Differences between target and non-target probe processing--combined evidence from fMRI, EEG and fMRI-constrained source analysis

A study of action difference on motor imagery based on delayed matching posture task

Objective. Motor imagery (MI)-based brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) provide an additional control pathway for people by decoding the intention of action imagination. The way people imagine greatly affects MI-BCI performance. Action itself is one of the factors that influence the way people imagine. Whether the different actions cause a difference in the MI performance is unknown. What is more important is how to manifest this action difference in the process of imagery, which has the potential to guide people to use their individualized actions to imagine more effectively.Approach.To explore action differences, this study proposes a novel paradigm named as action observation based delayed matching posture task. Ten subjects are required to observe, memorize, match, and imagine three types of actions (cutting, grasping and writing) given by visual images or videos, to accomplish the phases of encoding, retrieval and reinforcement of MI. Event-related potential (ERP), MI features, and classification accuracy of the left or the right hand are used to evaluate the effect of the action difference on the MI difference.Main results.Action differences cause different feature distributions, resulting in that the accuracy with high event-related (de)synchronization (ERD/ERS) is 27.75% higher than the ones with low ERD/ERS (p< 0.05), which indicates that the action difference has impact on the MI difference and the BCI performance. In addition, significant differences in the ERP amplitudes exists among the three actions: the amplitude of P300-N200 potential reaches 9.28μV of grasping, 5.64μV and 5.25μV higher than the cutting and the writing, respectively (p< 0.05).Significance.The ERP amplitudes derived from the supplementary motor area shows positive correlation to the MI classification accuracy, implying that the ERP might be an index of the MI performance when the people is faced with action selection. This study demonstrates that the MI difference is related to the action difference, and can be manifested by the ERP, which is important for improving MI training by selecting suitable action; the relationship between the ERP and the MI provides a novel index to find the suitable action to set up an individualized BCI and improve the performance further.

A resting-state network for novelty: Similar involvement of a global network under rest and task conditions

Neuroimaging research provides converging evidence in support of functional networks active under rest conditions. While these networks are typically locally-distributed, a globally-distributed resting-state network (gRSN) was recently identified. The gRSN component is characterized by a scalp topography similar to that of the widely-studied P3 component of the event related potential, thought to represent the brain's response to novelty. In this study, we investigate similarities between the neural generators underlying these two networks to test the hypothesis that the gRSN is a resting-state network for novelty. By using the second-order blind identification (SOBI) algorithm, which works with temporal information, we show that (1) a resting-state component resembling the topography of the P3 can be recovered in all participants; (2) this gRSN component can be modeled with a set of ECDs with high goodness of fit; (3) ECD locations of the gRSN correspond to a network of globally-distributed brain structures overlapping heavily with the networking underlying the P3; and, (4) structures underlying these two networks are similarly involved during task and resting-state conditions. We interpret this as evidence in support of a resting-state network for detection and response to novelty.

Processing of Targets and Non-targets in Verbal Working Memory

In this study we used functional MRI (fMRI) to examine whether defining a stimulus as a target affects brain activation associated with a verbal working memory (WM) task. Seventeen healthy right-handed volunteers performed a Sternberg task with three consonants as memory set. We performed a region of interest based fMRI analysis to examine differences in brain activity patterns between targets and non-targets. Non-target brain activity was subtracted from target activity and hemispheric and fronto-parietal differences were tested by conducting a MANOVA. Participants responded correctly to 97.5% of the stimuli. The fMRI results showed a hemisphere by fronto-parietal location interaction, where targets evoked increased activity in the right frontal regions compared to non-targets, whereas the left frontal task activation did not differ between targets and non-targets. In the parietal regions, targets evoked increased activity compared to non-targets in the lateral anterior, but not the medial posterior part. Our study revealed that defining a stimulus as a target within a verbal WM task evokes an increase in brain activity in right frontal brain regions, compared to non-targets. Our results suggest an important hemispheric differentiation in target processing, in which the right frontal cortex is predominantly involved in processes associated with target stimuli. The left frontal cortex does not differentiate between processing target and non-target stimuli, suggesting involvement in WM processes that are independent of stimulus type. Parietal, the lateral anterior part is predominantly involved in target processing, while the medial posterior part does not differentiate between target and non-target processing.

The effect of feature-based attention on flanker interference processing: An fMRI-constrained source analysis

The present study examined whether feature-based cueing affects early or late stages of flanker conflict processing using EEG and fMRI. Feature cues either directed participants' attention to the upcoming colour of the target or were neutral. Validity-specific modulations during interference processing were investigated using the N200 event-related potential (ERP) component and BOLD signal differences. Additionally, both data sets were integrated using an fMRI-constrained source analysis. Finally, the results were compared with a previous study in which spatial instead of feature-based cueing was applied to an otherwise identical flanker task. Feature-based and spatial attention recruited a common fronto-parietal network during conflict processing. Irrespective of attention type (feature-based; spatial), this network responded to focussed attention (valid cueing) as well as context updating (invalid cueing), hinting at domain-general mechanisms. However, spatially and non-spatially directed attention also demonstrated domain-specific activation patterns for conflict processing that were observable in distinct EEG and fMRI data patterns as well as in the respective source analyses. Conflict-specific activity in visual brain regions was comparable between both attention types. We assume that the distinction between spatially and non-spatially directed attention types primarily applies to temporal differences (domain-specific dynamics) between signals originating in the same brain regions (domain-general localization).

Task Performance Modulates Functional Connectivity Involving the Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex in Patients with Schizophrenia

Previous studies have suggested that patients with schizophrenia and healthy controls exhibit differential activation of and connectivity involving the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) during working memory tasks, though their findings remain inconsistent. The functional integration perspective further suggests that working memory performance also modulates differences in functional interactions of the DLPFC between patients and controls. To explore this possibility, 45 healthy controls and 45 patients with schizophrenia were recruited to perform a 2-back task during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Each group was further divided into two subgroups based on task performance to examine the modulatory effect of performance on functional interactions of the DLPFC, as measured via psychophysiological interaction (PPI) analyses. We observed that, in patients with schizophrenia who exhibited impaired working memory capacity and decreased brain activation/deactivation, functional interactions between the right/left DLPFC and angular cortex were decreased relative to those of healthy controls. Furthermore, we observed an interaction effect of working memory performance and diagnosis on functional connectivity between the right/left DLPFC seed region and posterior regions such as the angular cortex, fusiform gyrus, and middle occipital gyrus. This interaction effect was mainly driven by the negative correlation between functional connectivity and performance in healthy controls, and by the positive correlation in patients with schizophrenia. These results demonstrate the effects of inter-individual differences in working memory performance on functional interactions between the DLPFC and posterior regions in patients with schizophrenia as well as healthy controls, which may shed new light on the neural basis of working memory.

Maturation of the P3 and concurrent oscillatory processes during adolescence

OBJECTIVE

During adolescence event-related modulations of the neural response may increase. For slow event-related components, such as the P3, this developmental change may be masked due to increased amplitude levels of ongoing delta and theta oscillations in adolescents.

METHODS

In a cross-sectional study design, EEG was measured in 51 participants between 13 and 24years. A visual oddball paradigm was used to elicit the P3. Our analysis focused on fronto-parietal activations within the P3 time-window and the concurrent time-frequency characteristics in the delta (∼0.5-4Hz) and theta (∼4-7Hz) band.

RESULTS

The parietal P3 amplitude was similar across the investigated age range, while the amplitude at frontal regions increased with age. The pre-stimulus amplitudes of delta and theta oscillations declined with age, while post-stimulus amplitude enhancement and inter-trial phase coherence increased. These changes affected fronto-parietal electrode sites.

CONCLUSIONS

The parietal P3 maximum seemed comparable for adolescents and young adults. Detailed analysis revealed that within the P3 time-window brain maturation during adolescence may lead to reduced spontaneous slow-wave oscillations, increased amplitude modulation and time precision of event-related oscillations, and altered P3 scalp topography.

SIGNIFICANCE

Time-frequency analyses may help to distinguish selective neurodevelopmental changes within the P3 time window.

Retrieval Deficiency in Brain Activity of Working Memory in Amnesic Mild Cognitive Impairment Patients: A Brain Event-Related Potentials Study

In the early stage of Alzheimer disease (AD) or mild cognitive impairment (MCI), working memory (WM) deficiency is prominent and could be attributed to failure in encoding, maintenance or retrieval of information. However, evidence for a retention or retrieval deficit remains equivocal. It is also unclear what cognitive mechanism in WM is impaired in MCI or early AD. We enrolled 46 subjects from our Memory Clinics and community, with 24 amnesic MCI patients and 22 normal subjects. After neurological and cognitive assessments, they performed a classic delayed match to sample (DMS) task with simultaneous event-related potential (ERP) recorded. The ERPs in encoding and retrieval epoch during WM were analyzed separately. The latency and amplitude of every ERP component were compared between two groups, and then analyzed to explore their relationship with neuropsychological performance. Finally, the locations of maximal difference in cortex were calculated by standard low-resolution tomographic analysis. A total of five components were found: P1, N1, P2, N2, and P300. The amplitude of P2 and P300 was larger in normal subjects than in MCI patients only during retrieval, not encoding epoch, while the latency did not show statistical difference. The latency and amplitude of P1 and N1 were similar in two groups. P2 amplitude in the retrieval epoch positively correlated with memory test (auditory verbal learning test) and visual spatial score of Chinese Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination-Revised (ACE-R), while P300 amplitude correlated with ACE-R. The activation difference in P2 time range was maximal at medial frontal gyrus. However, the difference in cortex activation during P300 time range did not show significance. The amplitude of P2 indicated deficiency in memory retrieval process, potentially due to dysfunction of central executive in WM model. Regarding the location of P2 during WM task, medial frontal plays important role in memory retrieval. The findings in the present study suggested that MCI patients have retrieval deficit, probably due to central executive based on medial frontal gyrus. Thus, it may provide new biomarker for early detection and intervention for aMCI.