Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Prog Brain Res. 2011;193:3-15. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-444-53839-0.00001-6.
The most important quest of cognitive neuroscience may be to unravel the mechanisms by which the brain selects, links, consolidates, and integrates new information into its neuronal network, while preventing saturation to occur. During the past decade, neuroscientists working within several disciplines have observed an important involvement of the specific types of brain oscillations that occur during sleep--the cortical slow oscillations; during the resting state--the fMRI resting state networks including the default-mode network (DMN); and during task performance--the performance modulations that link as well to modulations in electroencephalography or magnetoencephalography frequency content. Understanding the role of these slow oscillations thus appears to be essential for our fundamental understanding of brain function. Brain activity is characterized by oscillations occurring in spike frequency, field potentials or blood oxygen level-dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging signals. Environmental stimuli, reaching the brain through our senses, activate or inactivate neuronal populations and modulate ongoing activity. The effect they sort is to a large extent determined by the momentary state of the slow endogenous oscillations of the brain. In the absence of sensory input, as is the case during rest or sleep, brain activity does not cease. Rather, its oscillations continue and change with respect to their dominant frequencies and coupling topography. This chapter briefly introduces the topics that will be addressed in this dedicated volume of Progress in Brain Research on slow oscillations and sets the stage for excellent papers discussing their molecular, cellular, network physiological and cognitive performance aspects. Getting to know about slow oscillations is essential for our understanding of plasticity, memory, brain structure from synapse to DMN, cognition, consciousness, and ultimately for our understanding of the mechanisms and functions of sleep and vigilance.
认知神经科学最重要的研究课题可能是要揭开大脑将新信息选择、链接、巩固和整合到其神经元网络中，同时防止信息饱和的机制。在过去的十年中，从事多个学科的神经科学家已经观察到大脑在睡眠时发生的特定类型的脑波（皮质慢波）、静息状态时（包括默认模式网络的 fMRI 静息态网络）以及任务执行时（将脑电或脑磁图的频率内容与调制联系起来的性能调制）的重要作用。因此，理解这些慢波的作用对于我们对大脑功能的基本理解似乎是必不可少的。大脑活动的特征是在尖峰频率、场电位或血氧水平依赖功能磁共振成像信号中发生的振荡。通过我们的感官到达大脑的环境刺激会激活或失活神经元群体，并调节正在进行的活动。它们的作用在很大程度上取决于大脑慢内源性振荡的瞬时状态。在没有感觉输入的情况下，例如在休息或睡眠期间，大脑活动不会停止。相反，其振荡继续以其主导频率和耦合拓扑发生变化。本章简要介绍了将在这个专门的《大脑研究进展》关于慢波的卷中讨论的主题，并为讨论其分子、细胞、网络生理和认知表现方面的优秀论文奠定了基础。了解慢波对于我们理解可塑性、记忆、从突触到默认模式网络的大脑结构、认知、意识以及最终理解睡眠和警觉的机制和功能是至关重要的。
