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Yu SF, Wang NN, Hu QL, Dang P, Chang S, Huang XY, Su R, Li H, Zhou J, Ma HL, Liu M, Zhang DL. Neurodynamics of awareness detection in Tibetan immigrants: evidence from EEG analysis. Neuroscience 2023; 522:69-80. [PMID: 37164304 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2023.04.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2022] [Revised: 04/18/2023] [Accepted: 04/25/2023] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
The psychological effects of long-term exposure to high-altitude environments have attracted great attention. These effects are usually attributed to the diminished cognitive resources due to high-altitude exposure. This study employed electroencephalography (EEG) to investigate the effects of exposure duration on awareness detection tasks. Neither reaction time nor accuracy showed the direct effects of the exposure duration, so did the model indexes obtained from drift diffusion model analysis. However, event-related potentials (ERP) analysis revealed that exposure duration was associated with changes in the visual awareness negativity (VAN) and the late positivity (LP) components, which in turn affected reaction time. Specifically, longer exposure durations were associated with lower VAN and higher LP, resulting in shorter reaction times and greater drift rate. In contrast to previous studies, the reverse relationship between VAN and LP may reflect a compensatory response to the reduced cognitive resources caused by high-altitude exposure. Additionally, increased LP and shorter reaction times with exposure duration may reflect a resistance to the high-altitude environment. We also conducted time-frequency analysis and found that theta power did not vary with exposure duration, suggesting that the reduction in cognitive resources remains stable in these individuals over time. Overall, our study provides new insights into the dynamic effects of high-altitude environments on awareness detection in the presence of reduced cognitive resources.
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Affiliation(s)
- Si-Fang Yu
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, China; School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Nian-Nian Wang
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, China; School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China; Plateau Brain Science Research Center, Tibet University/South China Normal University, Lhasa/Guangzhou, China
| | - Quan-Ling Hu
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, China; School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Peng Dang
- Plateau Brain Science Research Center, Tibet University/South China Normal University, Lhasa/Guangzhou, China
| | - Shuai Chang
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, China; School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xiao-Yan Huang
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, China; School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Rui Su
- Plateau Brain Science Research Center, Tibet University/South China Normal University, Lhasa/Guangzhou, China
| | - Hao Li
- Plateau Brain Science Research Center, Tibet University/South China Normal University, Lhasa/Guangzhou, China
| | - Jing Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, China; School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Hai-Lin Ma
- Plateau Brain Science Research Center, Tibet University/South China Normal University, Lhasa/Guangzhou, China.
| | - Ming Liu
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, China; School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China; Plateau Brain Science Research Center, Tibet University/South China Normal University, Lhasa/Guangzhou, China
| | - De-Long Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, China; School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China; Plateau Brain Science Research Center, Tibet University/South China Normal University, Lhasa/Guangzhou, China.
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Guex R, Ros T, Mégevand P, Spinelli L, Seeck M, Vuilleumier P, Domínguez-Borràs J. Prestimulus amygdala spectral activity is associated with visual face awareness. Cereb Cortex 2023; 33:1044-1057. [PMID: 35353177 PMCID: PMC9930624 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhac119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2021] [Revised: 02/26/2022] [Accepted: 02/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Alpha cortical oscillations have been proposed to suppress sensory processing in the visual, auditory, and tactile domains, influencing conscious stimulus perception. However, it is unknown whether oscillatory neural activity in the amygdala, a subcortical structure involved in salience detection, has a similar impact on stimulus awareness. Recording intracranial electroencephalography (EEG) from 9 human amygdalae during face detection in a continuous flash suppression task, we found increased spectral prestimulus power and phase coherence, with most consistent effects in the alpha band, when faces were undetected relative to detected, similarly as previously observed in cortex with this task using scalp-EEG. Moreover, selective decreases in the alpha and gamma bands preceded face detection, with individual prestimulus alpha power correlating negatively with detection rate in patients. These findings reveal for the first time that prestimulus subcortical oscillations localized in human amygdala may contribute to perceptual gating mechanisms governing subsequent face detection and offer promising insights on the role of this structure in visual awareness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raphael Guex
- Department of Fundamental Neuroscience, University of Geneva – Campus Biotech, Geneva 1211, Switzerland
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of Geneva – HUG, Geneva 1211, Switzerland
- Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva 1202, Switzerland
| | - Tomas Ros
- Department of Fundamental Neuroscience, Functional Brain Mapping Laboratory, Campus Biotech, University of Geneva, Geneva 1202, Switzerland
- Lemanic Biomedical Imaging Centre (CIBM), Geneva 1202, Switzerland
| | - Pierre Mégevand
- Department of Fundamental Neuroscience, University of Geneva – Campus Biotech, Geneva 1211, Switzerland
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of Geneva – HUG, Geneva 1211, Switzerland
| | - Laurent Spinelli
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of Geneva – HUG, Geneva 1211, Switzerland
| | - Margitta Seeck
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of Geneva – HUG, Geneva 1211, Switzerland
| | - Patrik Vuilleumier
- Department of Fundamental Neuroscience, University of Geneva – Campus Biotech, Geneva 1211, Switzerland
- Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva 1202, Switzerland
| | - Judith Domínguez-Borràs
- Department of Fundamental Neuroscience, University of Geneva – Campus Biotech, Geneva 1211, Switzerland
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona 08035, Spain
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Conscious interpretation: A distinct aspect for the neural markers of the contents of consciousness. Conscious Cogn 2023; 108:103471. [PMID: 36736210 DOI: 10.1016/j.concog.2023.103471] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2022] [Revised: 12/22/2022] [Accepted: 01/11/2023] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Progress in the science of consciousness depends on the experimental paradigms and varieties of contrastive analysis available to researchers. Here we highlight paradigms where the object is represented in consciousness as a set of its features but the interpretation of this set alternates in consciousness. We group experimental paradigms with this property under the label "conscious interpretation". We compare the paradigms studying conscious interpretation of the already consciously perceived objects with other types of experimental paradigms. We review previous and recent studies investigating this interpretative aspect of consciousness and propose future directions. We put forward the hypothesis that there are types of stimuli with a hierarchy of interpretations for which the rule applies: conscious experience is drawn towards higher-level interpretation and reverting back to the lower level of interpretation is impossible. We discuss how theories of consciousness might incorporate knowledge and constraints arising from the characteristics of conscious interpretation.
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Kalhan S, McFadyen J, Tsuchiya N, Garrido MI. Neural and computational processes of accelerated perceptual awareness and decisions: A 7T fMRI study. Hum Brain Mapp 2022; 43:3873-3886. [PMID: 35470490 PMCID: PMC9294306 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.25889] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2021] [Revised: 04/06/2022] [Accepted: 04/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
Abstract
Rapidly detecting salient information in our environments is critical for survival. Visual processing in subcortical areas like the pulvinar and amygdala has been shown to facilitate unconscious processing of salient stimuli. It is unknown, however, if and how these areas might interact with cortical regions to facilitate faster conscious perception of salient stimuli. Here we investigated these neural processes using 7T functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in concert with computational modelling while participants (n = 33) engaged in a breaking continuous flash suppression paradigm (bCFS) in which fearful and neutral faces are initially suppressed from conscious perception but then eventually ‘breakthrough’ into awareness. Participants reported faster breakthrough times for fearful faces compared with neutral faces. Drift‐diffusion modelling suggested that perceptual evidence was accumulated at a faster rate for fearful faces compared with neutral faces. For both neutral and fearful faces, faster response times were associated with greater activity in the amygdala (specifically within its subregions, including superficial, basolateral and amygdalo‐striatal transition area) and the insula. Faster rates of evidence accumulation coincided with greater activity in frontoparietal regions and occipital lobe, as well as the amygdala. A lower decision‐boundary correlated with activity in the insula and the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC), but not with the amygdala. Overall, our findings suggest that hastened perceptual awareness of salient stimuli recruits the amygdala and, more specifically, is driven by accelerated evidence accumulation in fronto‐parietal and visual areas. In sum, we have mapped distinct neural computations that accelerate perceptual awareness of visually suppressed faces.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shivam Kalhan
- Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.,Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Integrative Brain Function, Australia.,Queensland Brain Institute, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Jessica McFadyen
- Max Planck UCL Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, University College London, London, UK
| | - Naotsugu Tsuchiya
- School of Psychological Sciences, Faculty of Biomedical and Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia.,Monash Institute of Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia.,Center for Information and Neural Networks (CiNet), National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT), Suita, Osaka, Japan.,Advanced Telecommunications Research Computational Neuroscience Laboratories, Seika-cho, Soraku-gun, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Marta I Garrido
- Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.,Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Integrative Brain Function, Australia.,Queensland Brain Institute, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
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Effects of motor restrictions on preparatory brain activity. Exp Brain Res 2021; 239:3189-3203. [PMID: 34432108 PMCID: PMC8386343 DOI: 10.1007/s00221-021-06190-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2021] [Accepted: 08/03/2021] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Modifying established motor skills is a challenging endeavor due to proactive interference from undesired old to desired new actions, calling for high levels of cognitive control. Motor restrictions may facilitate the modification of motor skills by rendering undesired responses physically impossible, thus reducing demands to response inhibition. Here we studied behavioral and EEG effects of rule changes to typing in skilled touch-typists. The respective rule change—typing without using the left index finger—was either implemented per instruction only or with an additional motor restriction. In both groups, the rule change elicited delays and more errors in typing, indicating the occurrence of proactive interference. While stimulus-locked ERPs did not exhibit prominent effects of rule change or group, response-locked ERPs revealed that the time courses of preparatory brain activity preceding typing responses depended on the presence of motor restriction. Although further research is necessary to corroborate our findings, they indicate a novel brain correlate that represents changes in inhibitory response preparation induced by short-term motor restrictions.
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Liu S, Zhao B, Shi C, Ma X, Sabel BA, Chen X, Tao L. Ocular Dominance and Functional Asymmetry in Visual Attention Networks. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 2021; 62:9. [PMID: 33825854 PMCID: PMC8039471 DOI: 10.1167/iovs.62.4.9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose The dorsal attention network (DAN) and the ventral attention network (VAN) are known to support visual attention, but the influences of ocular dominance on the attention networks are unclear. We aimed to explore how visual cortical asymmetry of the attention networks correlate with neurophysiological oscillation and connectivity markers of attentional processes. Methods An oddball task with concentric circle stimuli of three different sizes (i.e., spot size of 5°, 20°, or 30° of visual angle) was used to vary task difficulty. Event-related oscillations and interareal communication were tested with an electroencephalogram-based visual evoked components as a function of ocular dominance in 30 healthy subjects. Results Accuracy rates were higher in the dominant eyes compared with the nondominant eyes. Compared with the nondominant eyes, the dominant eyes had higher theta, low-alpha, and low-beta powers and lower high-alpha powers within the nodes of VAN and DAN. Furthermore, visual information processed by the dominant and nondominant eye had different fates, that is, the dominant eyes mainly relied on theta and low-alpha connectivity within both the VAN and the DAN, whereas the nondominant eyes mainly relied on theta connectivity within the VAN and high-alpha connectivity within the DAN. The difference in accuracy rate between the two eyes was correlated with the low-alpha oscillations in the anterior DAN area and low-alpha connectivity of the left DAN. Conclusions The ocular dominance processing and interareal communication reveal a cortical asymmetry underlying attention, and this reflects a two-way modulatory mechanism within attention networks in the human brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sinan Liu
- Department of Forensic Science, Soochow University, Suzhou, China
| | - Bingyang Zhao
- Department of Forensic Science, Soochow University, Suzhou, China
| | - Chaoqun Shi
- Department of Forensic Science, Soochow University, Suzhou, China
| | - Xuying Ma
- Department of Forensic Science, Soochow University, Suzhou, China
| | - Bernhard A Sabel
- Institute of Medical Psychology, Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg, Leipziger Strasse 44, 39120 Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Xiping Chen
- Department of Forensic Science, Soochow University, Suzhou, China
| | - Luyang Tao
- Department of Forensic Science, Soochow University, Suzhou, China
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Cognitive deficits and rehabilitation mechanisms in mild traumatic brain injury patients revealed by EEG connectivity markers. Clin Neurophysiol 2021; 132:554-567. [PMID: 33453686 DOI: 10.1016/j.clinph.2020.11.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2020] [Revised: 10/13/2020] [Accepted: 11/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To explore the multiple specific biomarkers and cognitive compensatory mechanisms of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) patients at recovery stage. METHODS The experiment was performed in two sections. In Section I, using event-related potential, event-related oscillation and spatial phase-synchronization, we explored neural dynamics in 24 volunteered healthy controls (HC) and 38 patients at least 6 months post-mTBI (19 with epidural hematoma, EDH; 19 with subdural hematoma, SDH) during a Go/NoGo task. In Section II, according to the neuropsychological scales, patients were divided into sub-groups to assess these electroencephalography (EEG) indicators in identifying different rehabilitation outcomes of mTBI. RESULTS In Section I, mean amplitudes of NoGo-P3 and P3d were decreased in mTBI patients relative to HC, and NoGo-theta power in the non-injured hemisphere was decreased in SDH patients only. In Section II, patients with chronic neuropsychological defects exhibited more serious impairments of intra-hemispheric connectivity, whereas inter-hemispheric centro-parietal and frontal connectivity were enhanced in response to lesions. CONCLUSIONS EEG distinguished mTBI patients from healthy controls, and estimated different rehabilitation outcomes of mTBI. The centro-parietal and frontal connectivity are the main compensatory mechanism for the recovery of mTBI patients. SIGNIFICANCE EEG measurements and network connectivity can track recovery process and mechanism of mTBI.
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Moyal R, Edelman S. Dynamic Computation in Visual Thalamocortical Networks. ENTROPY (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2019; 21:E500. [PMID: 33267214 PMCID: PMC7514988 DOI: 10.3390/e21050500] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2019] [Revised: 05/10/2019] [Accepted: 05/14/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Contemporary neurodynamical frameworks, such as coordination dynamics and winnerless competition, posit that the brain approximates symbolic computation by transitioning between metastable attractive states. This article integrates these accounts with electrophysiological data suggesting that coherent, nested oscillations facilitate information representation and transmission in thalamocortical networks. We review the relationship between criticality, metastability, and representational capacity, outline existing methods for detecting metastable oscillatory patterns in neural time series data, and evaluate plausible spatiotemporal coding schemes based on phase alignment. We then survey the circuitry and the mechanisms underlying the generation of coordinated alpha and gamma rhythms in the primate visual system, with particular emphasis on the pulvinar and its role in biasing visual attention and awareness. To conclude the review, we begin to integrate this perspective with longstanding theories of consciousness and cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roy Moyal
- Department of Psychology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
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