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Updated: Apr 21, 2026
Infant Auditory Processing and Event-related Brain Oscillations
Published on: July 1, 2015
Altered Network Oscillations and Functional Connectivity Dynamics in Children Born Very Preterm
Alexander Moiseev1, Sam M Doesburg2,3,4,5, Anthony T Herdman6,7
1Behavioural and Cognitive Neuroscience Institute, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, Canada. amoiseev@sfu.ca.
Insights
Very preterm children show atypical brain network activity and reduced neural synchrony during memory tasks. These electrophysiological differences, particularly in frontal regions, may underlie cognitive challenges in this population.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Neuroscience
- Cognitive Neuroscience
Background:
- Very preterm birth is linked to atypical structural and functional brain connectivity.
- Cognitive difficulties are common in very preterm children, but electrophysiological interactions in brain networks are poorly understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate electrophysiological interactions among brain networks in very preterm children during a visual short-term memory task.
- To identify differences in regional brain activity and inter-regional synchrony between very preterm children and full-term controls.
Main Methods:
- Magnetoencephalography (MEG) was used to record brain activity in very preterm children and controls during a visual short-term memory task.
- Beamformer analysis identified task-dependent activity changes, and inter-regional phase synchrony was calculated across frequency bands (theta, alpha, beta, gamma).
Main Results:
- Very preterm children exhibited altered regional recruitment in distributed brain networks.
- Reduced oscillatory synchrony was observed between task-activated regions in very preterm children compared to controls.
- These synchrony reductions were prominent in connections involving frontal regions critical for executive functions.
Conclusions:
- Atypical neurophysiological activity recruitment and impaired network interactions, especially involving frontal areas, may contribute to cognitive deficits in very preterm children.
- These findings highlight the importance of electrophysiological measures in understanding the neurodevelopmental impact of very preterm birth.
Abstract:
Structural brain connections develop atypically in very preterm children, and altered functional connectivity is also evident in fMRI studies. Such alterations in brain network connectivity are associated with cognitive difficulties in this population. Little is known, however, about electrophysiological interactions among specific brain networks in children born very preterm. In the present study, we recorded magnetoencephalography while very preterm children and full-term controls performed a visual short-term memory task. Regions expressing task-dependent activity changes were identified using beamformer analysis, and inter-regional phase synchrony was calculated. Very preterm children expressed altered regional recruitment in distributed networks of brain areas, across standard physiological frequency ranges including the theta, alpha, beta and gamma bands. Reduced oscillatory synchrony was observed among task-activated brain regions in very preterm children, particularly for connections involving areas critical for executive abilities, including middle frontal gyrus. These findings suggest that inability to recruit neurophysiological activity and interactions in distributed networks including frontal regions may contribute to difficulties in cognitive development in children born very preterm.
