Key result
Mental fatigue induced by a mental arithmetic task was characterized by an increased clustering coefficient and decreased characteristic path length and small-world network features.
Why the study?
Brain functional networks exhibit small-world-like properties, but few studies have explored the effects of mental fatigue on small-world brain functional network organization.
Observational (n=20)
Mental fatigue can be characterized by a reduced small-world network characteristic in brain functional networks.
Answers are grounded in this paper and cite their sources.
Network metrics may track mental fatigue; leaves open validation for clinical monitoring or interventions.
Brain functional network has been widely applied to investigate brain function changes among different conditions and proved to be a small-world -like network. But seldom researches explore the effects of mental fatigue on the small-world brain functional network organization. In the present study, 20 healthy individuals were included to do a consecutive mental arithmetic task to induce mental fatigue, and scalp electroencephalogram (EEG) signals were recorded before and after the task. Correlations between all pairs of EEG channels were determined by mutual information (MI). The resulting adjacency matrices were converted into brain functional networks by applying a threshold, and then, the clustering coefficient (C), characteristic path length (L), and corresponding small-world feature were calculated. Through performing analysis of variance (ANOVA) on the mean MI for every EEG rhythm, only the data of α 1 rhythm during the task state were emerged for the further explorations of mental fatigue. For a wide range of thresholds, C increased and L and small-world feature decreased with the deepening mental fatigue. The pattern of the small-world characteristic still existed when computed with a constant degree. Our present findings indicated that more functional connectivities were activated at the mental fatigue stage for efficient information transmission and processing, and mental fatigue can be characterized by a reduced small-world network characteristic. Our results provide a new perspective to understand the neural mechanisms of mental fatigue based on complex network theories.
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Li et al. (2019) conducted an observational in Healthy individuals (n=20). Mental fatigue induced by mental arithmetic task vs. Baseline (before task) was evaluated on Small-world brain functional network organization (clustering coefficient, characteristic path length, and small-world feature). Mental fatigue induced by a mental arithmetic task was characterized by an increased clustering coefficient and decreased characteristic path length and small-world network features.
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