Momi Davide, Smeralda Carmelo, Sprugnoli Giulia, Ferrone Salvatore, Rossi Simone, Rossi Alessandro, Di Lorenzo Giorgio, Santarnecchi Emiliano
Brain Investigation & Neuromodulation Lab, Department of Medicine, Surgery and Neuroscience, Neurology and Clinical Neurophysiology Section, University of Siena, Italy.
Brain Investigation & Neuromodulation Lab, Department of Medicine, Surgery and Neuroscience, Neurology and Clinical Neurophysiology Section, University of Siena, Italy; Siena Robotics and Systems Lab (SIRS-Lab), Engineering and Mathematics Department, University of Siena, Italy; Human Physiology Section, Department of Medicine, Surgery and Neuroscience, University of Siena, Siena, Italy; Department of Medicine, Surgery and Neuroscience, University of Siena, Siena, Italy.
Behav Brain Res. 2018 Nov 1;353:62-73. doi: 10.1016/j.bbr.2018.06.013. Epub 2018 Jun 23.
Recent evidence shows how an extensive gaming experience might positively impact cognitive and perceptual functioning, leading to brain structural changes observed in cross-sectional studies. Importantly, changes seem to be game-specific, reflecting gameplay styles and therefore opening to the possibility of tailoring videogames according to rehabilitation and enhancement purposes. However, whether if such brain effects can be induced even with limited gaming experience, and whether if they can outlast the gaming period, is still unknown. Here we quantified both cognitive and grey matter thickness changes following 15 daily gaming sessions based on a modified version of a 3D first-person shooter (FPS) played in laboratory settings. Twenty-nine healthy participants were randomly assigned to a control or a gaming group and underwent a cognitive assessment, an in-game performance evaluation and structural magnetic resonance imaging before (T0), immediately after (T1) and three months after the end of the experiment (T2). At T1, a significant increase in thickness of the bilateral parahippocampal cortex (PHC), somatosensory cortex (S1), superior parietal lobule (SPL) and right insula were observed. Changes in S1 matched the hand representation bilaterally, while PHC changes corresponded to the parahippocampal place area (PPA). Surprisingly, changes in thickness were still present at T2 for S1, PHC, SPL and right insula as compared to T0. Finally, surface-based regression identified the lingual gyrus as the best predictor of changes in game performance at T1. Results stress the specific impact of core game elements, such as spatial navigation and visuomotor coordination on structural brain properties, with effects outlasting even a short intensive gaming period.
最近的证据表明，丰富的游戏体验可能对认知和感知功能产生积极影响，导致在横断面研究中观察到大脑结构变化。重要的是，这些变化似乎具有游戏特异性，反映了游戏玩法风格，因此开启了根据康复和增强目的定制电子游戏的可能性。然而，即使是有限的游戏体验是否也能诱发这种大脑效应，以及这些效应是否能在游戏期之后持续存在，仍然未知。在这里，我们基于在实验室环境中玩的一款修改版3D第一人称射击游戏（FPS），对15天每日游戏后的认知和灰质厚度变化进行了量化。29名健康参与者被随机分配到对照组或游戏组，并在实验开始前（T0）、结束后立即（T1）和结束三个月后（T2）接受认知评估、游戏内表现评估和结构磁共振成像。在T1时，观察到双侧海马旁回（PHC）、体感皮层（S1）、顶上小叶（SPL）和右侧岛叶的厚度显著增加。S1的变化与双侧手部表征相匹配，而PHC的变化与海马旁位置区（PPA）相对应。令人惊讶的是，与T0相比，在T2时S1、PHC、SPL和右侧岛叶的厚度变化仍然存在。最后，基于表面的回归分析确定舌回是T1时游戏表现变化的最佳预测指标。结果强调了核心游戏元素，如空间导航和视觉运动协调对大脑结构特性的特定影响，即使在短暂的密集游戏期之后，这种影响仍然存在。
