The development of theta and alpha neural oscillations from ages 3 to 24 years

Bibliographic Details
Title: The development of theta and alpha neural oscillations from ages 3 to 24 years
Authors: Dillan Cellier, Justin Riddle, Isaac Petersen, Kai Hwang
Source: Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, Vol 50, Iss , Pp 100969- (2021)
Publisher Information: Elsevier, 2021.
Publication Year: 2021
Collection: LCC:Neurophysiology and neuropsychology
Subject Terms: Alpha oscillations, Aperiodic signal, Development, EEG, Peak frequency, Theta oscillations, Neurophysiology and neuropsychology, QP351-495
More Details: Intrinsic, unconstrained neural activity exhibits rich spatial, temporal, and spectral organization that undergoes continuous refinement from childhood through adolescence. The goal of this study was to investigate the development of theta (4−8 Hertz) and alpha (8−12 Hertz) oscillations from early childhood to adulthood (years 3–24), as these oscillations play a fundamental role in cognitive function. We analyzed eyes-open, resting-state EEG data from 96 participants to estimate genuine oscillations separately from the aperiodic (1/f) signal. We examined age-related differences in the aperiodic signal (slope and offset), as well as the peak frequency and power of the dominant posterior oscillation. For the aperiodic signal, we found that both the aperiodic slope and offset decreased with age. For the dominant oscillation, we found that peak frequency, but not power, increased with age. Critically, early childhood (ages 3–7) was characterized by a dominance of theta oscillations in posterior electrodes, whereas peak frequency of the dominant oscillation in the alpha range increased between ages 7 and 24. Furthermore, theta oscillations displayed a topographical transition from dominance in posterior electrodes in early childhood to anterior electrodes in adulthood. Our results provide a quantitative description of the development of theta and alpha oscillations.
Document Type: article
File Description: electronic resource
Language: English
ISSN: 1878-9293
Relation: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1878929321000608; https://doaj.org/toc/1878-9293
DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2021.100969
Access URL: https://doaj.org/article/1c295e2b71cb43099824a41b47ad9f5f
Accession Number: edsdoj.1c295e2b71cb43099824a41b47ad9f5f
Database: Directory of Open Access Journals
More Details
ISSN:18789293
DOI:10.1016/j.dcn.2021.100969
Published in:Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience
Language:English