Theta‐ and delta‐band EEG network dynamics during a novelty oddball task

Abstract

While the P3 component during target detection and novelty processing has been widely studied, less is known about its underlying network dynamics. A recent cognitive model suggests that frontal-parietal and frontal-temporal interregional connectivity are related to attention/action selection and target-related memory updating during the P3, respectively, but empirical work testing this model is lacking. Other work suggests the importance of theta- and delta-band connectivity between the medial frontal cortex and distributed cortical regions during attention, stimulus detection, and response selection processes, and similar dynamics may underlie P3-related network connectivity. The present study evaluated the functional connectivity elicited during a visual task, which combined oddball target and novelty stimuli, in a sample of 231 same-sex twins. It was hypothesized that both target and novel conditions would involve theta fronto-parietal connectivity and medial frontal theta power, but that target stimuli would elicit the strongest fronto-temporal connectivity. EEG time-frequency analysis revealed greater theta-band fronto-parietal connectivity and medial frontal power during both target and novel conditions compared to standards, which may index conflict/uncertainty resolution processes. Theta-band fronto-temporal connectivity was maximal during the target condition, potentially reflecting context updating or stimulus-response activation. Delta-band frontocentral-parietal connectivity was also strongest following targets, which may be sensitive to response-related demands. These results suggest the existence of functional networks related to P3 that are differentially engaged by target oddballs and novel distractors. Compared to simple P3 amplitude, network measures may provide a more nuanced view of the neural dynamics during target detection/novelty processing in normative and pathological populations.

A chronometric model of the relationship between frontal midline theta functional connectivity and human intelligence

“…These results are consistent with predictions from the parieto-frontal integration theory of intelligence (P-FIT; , which proposes that effective interactions between frontal and parietal brain regions underlie individual differences in intelligence. Because synchronized theta activity has been associated with the coupling of frontoparietal and frontotemporal functional networks (Güntekin & Başar, 2010;Harper et al, 2017), our results are consistent with neuroimaging studies that found associations between the connectivity of frontoparietal cognitive control networks and intelligence (Cole et al, 2012;Hilger et al, 2017b;Pineda-Pardo et al, 2016;Wendelken et al, 2017) and support the notion that efficient information transmission between these networks contributes to greater intelligence.…”

“…Phase-synchronized oscillatory activity is a prime candidate for the facilitation of interregional goal-directed information processing associated with cognitive control processes (Cole et al, 2012;Hilger et al, 2017b;Pineda-Pardo et al, 2016;Wendelken et al, 2017), because it coordinates interregional communication and information-transfer in specific time windows (Fries, 2005). In particular, synchronized oscillatory activity in the thetaband has been suggested to underlie the functional networks associated with the P3 (Harper, Malone, & Iacono, 2017), with the medial frontal cortex acting as a central hub for long-range information transmission (Cohen, 2011;Helfrich & Knight, 2016). The connectivity degree as a measure of relative functional connectivity reflects the extent to which an area acts as a global hub in information-processing, with greater connectivity degrees indicating greater centrality (greater "hubbiness") of a node in goal-directed information-processing.…”

Brain reflections: A circuit‐based framework for understanding information processing and cognitive control

“…The role of theta bursts in cognitive control has been the target of extensive investigation over the last few years. Several articles have shown that theta bursts (typically lasting a few hundred milliseconds) are associated with conflict or with conditions requiring enhanced cognitive control (e.g., Harper, Malone, & Iacono, ; McDermott, Weisman, Proskovec, Heinrichs‐Graham, & Wilson, , Töllner et al, ). Although some authors (e.g., Töllner et al, ) have linked these increases in theta activity to conflict monitoring per se, others have linked the amplitude of this signal to task complexity (e.g., Cooper et al, —who also reported an increase in delta activity; Voytek et al, ), task switching (e.g., Cunillera et al, ), or in some cases to the anticipation of conflict (e.g, Chang, Ide, Li, Chen, & Li, ).…”

Theta Phase Synchronization between the Human Hippocampus and Prefrontal Cortex Increases during Encoding of Unexpected Information: A Case Study

“…Studies using intracranial EEG have shown that hippocampal theta power is increased during encoding of contextually unexpected information (Axmacher et al, 2010;Chen et al, 2013). Furthermore, contextually unexpected events elicit increases in scalp-recorded frontal theta power (e.g., Cavanagh et al, 2012;Walsh & Anderson, 2012;Cavanagh & Frank, 2014), and recent EEG studies have demonstrated increases in theta phase synchrony between frontal and temporal scalp sites during contextually unexpected stimuli (Lee et al, 2014;Harper et al, 2017). In light of this evidence, it is possible that theta oscillations facilitate communication between the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus during encoding of contextually unexpected events.…”