Biology subjects

Arana, L.

Publications and source records attributed to Arana, L..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2025

Guess Who? Identifying individuals from their brain natural frequency fingerprints

Neural oscillations are critical for brain function and cognition. Thus, identifying the typical or natural oscillatory frequencies of the brain is an important first step for understanding its functional architecture. Recently, a data-driven algorithm has been developed for mapping the brains natural frequencies throughout the whole cortex, free of anatomical and frequency-band constraints. However, an important limitation of this methodology is that it yields robust results only at the group level. Here, we aimed to adapt this algorithm to improve the quality of the single-subject maps of natural frequencies obtained from magnetoencephalography (MEG) recordings. To achieve this goal, we incorporated two modifications to the original method: (1) increasing the number of individual power spectra to be assigned to each k-means cluster, and (2) smoothing across neighboring voxels. To assess the quality of the single-subject maps, we relied on the fingerprinting technique. Our results show a high degree of accuracy in individual identification, both within a single recording session and across separate sessions. Furthermore, we were able to identify individuals by their natural frequency fingerprints, even with a gap of over four years between sessions. This demonstrates the robustness of the single-subject mapping of natural frequencies and opens new opportunities for identification of pathological variations in intrinsic oscillatory activity in individual subjects.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2023

Perception of near-threshold visual stimuli is influenced by pre-stimulus alpha-band amplitude but not by alpha phase

Ongoing brain activity preceding visual stimulation has been suggested to shape conscious perception. The underlying mechanisms are still under debate, although alpha oscillations have been pointed out as the main explanatory candidate. According to the pulsed-inhibition framework, bouts of functional inhibition arise in each alpha cycle, allowing information to be processed in a pulsatile manner. Consequently, it has been hypothesized that perceptual outcome can be influenced by the specific phase of alpha oscillations prior to the stimulus onset, although empirical findings are controversial. In this study, we aimed to shed light on the role of pre-stimulus alpha oscillations in visual perception. To this end, we recorded electroencephalographic (EEG) activity while participants performed three near-threshold visual detection tasks with different attentional involvement: a no-cue task, a non-informative cue task (50% cue validity), and an informative cue task (100% cue validity). Cluster-based permutation statistics were complemented with Bayesian analyses to test the effect of pre-stimulus oscillatory amplitude and phase on visual awareness. We additionally examined whether these effects differed on trials with low and high oscillatory amplitude, as expected from the pulsed-inhibition theory. Our results show a clear effect of pre-stimulus alpha amplitude on conscious perception, but only when alpha fluctuated spontaneously and was not modulated by attention, supporting the notion that alpha-band power indexes neural excitability. In contrast, we did not find any evidence that pre-stimulus alpha phase influences the perceptual outcome, not even when differentiating between low and high amplitude trials. Furthermore, Bayesian analysis provided moderate evidence in favor of the absence of phase effects. Taken together, our results challenge the central theoretical predictions of the pulsed-inhibition framework, at least for the particular experimental conditions used here.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2021

The natural frequencies of the resting human brain: an MEG-based atlas

Brain oscillations are considered to play a pivotal role in neural communication. However, detailed information regarding the typical oscillatory patterns of individual brain regions is surprisingly scarce. In this study we applied a multivariate data-driven approach to create an atlas of the natural frequencies of the resting human brain on a voxel-by-voxel basis. We analysed resting-state magnetoencephalography (MEG) data from 128 healthy adult volunteers obtained from the Open MEG Archive (OMEGA). Spectral power was computed in source space in 500 ms steps for 82 frequency bins logarithmically spaced from 1.7 to 99.5 Hz. We then applied k-means clustering to detect characteristic spectral profiles and to eventually identify the natural frequency of each voxel. Our results revealed a region-specific organisation of intrinsic oscillatory activity, following both a medial-to-lateral and a posterior-to-anterior gradient of increasing frequency. In particular, medial fronto-temporal regions were characterised by slow rhythms (delta/theta). Posterior regions presented natural frequencies in the alpha band, although with differentiated generators in the precuneus and in sensory-specific cortices (i.e., visual and auditory). Somatomotor regions were distinguished by the mu rhythm, while the lateral prefrontal cortex was characterised by oscillations in the high beta range (>20 Hz). Importantly, the brain map of natural frequencies was highly replicable in two independent subsamples of individuals. To the best of our knowledge, this is the most comprehensive atlas of ongoing oscillatory activity performed to date. Furthermore, the identification of natural frequencies is a fundamental step towards a better understanding of the functional architecture of the human brain.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2021

Suppression of alpha-band power underlies exogenous attention to emotional distractors

Alpha-band oscillations (8-14 Hz) are essential for attention and perception processes by facilitating the selection of relevant information. Directing visuospatial endogenous (voluntary) attention to a given location consistently results in a power suppression of alpha activity over occipito-parietal areas contralateral to the attended visual field. In contrast, the neural oscillatory dynamics underlying the involuntary capture of attention, or exogenous attention, are currently under debate. By exploiting the inherent capacity of emotionally salient visual stimuli to capture attention, we aimed to investigate whether exogenous attention is characterized by either a reduction or an increase in alpha-band activity. Electroencephalographic activity was recorded while participants completed a Posner visuospatial cueing task, in which a lateralized image with either positive, negative, or neutral emotional content competed with a target stimulus presented in the opposite hemifield. Compared with trials with no distractors, alpha power was reduced over occipital regions contralateral to distracting images. This reduction of alpha activity turned out to be functionally relevant, as it correlated with impaired behavioural performance on the ongoing task and was enhanced for distractors with negative valence. Taken together, our results demonstrate that visuospatial exogenous attention is characterized by a suppression of alpha-band activity contralateral to distractor location, similar to the oscillatory underpinnings of endogenous attention. Further, these results highlight the key role of exogenous attention as an adaptive mechanism for the efficient detection of biologically salient stimuli. HighlightsO_LIExogenous attention is indexed by alpha suppression contralateral to distractors. C_LIO_LIAlpha power decrease is enhanced by distractors with negative emotional valence. C_LIO_LILower levels of alpha power correlate with poorer task performance accuracy. C_LIO_LIThe negativity bias in exogenous attention might reflect an adaptive mechanism. C_LI

neuroscience↗