Oscillatory electrical brain activity in the alpha (8-13 Hz) band is a prominent feature of human electroencephalography (EEG) during alert wakefulness, and is commonly thought to arise primarily from the occipital and parietal parts of the cortex. While the thalamus is considered to play a supportive role in the generation and modulation of cortical alpha rhythms, its precise function remains controversial and incompletely understood. To address this, we evaluated the correlation between the blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) signals in the thalamus and the spontaneous modulation of posterior alpha rhythms based on EEG-fMRI data acquired concurrently during an eyes-closed task-free condition. We observed both negative and positive correlations in the thalamus. The negative correlations were mostly seen within the visual thalamus, with a preference for the pulvinar over lateral geniculate nuclei. The positive correlations were found at the anterior and medial dorsal nuclei. Through functional connectivity analysis of the fMRI data, the pulvinar was found to be functionally associated with the same widespread cortical visual areas where the fMRI signals were negatively correlated with the posterior alpha modulation. In contrast, the dorsal nuclei were part of a distinct functional network that included brain stem, cingulate cortex and cerebellum. These observations are consistent with previous animal electrophysiology studies and the notion that the visual thalamus, and the pulvinar in particular, is intimately involved in the generation and spontaneous modulation of posterior alpha rhythms, facilitated by its reciprocal and widespread interaction with the cortical visual areas. We further postulate that the anterior and medial dorsal nuclei, being part of the ascending neuromodulatory system, may indirectly modulate cortical alpha rhythms by affecting vigilance and arousal levels.
Published by Elsevier Inc.