fMRI correlates of behavioural microsleeps during a continuous visuomotor task

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Sleep Research
• Cognitive Psychology

Background:

• Behavioral microsleeps (BMs) are characterized by brief unresponsiveness and eye closure.
• BMs are often triggered by sleep deprivation, monotonous tasks, and influenced by circadian rhythms and sleep pressure.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a multimodal approach for investigating the neural underpinnings of behavioral microsleeps.
• To identify brain regions involved in visuomotor control and arousal during BMs.

Main Methods:

• Simultaneous recording of fMRI, eye-video, electrooculography (VEOG), and continuous visuomotor response.
• Data collected from 20 healthy volunteers performing a visuomotor tracking task in an MRI scanner.
• Post-hoc identification of BMs by expert visual rating based on predefined criteria.

Main Results:

• fMRI analysis identified significant changes in hemodynamic activity during BMs.
• Affected brain regions include both cortical and sub-cortical areas crucial for visuomotor control and arousal.

Conclusions:

• The multimodal approach effectively captured neural correlates of behavioral microsleeps.
• Findings highlight the involvement of specific brain networks in the occurrence of BMs, contributing to understanding attention lapses.