Thimm M, Weis S, Hausmann M, Sturm W
Department of Neurology, Section Clinical Neuropsychology, University Hospital Aachen, RWTH Aachen University, 52074 Aachen, Germany.
Department of Psychology, Durham University, Durham DH1 3LE, United Kingdom.
Neuroscience. 2014 Jan 31;258:307-17. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2013.11.010. Epub 2013 Nov 18.
It was the aim of the present study to investigate menstrual cycle effects on selective attention and its underlying functional cerebral networks. Twenty-one healthy, right-handed, normally cycling women were investigated by means of functional magnetic resonance imaging using a go/no-go paradigm during the menstrual, follicular and luteal phase. On the behavioral level there was a significant interaction between visual half field and cycle phase with reaction times to right-sided compared to left-sided stimuli being faster in the menstrual compared to the follicular phase. These results might argue for a more pronounced functional cerebral asymmetry toward the left hemisphere in selective attention during the menstrual phase with low estradiol and progesterone levels. Functional imaging, however, did not reveal clear-cut menstrual phase-related changes in activation pattern in parallel to these behavioral findings. A functional connectivity analysis identified differences between the menstrual and the luteal phase: During the menstrual phase, left inferior parietal cortex showed a stronger negative correlation with the right middle frontal gyrus while the left medial frontal cortex showed a stronger negative correlation with the left middle frontal gyrus. These results can serve as further evidence of a modulatory effect of steroid hormones on networks of lateralized cognitive functions not only by interhemispheric inhibition but also by affecting intrahemispheric functional connectivity.
本研究旨在探讨月经周期对选择性注意及其潜在功能性脑网络的影响。通过功能磁共振成像，在月经周期的月经期、卵泡期和黄体期，采用“去/不去”范式对21名健康、右利手、月经周期正常的女性进行了研究。在行为层面，视觉半视野和周期阶段之间存在显著交互作用，与卵泡期相比，月经期对右侧刺激的反应时间比对左侧刺激的反应时间更快。这些结果可能表明，在月经期雌二醇和孕酮水平较低时，选择性注意中朝向左侧半球的功能性脑不对称更为明显。然而，功能成像并未揭示与这些行为学发现平行的、与月经周期相关的激活模式的明显变化。功能连接分析确定了月经期和黄体期之间的差异：在月经期，左下顶叶皮层与右侧额中回的负相关性更强，而左内侧前额叶皮层与左侧额中回的负相关性更强。这些结果可作为进一步证据，证明类固醇激素不仅通过半球间抑制，而且通过影响半球内功能连接，对偏侧化认知功能网络具有调节作用。
