Global brain network modularity dynamics after local optic nerve damage following noninvasive brain stimulation: an...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Cognitive Science
• Systems Biology

Background:

• Brain functional connectivity networks (FCN) exhibit dynamic modularity, with tightly connected nodes forming communities that interact over time to support cognitive functions.
• The formation and dynamic reconfiguration of these functional modules during visual processing, especially after lesions and subsequent neuromodulation, remain poorly understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the dynamics of brain FCN modularity during visual processing.
• To examine how functional module interactions and network stability change post-lesion and following neuromodulation using repetitive transorbital alternating current stimulation (rtACS).

Main Methods:

• Analysis of brain functional connectivity network (FCN) modularity dynamics in patients with optic nerve damage and healthy controls.
• Application of noninvasive repetitive transorbital alternating current stimulation (rtACS) as a neuromodulation technique.
• Correlation of intermodule interactions with visual performance before and after rtACS treatment.

Main Results:

• Local intermodule interactions in FCN were correlated with visual performance in both patients and controls.
• Following rtACS treatment, patients showed improved vision recovery, associated with enhanced interaction strength of pathways linked to the attention module.
• rtACS treatment led to improved global modularity and increased the stability of FCN in patients.

Conclusions:

• Temporal coordination of cortical modules and intermodule interactions are functionally significant for visual processing.
• Noninvasive neuromodulation with rtACS can modulate brain network modularity, promoting a more balanced and stable multilayer modular structure for visual processing by strengthening connections with the attention network.