Measuring brain critical dynamics to inform Brain-Computer Interfaces

Abstract

AbstractLarge-scale interactions among multiple brain regions manifest as bursts of activations, called neuronal avalanches, which reconfigure according to the task at hand and, hence, might constitute natural candidates to design brain-computer interfaces (BCI). To test this hypothesis, we compared source-reconstructed magneto/electroencephalography during resting-state and a motor imagery task performed within a BCI protocol. For each condition, we defined an individual avalanche transition matrix, tracking the probability that an avalanche would spread across any two regions. The edges whose transition probabilities significantly differed between conditions hinged selectively on premotor regions in all subjects, defining a topography related to the task. Furthermore, the individual differences in the transition probabilities for edges between pre/motor regions and parietal ones positively related to the individual task performance. Our results show that the patterns of propagation of large-scale perturbations are related to behavior and can be used to inform brain-computer interfaces.