Resting electroencephalogram alpha-power over posterior sites indexes baseline visual cortex excitability
Open accessAbstract
Variations of oscillatory brain activity have been related to distinct functional states depending on the frequency of oscillations. In the alpha-band (about 8-14 Hz), decreased oscillatory activity is thought to reflect a state of enhanced cortical excitability, and increased activity to reflect a state of cortical idling or inhibition in which excitability is reduced, but the alpha/excitability link has not been probed directly. Here, we studied the relationship between resting oscillatory activity and visual cortex excitability across participants using electroencephalography and transcranial magnetic stimulation to the occipital pole. We found individual posterior alpha-band power to correlate with the individual threshold for eliciting illusory, transcranial magnetic stimulation-induced visual percepts. This provides direct support for an alpha/excitability link and for baseline states of the visual brain to vary across individuals.
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Alpha power appears to play a causal role in suppressing the intrusion of distracting information when applied via transcranial magnetic stimulation during a visual target detection task.
“and appears to play a causal role in suppressing the intrusion of distracting information when applied via transcranial magnetic stimulation during a visual target detection task94.”
From Paying attention to attention in depression (2019) · cites this paper as [94]
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- Authors
- Romei, V., Rihs, T., Brodbeck, V., & Thut, G.
- Affiliations
- University Hospital of Geneva (CH)
- University of Geneva (CH)
- Corresponding author
- Thut, Gregor
- Venue
- NeuroReport
- Published
- 2008-01-22
- Volume
- 19
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 203-208
- ISSN
- 0959-4965 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W1988102740
- Cited by
- 285
- References
- 24
- Citations by year
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- FWCI
- 9.82
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- Licence
- cc-by
- Locations
- Neuroreport (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Archive ouverte UNIGE (University of Geneva) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Archivio istituzionale della ricerca (Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna) (submittedVersion)
- UCL Discovery (University College London) (submittedVersion)
- Open Access at Essex (University of Essex) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural dynamics and brain function
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Neurology › Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Studies
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Visual perception and processing mechanisms
- Keywords
- alpha band, resting-state oscillations, visual cortex excitability, transcranial magnetic stimulation, occipital pole, individual differences, cortical inhibition, alpha power
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Alpha Rhythm, Biological Clocks, Brain Mapping, Electroencephalography, Evoked Potentials, Visual, Female, Humans, Illusions, Male, Neuropsychological Tests, Photic Stimulation, Sensory Thresholds, Visual Cortex, Visual Perception, Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation
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