Cortical beta oscillations map to shared brain networks modulated by dopamine

Abstract

Brain rhythms can facilitate neural communication for the maintenance of brain function. Beta rhythms (13–35 Hz) have been proposed to serve multiple domains of human ability, including motor control, cognition, memory and emotion, but the overarching organisational principles remain unknown. To uncover the circuit architecture of beta oscillations, we leverage normative brain data, analysing over 30 hours of invasive brain signals from 1772 cortical areas in epilepsy patients, to demonstrate that beta is the most distributed cortical brain rhythm. Next, we identify a shared brain network from beta dominant areas with deeper brain structures, like the basal ganglia, by mapping parametrised oscillatory peaks to whole-brain functional and structural MRI connectomes. Finally, we show that these networks share significant overlap with dopamine uptake as indicated by positron emission tomography. Our study suggests that beta oscillations emerge in cortico-subcortical brain networks that are modulated by dopamine. It provides the foundation for a unifying circuit-based conceptualisation of the functional role of beta activity beyond the motor domain and may inspire an extended investigation of beta activity as a feedback signal for closed-loop neurotherapies for dopaminergic disorders.