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Are there internal thought processes in the monkey?--default brain activity in humans and nonhuman primates
1Department of Psychology, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute for Neuroscience, 2-6 Musashidai, Fuchu, Tokyo 183-8526, Japan. watanabe-ms@igakuken.or.jp
Behavioural Brain Research
|March 15, 2011
Summary
The brain's default system, active during rest, is involved in internal thought. Neuroimaging reveals its function in humans and monkeys, showing similarities and differences in activity.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Neuroscience
Background:
- The brain exhibits a
- default system
- exhibiting
- default mode of brain activity
- (greater activity during rest than cognitive tasks).
- This system, primarily in medial prefrontal and parietal areas, is hypothesized to support internal thought processes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review human neuroimaging findings on the default system's activity across various conditions.
- To present nonhuman primate studies on default system activity, including spontaneous brain activity and metabolic levels.
- To compare default system activity between humans and nonhuman primates and discuss its functional significance, including internal thought processes in monkeys.
Main Methods:
- Review of human neuroimaging studies (e.g., fMRI) examining the default system.
- Analysis of nonhuman primate studies investigating spontaneous brain activity and metabolic levels in medial brain areas.
- Presentation of new data on task-induced deactivation in the monkey default system.
Main Results:
- Human studies demonstrate default system activity related to task performance, development, aging, and psychiatric disorders.
- Nonhuman primate studies show correlated low-frequency spontaneous activity within the default system and high metabolic levels during rest.
- Task-induced deactivation was observed in the monkey default system, similar to human findings.
Conclusions:
- The default system's activity is conserved across humans and nonhuman primates, suggesting shared functional roles.
- Further research is needed to fully understand the extent of internal thought processes in monkeys.
- The default system plays a crucial role in brain function, particularly during resting states.
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