Increased Gamma Connectivity in the Human Prefrontal Cortex during the Bereitschaftspotential

Abstract

The Bereitschaftspotential (BP) is a slow negative cortical potential preceding voluntary movement. Since movement preparation is dependent upon the synchronous activity of a variety of neurons, BP may develop through the exchange of information among motor-related neurons. However, the relationship between BP and information flow is not yet well-known. In the present study, we aimed to investigate how the connectivity in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) changes during the occurrence of BP. Electrocorticography (ECoG) was recorded in five patients with epilepsy. The subjects performed self-paced hand grasping. We compared the intraregional connectivity between PFC and non-PFC regions using partial directed coherence. In the PFC, the connectivity of beta and gamma bands in the BP period increased by an average of 24.4% compared with the baseline connectivity. Conversely, gamma connectivity in non-PFC regions decreased by 31.4%. Moreover, the intraregional connectivity in the PFC increased according to the stage of BP. The increased gamma band connectivity in the PFC implies that the increased communication among neurons in the PFC is associated with development of BP. Intraregional connectivity as one of the factors involved in voluntary movement may reflect the activation of brain networks related to movement preparation in PFC.

Prediction of movement intention using connectivity within motor-related network: An electrocorticography study

“…Information exchange gradually increased prior to the movement onset, peaked during movement, and decreased after movement offset for both intra-connectivity of 1M and inter-connectivity of DLPFC-1M. The findings imply that the connectivity between DLPFC and 1M may also reflect the planning of movement, such as RP[ 44 ].…”

To jump or not to jump - The Bereitschaftspotential required to jump into 192-meter abyss

“…Moreover, besides involvement of the cortico-basal ganglia-thalamo-cortical loop (motor loop), a number of studies indicate that the prefrontal cortex (PFC), a region that was found to be tightly linked to the concept of willpower 12 (i.e. the capacity to control one’s own thoughts and actions, as well as the ability to override an unwanted thought, feeling or impulse), decision making and executive control 13 , plays a critical role for initiation of voluntary movements 14 . Particularly the medial part of the PFC (mPFC) was shown to be important for regulating neuronal circuits linked to fear and anxiety 15 .…”

Automated Labeling of Movement- Related Cortical Potentials Using Segmented Regression

“…These two slopes are characterized with reference to the baseline electroencephalography (EEG) activity as BP1 and BP2 [4]. These components of the MRCP have been studied across many different populations [5]- [7], notably in the context of motor training [8]- [12]. One motivation to use EEG data is to provide a low cost and simple method to quantify motor training compared to other approaches such as functional magnetic resonance imaging, magnetoencephalography, and transcranial magnetic stimulation [13].…”