Xiao Liu1, Silvina G. Horovitz1, 2, Allen R. Braun3, Walter S. Carr4, Dante Picchionie5, Masaki Fukunaga1, Jeff H. Duyn1
1Advanced MRI section, LFMI, NINDS, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States; 2Human Motor Control Section, MNB, National Institutes of Health; 3Language Section, Voice, Speech and Language Branch, NIDCD, National Institutes of Health; 4Naval Medical Research Center; 5Department of Behavioral Biology, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research
In this study, the average temporal correlation of spontaneous BOLD fMRI activity within local brain regions was computed and compared between the wake and slow wave sleep (SWS) stages in human. Significant reductions in local BOLD correlation were primarily found in the prefrontal cortex during the SWS, while increases were limited to posterior brain regions. The finding is consistent with the notion that prefontal activity is an important constituent of higher cognitive function during conscious awareness, and the fact that the latter is reduced during SWS. This suggests that the distribution of local correlation may report on cognitive state.