Menstrual cycle effects on selective attention and its underlying cortical networks

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Cognitive Psychology
• Endocrinology

Background:

• Selective attention is crucial for cognitive processing.
• Hormonal fluctuations during the menstrual cycle can impact brain function.
• Understanding these effects is key to comprehending cognitive variability in women.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how menstrual cycle phases affect selective attention.
• To explore underlying changes in functional cerebral networks.
• To determine the influence of estradiol and progesterone levels on cognitive functions.

Main Methods:

• Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used.
• A go/no-go paradigm assessed selective attention.
• Participants included 21 healthy, normally cycling women across menstrual, follicular, and luteal phases.

Main Results:

• Behaviorally, faster reaction times to right-sided stimuli were observed during the menstrual phase compared to the follicular phase.
• This suggests potential left-hemisphere dominance in selective attention during menstruation.
• Functional connectivity analysis revealed distinct patterns between menstrual and luteal phases, particularly involving the inferior parietal and middle frontal gyri.

Conclusions:

• Steroid hormones modulate networks of lateralized cognitive functions.
• Menstrual cycle phase influences selective attention and brain connectivity.
• Findings suggest hormonal effects extend beyond interhemispheric inhibition to intrahemispheric connectivity.