Upregulation of a Small-World Brain Network Improves Inhibitory Control: An fNIRS Neurofeedback Training Study.

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Brain Network Analysis

Background:

• Inhibitory control is crucial for cognitive function.
• Small-world brain networks are thought to support efficient information processing.
• Understanding the link between brain network topology and cognitive functions like inhibitory control is essential.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between small-world brain network properties and inhibitory control.
• To explore the efficacy of functional near-infrared spectroscopy-neurofeedback (fNIRS-NF) in modulating brain networks for cognitive enhancement.
• To determine if targeted neurofeedback can improve performance on tasks requiring inhibitory control.

Main Methods:

• Utilized functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to create a neurofeedback (NF) system.
• Trained participants to upregulate or downregulate their frontal small-world brain network over five days.
• Assessed inhibitory control using the color-word Stroop task before and after the fNIRS-NF intervention.
• Analyzed behavioral and brain network topology data using repeated-measures ANOVA.

Main Results:

• Neurofeedback training aimed at upregulating the small-world brain network significantly improved inhibitory control.
• Upregulation of the small-world network was associated with increased brain network regularization.
• Enhanced small-world network properties involved better linkage of dispersed brain resources and reduced interhemispheric functional lateralization.

Conclusions:

• There is an inherent correlation between small-world functional brain networks and inhibitory control.
• Dynamic optimization of brain networks, balancing efficiency and cost, provides a neural basis for inhibitory control.
• Inhibitory control emerges from the complex interactions within broader brain networks, not isolated regions or connections.