Stationary correlation pattern in highly non-stationary MEG recordings of healthy subjects and its relation to former EEG studies

PLoS One. 2024 Oct 22;19(10):e0307378. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0307378. eCollection 2024.

Abstract

In this study, we analyze magnetoencephalographic (MEG) recordings from 48 clinically healthy subjects obtained from the Human Connectome Project (HCP) while they performed a working memory task and a motor task. Our results reveal a well-developed, stable interrelation pattern that spans the entire scalp and is nearly universal, being almost task- and subject-independent. Additionally, we demonstrate that this pattern closely resembles a stationary correlation pattern (SCP) observed in EEG signals under various physiological and pathological conditions (the distribution of Pearson correlations are centered at about 0.75). Furthermore, we identify the most effective EEG reference for studying the brain's functional network derived from lag-zero cross-correlations. We contextualize these findings within the theory of complex dynamical systems operating near a critical point of a phase transition.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Brain / physiology
  • Connectome / methods
  • Electroencephalography* / methods
  • Female
  • Healthy Volunteers
  • Humans
  • Magnetoencephalography* / methods
  • Male
  • Memory, Short-Term / physiology
  • Young Adult

Grants and funding

This work was supported by Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACyT) (MF-M obtained the grant CF-263377 and AL-R CF-610285) and Dirección General de Asuntos del Personal Académico Programa de Apoyo a Proyectos de Investigación e Innovación Tecnológica de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (DGAPA-PAPIIT, UNAM): AL-R is responsable of the Project IA208018 WA-R of the project IA100522, and Z-MT of the Project IN221324. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.