Sensorimotor Functional Connectivity: A Neurophysiological Factor Related to BCI Performance
Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs) are systems that allow users to control devices using brain activity alone. However, the ability of participants to command BCIs varies from subject to subject. About 20% of potential users of sensorimotor BCIs do not gain reliable control of the system. The ineffici...
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doaj-3592033fd9c945dca56678408db1e2c82020-12-18T15:11:54ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Neuroscience1662-453X2020-12-011410.3389/fnins.2020.575081575081Sensorimotor Functional Connectivity: A Neurophysiological Factor Related to BCI PerformanceCarmen Vidaurre0Stefan Haufe1Stefan Haufe2Tania Jorajuría3Klaus-Robert Müller4Klaus-Robert Müller5Klaus-Robert Müller6Klaus-Robert Müller7Vadim V. Nikulin8Vadim V. Nikulin9Department of Statistics, Computer Science and Mathematics, Public University of Navarre, Pamplona, SpainBerlin Center for Advanced Neuroimaging, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, GermanyBernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience Berlin, Berlin, GermanyDepartment of Statistics, Computer Science and Mathematics, Public University of Navarre, Pamplona, SpainDepartment of Machine Learning, Berlin University of Technology, Berlin, GermanyDepartment of Artificial Intelligence, Korea University, Seoul, South KoreaMax Planck Institute for Informatics, Saarbrücken, GermanyGoogle Research, Brain Team, Berlin, GermanyDepartment of Neurology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, GermanyCenter for Cognition and Decision Making, Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow, RussiaBrain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs) are systems that allow users to control devices using brain activity alone. However, the ability of participants to command BCIs varies from subject to subject. About 20% of potential users of sensorimotor BCIs do not gain reliable control of the system. The inefficiency to decode user's intentions requires the identification of neurophysiological factors determining “good” and “poor” BCI performers. One of the important neurophysiological aspects in BCI research is that the neuronal oscillations, used to control these systems, show a rich repertoire of spatial sensorimotor interactions. Considering this, we hypothesized that neuronal connectivity in sensorimotor areas would define BCI performance. Analyses for this study were performed on a large dataset of 80 inexperienced participants. They took part in a calibration and an online feedback session recorded on the same day. Undirected functional connectivity was computed over sensorimotor areas by means of the imaginary part of coherency. The results show that post- as well as pre-stimulus connectivity in the calibration recording is significantly correlated to online feedback performance in μ and feedback frequency bands. Importantly, the significance of the correlation between connectivity and BCI feedback accuracy was not due to the signal-to-noise ratio of the oscillations in the corresponding post and pre-stimulus intervals. Thus, this study demonstrates that BCI performance is not only dependent on the amplitude of sensorimotor oscillations as shown previously, but that it also relates to sensorimotor connectivity measured during the preceding training session. The presence of such connectivity between motor and somatosensory systems is likely to facilitate motor imagery, which in turn is associated with the generation of a more pronounced modulation of sensorimotor oscillations (manifested in ERD/ERS) required for the adequate BCI performance. We also discuss strategies for the up-regulation of such connectivity in order to enhance BCI performance.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnins.2020.575081/fullconnectivitysensorimotor signalsBCI performanceμ-bandBCI efficiencypre-stimulus |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Carmen Vidaurre Stefan Haufe Stefan Haufe Tania Jorajuría Klaus-Robert Müller Klaus-Robert Müller Klaus-Robert Müller Klaus-Robert Müller Vadim V. Nikulin Vadim V. Nikulin |
spellingShingle |
Carmen Vidaurre Stefan Haufe Stefan Haufe Tania Jorajuría Klaus-Robert Müller Klaus-Robert Müller Klaus-Robert Müller Klaus-Robert Müller Vadim V. Nikulin Vadim V. Nikulin Sensorimotor Functional Connectivity: A Neurophysiological Factor Related to BCI Performance Frontiers in Neuroscience connectivity sensorimotor signals BCI performance μ-band BCI efficiency pre-stimulus |
author_facet |
Carmen Vidaurre Stefan Haufe Stefan Haufe Tania Jorajuría Klaus-Robert Müller Klaus-Robert Müller Klaus-Robert Müller Klaus-Robert Müller Vadim V. Nikulin Vadim V. Nikulin |
author_sort |
Carmen Vidaurre |
title |
Sensorimotor Functional Connectivity: A Neurophysiological Factor Related to BCI Performance |
title_short |
Sensorimotor Functional Connectivity: A Neurophysiological Factor Related to BCI Performance |
title_full |
Sensorimotor Functional Connectivity: A Neurophysiological Factor Related to BCI Performance |
title_fullStr |
Sensorimotor Functional Connectivity: A Neurophysiological Factor Related to BCI Performance |
title_full_unstemmed |
Sensorimotor Functional Connectivity: A Neurophysiological Factor Related to BCI Performance |
title_sort |
sensorimotor functional connectivity: a neurophysiological factor related to bci performance |
publisher |
Frontiers Media S.A. |
series |
Frontiers in Neuroscience |
issn |
1662-453X |
publishDate |
2020-12-01 |
description |
Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs) are systems that allow users to control devices using brain activity alone. However, the ability of participants to command BCIs varies from subject to subject. About 20% of potential users of sensorimotor BCIs do not gain reliable control of the system. The inefficiency to decode user's intentions requires the identification of neurophysiological factors determining “good” and “poor” BCI performers. One of the important neurophysiological aspects in BCI research is that the neuronal oscillations, used to control these systems, show a rich repertoire of spatial sensorimotor interactions. Considering this, we hypothesized that neuronal connectivity in sensorimotor areas would define BCI performance. Analyses for this study were performed on a large dataset of 80 inexperienced participants. They took part in a calibration and an online feedback session recorded on the same day. Undirected functional connectivity was computed over sensorimotor areas by means of the imaginary part of coherency. The results show that post- as well as pre-stimulus connectivity in the calibration recording is significantly correlated to online feedback performance in μ and feedback frequency bands. Importantly, the significance of the correlation between connectivity and BCI feedback accuracy was not due to the signal-to-noise ratio of the oscillations in the corresponding post and pre-stimulus intervals. Thus, this study demonstrates that BCI performance is not only dependent on the amplitude of sensorimotor oscillations as shown previously, but that it also relates to sensorimotor connectivity measured during the preceding training session. The presence of such connectivity between motor and somatosensory systems is likely to facilitate motor imagery, which in turn is associated with the generation of a more pronounced modulation of sensorimotor oscillations (manifested in ERD/ERS) required for the adequate BCI performance. We also discuss strategies for the up-regulation of such connectivity in order to enhance BCI performance. |
topic |
connectivity sensorimotor signals BCI performance μ-band BCI efficiency pre-stimulus |
url |
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnins.2020.575081/full |
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