Scalp recorded theta activity is modulated by reward, direction, and speed during virtual navigation in freely moving humans

Lin, Mei‐Heng; Liran, Omer; Bauer, Neeta; Baker, Travis E.

doi:10.1038/s41598-022-05955-9

Cited by 19 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 101 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…However, a strong speculation relates the observed theta phase synchrony at the parietal region to hippocampal theta activity, pointing to mechanisms of sensorimotor integration (Bland et al, 2007 ; Watrous et al, 2011 ). This hypothesis ties well with previous studies wherein theta activity at the parietal cortex plays a major role in supporting body motor movements necessary for goal pursuit or task completion (Guterstam et al, 2015 ; Lin et al, 2022 ). By extension, we believe that theta phase synchrony played a significant role in detecting the delay in the haptic modality (middle central region) and communicating the conflict to the parietal cortex for integrating the flow of the incongruent sensory information.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Assessment of EEG-based functional connectivity in response to haptic delay

Alsuradi

Park²,

Eid³

2022

Front. Neurosci.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Haptic technologies enable users to physically interact with remote or virtual environments by applying force, vibration, or motion via haptic interfaces. However, the delivery of timely haptic feedback remains a challenge due to the stringent computation and communication requirements associated with haptic data transfer. Haptic delay disrupts the realism of the user experience and interferes with the quality of interaction. Research efforts have been devoted to studying the neural correlates of delayed sensory stimulation to better understand and thus mitigate the impact of delay. However, little is known about the functional neural networks that process haptic delay. This paper investigates the underlying neural networks associated with processing haptic delay in passive and active haptic interactions. Nineteen participants completed a visuo-haptic task using a computer screen and a haptic device while electroencephalography (EEG) data were being recorded. A combined approach based on phase locking value (PLV) functional connectivity and graph theory was used. To assay the effects of haptic delay on functional connectivity, we evaluate a global connectivity property through the small-worldness index and a local connectivity property through the nodal strength index. Results suggest that the brain exhibits significantly different network characteristics when a haptic delay is introduced. Haptic delay caused an increased manifestation of the small-worldness index in the delta and theta bands as well as an increased nodal strength index in the middle central region. Inter-regional connectivity analysis showed that the middle central region was significantly connected to the parietal and occipital regions as a result of haptic delay. These results are expected to indicate the detection of conflicting visuo-haptic information at the middle central region and their respective resolution and integration at the parietal and occipital regions.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Assessment of EEG-based functional connectivity in response to haptic delay

Alsuradi

Park²,

Eid³

2022

Front. Neurosci.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…This ongoing increase may indicate that the non-learning group was constantly encoding their environment or recalling and combining features and/or previously explored places in order to develop new search strategies (Kahana et al, 1999;Caplan & Glaholt, 2007;Kaplan et al, 2012;Chrastil et al, 2022). These findings align with previous research in the field that has linked theta increases to exploratory behaviour and suggests that theta may play a larger role in in the encoding of spatial information, rather than movement speed or integration of sensory information, which we controlled for (Buzsáki, 2005;Lega et al, 2012;Buzsáki & Moser, 2013;Lin et al, 2017;Goyal et al, 2020;Lin et al, 2022).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

“…In a recent review, Herweg et al (2020) explored the dynamics of these theta changes, with iEEG studies reporting theta power reductions related to successful memory encoding, whereas scalp EEG studies demonstrated increases in theta power. EEG studies focusing on navigation have also reported increased theta power oscillations during active learning, recall, and decision-making (Vivekananda et al, 2021;Chrastil et al, 2022;Lin et al, 2022). However, decreases in theta power have also been noted during associative learning and episodic recall (Greenberg et al, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Connectivity models suggest that low-frequency oscillations from the hippocampus, retrosplenial cortex and posterior parietal cortex contribute to spatial navigation and may be reflected by cortical theta (Ekstrom et al, 2003;Ekstrom et al, 2017). Therefore, studies have generally focused on theta changes in two key cortical regions, the frontal and parietal midline (Meltzer et al, 2009;Kaplan et al, 2014;Liang et al, 2018;Kane et al, 2019;Liang et al, 2021;Chrastil et al, 2022;Lin et al, 2022). These areas are known to display synchrony during encoding and retrieval of information (Fell & Axmacher, 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Theta oscillatory power decreases in humans are associated with spatial learning in a virtual water maze task

Thornberry¹,

Caffrey²,

Commins³

2023

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Theta oscillations (4–8 Hz) in humans play a role in navigation processes, including spatial encoding, retrieval, and sensorimotor integration. Increased theta power at frontal and parietal midline regions are known to contribute to successful navigation. However, the dynamics of cortical theta and its role in spatial learning are not fully understood. This study aimed to investigate theta oscillations via EEG during spatial learning in a virtual water maze. Participants were separated into a learning group (n = 25) who learned the location of a hidden goal across twelve trials, or a time-matched non-learning group (n = 25) who were required to simply navigate the same arena, but without a goal. We compared the first trial to the final trial, at two phases of learning, the trial start, and the goal approach. We focused on electrodes at the frontal and parietal midlines. The learning group showed reduced low-frequency theta power at the frontal and parietal midline during the start phase, and largely reduced theta combined with a short but significant increase at both midlines during the goal-approach phase. These patterns were not found in the non-learning group, who instead displayed extensive increases in low-frequency oscillations at both regions during the trial start, and at the parietal midline during goal approach. We suggest our findings provide novel evidence for a link between efficient learning and theta oscillations in humans. Our results also support the theory that theta plays a crucial role in spatial encoding during exploration, as opposed to sensorimotor integration.

show abstract

“…Connectivity models suggest that low-frequency oscillations from the hippocampus, retrosplenial cortex and posterior parietal cortex contribute to spatial navigation and may be reflected by cortical theta (Ekstrom et al, 2003(Ekstrom et al, , 2017. Therefore, studies have generally focused on theta changes in two key cortical regions, the frontal and parietal midline (Chrastil et al, 2022;Kane et al, 2019;Kaplan et al, 2014;Liang et al, 2018Liang et al, , 2021Lin et al, 2022;Meltzer et al, 2009). These areas are known to display synchrony during encoding and retrieval of information (Fell & Axmacher, 2011).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Theta oscillatory power decreases in humans are associated with spatial learning in a virtual water maze task

Thornberry,

Caffrey,

Commins

2023

Eur J of Neuroscience

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Theta oscillations (4–8 Hz) in humans play a role in navigation processes, including spatial encoding, retrieval and sensorimotor integration. Increased theta power at frontal and parietal midline regions is known to contribute to successful navigation. However, the dynamics of cortical theta and its role in spatial learning are not fully understood. This study aimed to investigate theta oscillations via electroencephalogram (EEG) during spatial learning in a virtual water maze. Participants were separated into a learning group (n = 25) who learned the location of a hidden goal across 12 trials, or a time‐matched non‐learning group (n = 25) who were required to simply navigate the same arena, but without a goal. We compared all trials, at two phases of learning, the trial start and the goal approach. We also compared the first six trials with the last six trials within‐groups. The learning group showed reduced low‐frequency theta power at the frontal and parietal midline during the start phase and largely reduced theta combined with a short increase at both midlines during the goal‐approach phase. These patterns were not found in the non‐learning group, who instead displayed extensive increases in low‐frequency oscillations at both regions during the trial start and at the parietal midline during goal approach. Our results support the theory that theta plays a crucial role in spatial encoding during exploration, as opposed to sensorimotor integration. We suggest our findings provide evidence for a link between learning and a reduction of theta oscillations in humans.

show abstract

Scalp recorded theta activity is modulated by reward, direction, and speed during virtual navigation in freely moving humans

Cited by 19 publications

References 101 publications

Assessment of EEG-based functional connectivity in response to haptic delay

Assessment of EEG-based functional connectivity in response to haptic delay

Theta oscillatory power decreases in humans are associated with spatial learning in a virtual water maze task

Theta oscillatory power decreases in humans are associated with spatial learning in a virtual water maze task

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About