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Updated: Nov 4, 2025

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Prestimulus dynamics blend with the stimulus in neural variability quenching.

Annemarie Wolff1, Liang Chen2, Shankar Tumati1

  • 1University of Ottawa Institute of Mental Health Research, Ottawa, Canada.

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|May 31, 2021
PubMed
Summary

Prestimulus neural variability significantly influences how the brain responds to stimuli. Higher prestimulus variability enhances neural variability quenching and speeds reaction times, indicating ongoing brain dynamics are crucial.

Keywords:
DynamicsPrestimulusSpontaneous activityState dependenceStereoelectroencephalographyTrial-to-trial variabilityVariability

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Cognitive Science
  • Computational Neuroscience

Background:

  • Neural responses exhibit trial-to-trial variability (TTV), which typically decreases after stimulus presentation.
  • The influence of prestimulus brain dynamics on this neural variability quenching remains largely unexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate how prestimulus neural dynamics shape poststimulus activity and trial-to-trial variability (TTV).
  • To determine the role of ongoing brain states in modulating stimulus-evoked neural responses.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized human intracranial stereo-electroencephalography (sEEG) data.
  • Analyzed prestimulus neural dynamics using standard deviation (SD) across frequency bands.
  • Examined poststimulus activity and variability quenching in relation to prestimulus states.
  • Replicated findings in a separate EEG dataset.

Main Results:

  • Greater poststimulus variability quenching was observed in trials with higher prestimulus variability across all frequency bands.
  • The relative effect of the stimulus was more pronounced in the later poststimulus period (300-600ms).
  • High prestimulus variability in theta and alpha bands correlated with faster reaction times.

Conclusions:

  • Stimulus-related neural activity is shaped by both external stimuli and ongoing prestimulus brain dynamics.
  • Prestimulus neural dynamics significantly influence, and often overshadow, the impact of external stimuli on neural responses.
  • Understanding prestimulus states is critical for interpreting neural variability and stimulus processing.