar effects across tasks on target-evoked P3s. These results support the notion that P3 evoked by predicted stimuli reflects activation of appropriate internal “match” or “mismatch” responses, which is compatible with S/R-link hypothesis.