Work

Modulation in cortical excitability disrupts information transfer in perceptual-level stimulus processing.

Year: 2021

Type: article

Abstract: Despite significant interest in the neural underpinnings of behavioral variability, little light has been shed on the cortical mechanism underlying the failure to respond to perceptual-level stimuli. We hypothesized that cortical activity resulting from perceptual-level stimuli is sensitive to the moment-to-moment fluctuations in cortical excitability, and thus may not suffice to produce a behavioral response. We tested this hypothesis using electrocorticographic recordings to follow the propagation of cortical activity in six human subjects that responded to perceptual-level auditory stimuli. Here we show that for presentations that did not result in a behavioral response, the likelihood of cortical activity decreased from auditory cortex to motor cortex, and was related to reduced local cortical excitability. Cortical excitability was quantified using instantaneous voltage during a short window prior to cortical activity onset. Therefore, when humans are presented with an auditory stimulus close to perceptual-level threshold, moment-by-moment fluctuations in cortical excitability determine whether cortical responses to sensory stimulation successfully connect auditory input to a resultant behavioral response.

Source: NeuroImage

DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.118498

Authors: Ladan Moheimanian, Sivylla E. Paraskevopoulou, Markus Adamek, Gerwin Schalk, Peter Brunner

Institutions: State University of New York, University at Albany, State University of New York, Washington University in St. Louis, Albany Medical College

Language: English

Topic: Neural dynamics and brain function

Subfield: Cognitive Neuroscience

Field: Neuroscience

Domain: Life Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,300