An altered balance of integrated and segregated brain activity is a marker of cognitive deficits following sleep deprivation.

ABSTRACT: Sleep deprivation (SD) leads to impairments in cognitive function. Here, we tested the hypothesis that cognitive changes in the sleep-deprived brain can be explained by information processing within and between large-scale cortical networks. We acquired functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans of 20 healthy volunteers during attention and executive tasks following a regular night of sleep, a night of SD, and a recovery nap containing nonrapid eye movement (NREM) sleep. Overall, SD was associated with increased cortex-wide functional integration, driven by a rise of integration within cortical networks. The ratio of within versus between network integration in the cortex increased further in the recovery nap, suggesting that prolonged wakefulness drives the cortex towards a state

SUBMITTER: Cross NE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8568176 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature