Scientists talked about the change in brain activity during the day

An international team of researchers has presented new data on how brain activity changes throughout the day. Scientists have developed an experimental protocol and computational approach that allows monitoring the work of individual neurons and entire networks in the brain. This was reported on December 8 in the journal Medical Xpress.

The authors used the light sheet method, which allows them to obtain three-dimensional images of the brain, as well as genetic labeling, thanks to which active cells glowed under a microscope. This made it possible to observe which parts of the brain are activated at different stages of wakefulness and sleep. According to senior author Daniel Forger, a professor of mathematics at the University of Michigan, the aim of the study was to understand how fatigue is formed. He noted that during the day, the brain demonstrates profound changes that are corrected during sleep.

The team found that after waking up, activity occurs in the subcortical structures, but as we move through the daily cycle, the main "control centers" shift to the cortex. As co-author of the study Konstantinos Kompotis from the University of Zurich explained, the behavior of the brain resembles urban infrastructure: in different periods, "traffic" is redistributed between networks depending on current tasks.

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These data, according to scientists, can become the basis for the development of objective methods for assessing fatigue in people, primarily in highly responsible specialists — pilots, surgeons and operators of critical infrastructure. Forger emphasized that a person does not assess his own condition well, relying on a subjective feeling of fatigue, therefore, the creation of biomarkers will improve occupational safety.

The researchers also noted that the new technique opens up prospects for studying mental states: differences in which areas of the brain are active at different times may be related to the mechanisms of psychiatric disorders. At the same time, the group is already testing an approach together with industrial partners to assess the effect of pharmacological drugs on brain activity.

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The journal Medical Xpress reported that good sleep and maintaining physical activity are the most important health conditions, but new research shows that most people find it difficult to comply with both, and it is sleep that can help them be more active.

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