Department of Neurology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, United States.
Department of Neurology, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, United States.
Neuropsychologia. 2018 Aug;117:113-122. doi: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2018.05.020. Epub 2018 May 23.
Mid-frontal theta activity underlies cognitive control. These 4-8 Hz rhythms are modulated by cortical dopamine and can be abnormal in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). Here, we investigated mid-frontal theta deficits in PD patients during a task explicitly involving cognitive control. We collected scalp EEG from high-performing PD patients and demographically matched controls during performance of a modified Simon reaction-time task. This task involves cognitive control to adjudicate response conflict and error-related adjustments. Task performance of PD patients was indistinguishable from controls, but PD patients had less mid-frontal theta modulations around cues and responses. Critically, PD patients had attenuated mid-frontal theta activity specifically associated with response conflict and post-error processing. These signals were unaffected by medication or motor scores. Post-error mid-frontal theta activity was correlated with disease duration. Classification of control vs. PD from these data resulted in a specificity of 69% and a sensitivity of 72%. These findings help define the scope of mid-frontal theta aberrations during cognitive control in PD, and may provide insight into the nature of PD-related cognitive dysfunction.
前额中部θ活动是认知控制的基础。这些 4-8Hz 的节律受皮质多巴胺调节，在帕金森病（PD）患者中可能异常。在这里，我们在一项明确涉及认知控制的任务中研究了 PD 患者的前额中部θ缺陷。我们在执行改良 Simon 反应时任务期间，从表现出色的 PD 患者和人口统计学匹配的对照组中收集头皮 EEG。该任务涉及认知控制，以裁决反应冲突和错误相关的调整。PD 患者的任务表现与对照组无法区分，但 PD 患者在提示和反应周围的前额中部θ调制较少。关键的是，PD 患者的前额中部θ活动与反应冲突和错误后处理特异性减弱。这些信号不受药物或运动评分的影响。错误后前额中部θ活动与疾病持续时间相关。从这些数据对控制与 PD 进行分类的特异性为 69%，敏感性为 72%。这些发现有助于确定 PD 患者认知控制期间前额中部θ异常的范围，并可能深入了解与 PD 相关的认知功能障碍的性质。
