Development of distinct control networks through segregation and integration

TLDR

Human attentional control is unparalleled, and during development experience‑dependent activity and spontaneous cortical waves are thought to foster neural network formation through integration of some regions and segregation of others. The study compares children and adults by applying resting‑state fMRI to assess functional connectivity within previously identified control networks. Adults rely on distinct frontoparietal and cinguloopercular networks for online versus set control, and development of these networks involves segregation of short‑range connections and integration of long‑range connections, with disruptions potentially contributing to disorders such as autism, ADHD, and Tourette's.

Abstract

Human attentional control is unrivaled. We recently proposed that adults depend on distinct frontoparietal and cinguloopercular networks for adaptive online task control versus more stable set control, respectively. During development, both experience-dependent evoked activity and spontaneous waves of synchronized cortical activity are thought to support the formation and maintenance of neural networks. Such mechanisms may encourage tighter "integration" of some regions into networks over time while "segregating" other sets of regions into separate networks. Here we use resting state functional connectivity MRI, which measures correlations in spontaneous blood oxygenation level-dependent signal fluctuations between brain regions to compare previously identified control networks between children and adults. We find that development of the proposed adult control networks involves both segregation (i.e., decreased short-range connections) and integration (i.e., increased long-range connections) of the brain regions that comprise them. Delay/disruption in the developmental processes of segregation and integration may play a role in disorders of control, such as autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and Tourette's syndrome.