Top

European Journal of Applied Physiology

Published in:

01-09-2015 | Original Article

Prefrontal and motor cortex EEG responses and their relationship to ventilatory thresholds during exhaustive incremental exercise

Authors: C. V. Robertson, F. E. Marino

Published in: European Journal of Applied Physiology | Issue 9/2015

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to measure the EEG response in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and motor cortex (MC) during incremental exercise and align these responses with ventilatory parameters.

Methods

The EEG activity at the motor (MC) and frontal cortices was measured during an incremental exercise test (IET) in 11 cyclists (peak oxygen uptake \(\left( {\dot{V}{\text{O}}_{{2 {\text{peak}}}} } \right)\) 4.1 ± 0.74 (SD) L min⁻¹). EEG power spectral densities were calculated for alpha slow (αS) (8–10 Hz), alpha fast, (αF) (10–13 Hz), Beta (β) (13–30 Hz), and Gamma (γ) (30–40 Hz). EEG data were calculated as % change from eyes open (EO) baseline and a repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed on regions of interest (ROI), time and bandwidth.

Results

All EEG activity increased from 50 % \(\dot{V}{\text{O}}_{{ 2 {\text{peak}}}}\) to ventilatory threshold (VT) (P = 0.045) and respiratory compensation point (RCP) (P = 0.019) and decreased from RCP to end of exercise (END) (P = 0.04). Significant differences between regions were found at the VLPFC and MC for both αS and αF. αS and αF increased from 50 % \(\dot{V}{\text{O}}_{{ 2 {\text{peak}}}}\) to RCP (14.9 ± 10.2 to 23.8 ± 15.5 and 18.9 ± 10.6 to 26.12 ± 12.7, respectively) and then decreased to END (23.8 ± 15.5 to 14.4 ± 10.3 and 26.1 ± 12.7, to 17.7 ± 8.8, respectively) (P < 0.01) and concomitantly only decreased significantly in MC in αF from VT to END (P < 0.05).

Conclusion

There is a decline in the EEG response to exercise in the PFC following the RCP, whilst alpha activity in the MC is preferentially maintained; therefore, changes within the PFC appear to play a role in exercise termination.

Adrian E (1948) The physical background of perception. Arch Neurol Psychiatry 59:441–442. doi:10.1001/archneurpsyc.1948.02300380170019 CrossRef

Amann M, Subudhi AW, Foster C (2006) Predictive validity of ventilatory and lactate thresholds for cycling time trial performance. Scand J Med Sci Sports 16:27–34. doi:10.1111/j.1600-0838.2004.00424.x CrossRefPubMed

Aron AR, Robbins TW, Poldrack RA (2004) Inhibition and the right inferior frontal cortex. Trends Cogn Sci 8:170–177. doi:10.1016/j.tics.2004.02.010 CrossRefPubMed

Bailey SP, Hall EE, Folger SE, Miller PC (2008) Changes in EEG during graded exercise on a recumbent cycle ergometer. J Sports Sci Med 7:505–511PubMedCentralPubMed

Başar E, Schürmann M, Başar-Eroglu C, Karakaş S (1997) Alpha oscillations in brain functioning: an integrative theory. Int J Psychophysiol 26:5–29. doi:10.1016/S0167-8760(97)00753-8 CrossRefPubMed

Bhambhani Y, Malik R, Mookerjee S (2007) Cerebral oxygenation declines at exercise intensities above the respiratory compensation threshold. Respir Physiol Neurobiol 156:196–202. doi:10.1016/j.resp.2006.08.009 CrossRefPubMed

Brodmann K (2006) Localisation in the cerebral cortex: the principles of comparative localisation in the cerebral cortex based on cytoarchitectonics, 3rd edn. Springer, US. doi:10.1007/b138298

Brummer V, Schneider S, Struder HK, Askew CD (2011) Primary motor cortex activity is elevated with incremental exercise intensity. Neuroscience 181:150–162. doi:10.1016/j.neuroscience.2011.02.006 CrossRefPubMed

Caiozzo VJ, Davis JM, Ellis JF, Azus JL, Vandagriff R, Prietto CA, McMaster WC (1982) A comparison of gas exchange indices used to detect the anaerobic threshold. J Appl Physiol 53:1184–1189PubMed

Craig AD (2000) Thermosensory activation of insular cortex. Nat Neurosci 3:184–190CrossRefPubMed

Craig AD (2002) How do you feel? Interoception: the sense of the physiological condition of the body. Nat Rev Neurosci 3:655–666CrossRefPubMed

Davis JA (1985) Anaerobic Threshold: review of the concept and directions for future research. Med Sci Sports Exerc 17:6–18PubMed

De Cesarei A, Codispoti M (2011) Affective modulation of the LPP and α-ERD during picture viewing. Psychophysiology 48:1397–1404. doi:10.1111/j.1469-8986.2011.01204.x CrossRefPubMed

Ekkekakis P, Acevedo EO (2006) Affective reponses to acute exercise: toward a psychobiological dose-response model. In: Ekkekakis P, Acevedo EO (eds) Psychobiology of physical activity. Human Kinetics, Champaign, Illinois, pp 91–109

Evarts EV (1980) Brain mechanisms in voluntary movement. In: Dennis M (ed) Neural mechanisms in behaviour. Springer, New York, pp 223–259CrossRef

Fumoto M et al (2010) Ventral prefrontal cortex and serotonergic system activation during pedaling exercise induces negative mood improvement and increased alpha band in EEG. Behav Brain Res 213:1–9. doi:10.1016/j.bbr.2010.04.017 CrossRefPubMed

Gandevia SC, Allen GM, Butler JE, Taylor J (1996) Supraspinal factors in human muscle fatigue: evidence for suboptimal output from the motor cortex. J Physiol 490:529–536PubMedCentralCrossRefPubMed

Gonzalez-Alonso J, Dalsgaard MK, Osada T, Volianitis S, Dawson EA, Yoshiga CC, Secher NH (2004) Brain and central haemodynamics and oxygenation during maximal exercise in humans. J Physiol 557:331–342. doi:10.1113/jphysiol.2004.060574 PubMedCentralCrossRefPubMed

Goodall S, Gonzalez-Alonso J, Ali L, Ross EZ, Romer LM (2012) Supraspinal fatigue after normoxic and hypoxic exercise in humans. J Physiol 590:2767–2782. doi:10.1113/jphysiol.2012.228890 PubMedCentralCrossRefPubMed

Haber SN, Knutson B (2010) The reward circuit: linking primate anatomy and human imaging. Neuropyschopharmacology 35:4–26CrossRef

Hampshire A, Chamberlain SR, Monti MM, Duncan J, Owen AM (2010) The role of the right inferior frontal gyrus: inhibition and attentional control. Neuroimage 50:1313–1319. doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2009.12.109 PubMedCentralCrossRefPubMed

Harris JB (2005) Differential conditioning of alpha amplitude: a fresh look at an old phenomenon. Clin Neurophysiol 116:1433–1443. doi:10.1016/j.clinph.2005.02.003 CrossRefPubMed

Hilty L, Jäncke L, Luechinger R, Boutellier U, Lutz K (2010) Limitation of physical performance in a muscle fatiguing handgrip exercise is mediated by thalamo-insular activity. Hum Brain Mapp 32:2151–2160. doi:10.1002/hbm.21177 CrossRefPubMed

Hilty L, Langer N, Pascual-Marqui R, Boutellier U, Lutz K (2011) Fatigue-induced increase in intracortical communication between mid/anterior insular and motor cortex during cycling exercise. Eur J Neurosci 34:2035–2042. doi:10.1111/j.1460-9568.2011.07909.x CrossRefPubMed

Jiang C, Haddad G (1994) Oxygen deprivation inhibits a K⁺ channel independently of cytosolic factors in rat central neurons. J Physiol 481:15–26PubMedCentralCrossRefPubMed

Jorgensen LG, Perko G, Secher NH (1992) Regional cerebral artery mean flow velocity and blood flow during dynamic exercise in humans. J Appl Physiol 73:1825–1830

Kayser B, Narici M, Binzoni T, Grassi B, Cerretelli P (1994) Fatigue and exhaustion in chronic hypobaric hypoxia: influence of exercising muscle mass. J Appl Physiol 76:634–640PubMed

Klimesch W, Doppelmayr M, Russegger H, Pachinger T, Schwaiger J (1998) Induced alpha band power changes in the human EEG and attention. Neurosci Lett 244:73–76. doi:10.1016/S0304-3940(98)00122-0 CrossRefPubMed

Leung HC, Cai W (2007) Common and differential ventrolateral prefrontal activity during inhibition of hand and eye movements. J Neurosci 27:9893–9900. doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.2837-07.2007 CrossRefPubMed

Levy BJ, Wagner AD (2011) Cognitive control and right ventrolateral prefrontal cortex: reflexive reorienting, motor inhibition, and action updating. Ann N Y Acad Sci 1224:40–62. doi:10.1111/j.1749-6632.2011.05958.x PubMedCentralCrossRefPubMed

Linkis P, Jorgensen LG, Olesen HL, Madsen PL, Lassen NA, Secher NH (1995) Dynamic exercise enhances regional cerebral artery mean flow velocity. J Appl Physiol 78:12–16PubMed

Logan GD, Cowan WB (1984) On the ability to inhibit thought and action: a theory of an act of control. Psychol Rev 91:295–327CrossRef

Miller PC (2000) The prefrontal cortex and cognitive control. Nat Rev Neurosci 1:59–65CrossRefPubMed

Miller E, Cohen JD (2001) An integrative theory of prefrontal cortex function. Ann Rev Neurosci 24:167–202CrossRefPubMed

Nielsen HB, Boushel R, Madsen P, Secher NH (1999) Cerebral desaturation during exercise reversed by O₂ supplementation. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol 277:H1045–H1052

Nielsen B, Hyldig T, Bidstrup F, Gonzalez-Alonso J, Christoffersen GRJ (2001) Brain activity and fatigue during prolonged exercise in the heat Pflugers Archiv European. J Physiol 442:41–48. doi:10.1007/s004240100515

Noakes T, Peltonen J, Rusko H (2001) Evidence that a Central Governor regulates exercise performance during acute hypoxia and hyperoxia. J Exp Biol 204:3225–3234PubMed

Petruzello SJ, Landers DM (1994) State anxiety reduction and exercise. Med Sci Sports Exerc 26:1028–1035CrossRef

Petsche H, Kaplan S, von Stein A, Filz O (1997) The possible meaning of the upper and lower alpha frequency ranges for cognitive and creative tasks. Int J Psychophysiol 26:77–97. doi:10.1016/S0167-8760(97)00757-5 CrossRefPubMed

Pfurtscheller G, da Silva FHL (1999) Event-related EEG/MEG synchronization and desynchronization: basic principles. Clin Neurophysiol 110:1842–1857CrossRefPubMed

Racinais S, Buchheit M, Girard O (2014) Breakpoints in ventilation, cerebral and muscle oxygenation, and muscle activity during an incremental cycling exercise. Front Physiol 5:142 doi:10.3389/fphys.2014.00142

Rasmussen P, Stie H, Nybo L, Nielsen B (2004) Heat induced fatigue and changes of the EEG is not related to reduced perfusion of the brain during prolonged exercise in humans. J Therm Biol 29:731–737. doi:10.1016/j.jtherbio.2004.08.047 CrossRef

Rasmussen P, Nielsen J, Overgaard M, Krogh-Madsen R, Gjedde A, Secher NH, Petersen NC (2010) Reduced muscle activation during exercise related to brain oxygenation and metabolism in humans. J Physiol 588:1985–1995. doi:10.1113/jphysiol.2009.186767 PubMedCentralCrossRefPubMed

Rauch L, Schonbachler G, Noakes T (2013) Neural correlates of motor vigour and motor urgency during exercise. Sports Med 43:227–241. doi:10.1007/s40279-013-0025-1 PubMedCentralCrossRefPubMed

Ridderinkhof KR, van den Wildenberg WPM, Segalowitz SJ, Carter CS (2004) Neurocognitive mechanisms of cognitive control: the role of prefrontal cortex in action selection, response inhibition, performance monitoring, and reward-based learning. Brain Cogn 56:129–140. doi:10.1016/j.bandc.2004.09.016 CrossRefPubMed

Robergs RA (2014) A critical review of the history of low- to moderate-intensity steady-state VO2 kinetics. Sports Med 44:641–653. doi:10.1007/s40279-014-0161-2 CrossRefPubMed

Robergs RA, Dwyer D, Astorino TA (2010) Recommendations for improved data processing from expired gas analysis indirect calorimetry. Sports Med 40:95–111CrossRefPubMed

Rupp T, Perrey S (2008) Prefrontal cortex oxygenation and neuromuscular responses to exhaustive exercise. Eur J Appl Physiol 102:153–163. doi:10.1007/s00421-007-0568-7 PubMed

Santos-Concejero J, Billaut F, Grobler L, Olivan J, Noakes TD, Tucker R (2015) Maintained cerebral oxygenation during maximal self-paced exercise in Kenyan runners. J Appl Physiol 118:156–162. doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.00909.2014 CrossRefPubMed

Schneider S et al (2009) EEG activity and mood in health orientated runners after different exercise intensities. Physiol Behav 96:709–716. doi:10.1016/j.physbeh.2009.01.007 CrossRefPubMed

Subudhi AW, Lorenz MC, Fulco CS, Roach RC (2008) Cerebrovascular responses to incremental exercise during hypobaric hypoxia: effect of oxygenation on maximal performance. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol 294:H164–H171. doi:10.1152/ajpheart.01104.2007 CrossRefPubMed

Subudhi AW, Miramon BR, Granger ME, Roach RC (2009) Frontal and motor cortex oxygenation during maximal exercise in normoxia and hypoxia. J Appl Physiol 106:1153–1158. doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.91475.2008 PubMedCentralCrossRefPubMed

Suda M, Fukuda M, Sato T, Iwata S, Song M, Kameyama M, Mikuni M (2009) Subjective feeling of psychological fatigue is related to decreased reactivity in ventrolateral prefrontal cortex. Brain Res 1252:152–160. doi:10.1016/j.brainres.2008.11.077 CrossRefPubMed

Thompson T, Steffert T, Ros T, Leach J, Gruzelier J (2008) EEG applications for sport and performance. Methods 45:279–288. doi:10.1016/j.ymeth.2008.07.006 CrossRefPubMed

Uusberg A, Uibo H, Kreegipuu K, Allik J (2013) EEG alpha and cortical inhibition in affective attention. Int J Psychophysiol 89:26–36. doi:10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2013.04.020 CrossRefPubMed

von Stein A, Sarnthein J (2000) Different frequencies for different scales of cortical integration: from local gamma to long range alpha/theta synchronization. Int J Psychophysiol 38:301–313CrossRef

Yanagisawa H, Dan I, Tsuzuki D, Kato M, Okamoto M, Kyutoku Y, Soya H (2010) Acute moderate exercise elicits increased dorsolateral prefrontal activation and improves cognitive performance with Stroop test. Neuroimage 50:1702–1710. doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2009.12.023 CrossRefPubMed

Title: Prefrontal and motor cortex EEG responses and their relationship to ventilatory thresholds during exhaustive incremental exercise
Authors: C. V. Robertson
F. E. Marino
Publication date: 01-09-2015
Publisher: Springer Berlin Heidelberg
Published in: European Journal of Applied Physiology / Issue 9/2015
Print ISSN: 1439-6319
Electronic ISSN: 1439-6327
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-015-3177-x

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Springer Medicine

Prefrontal and motor cortex EEG responses and their relationship to ventilatory thresholds during exhaustive incremental exercise

Abstract

Purpose

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Springer Medicine

Abstract

Purpose

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Please log in to get access to this content

Other articles of this Issue 9/2015

Effects of modest hyperoxia and oral vitamin C on exercise hyperaemia and reactive hyperaemia in healthy young men

Relationship between muscle water and glycogen recovery after prolonged exercise in the heat in humans

Assessment of breath-by-breath alveolar gas exchange: an alternative view of the respiratory cycle

Dietary nitrate improves sprint performance and cognitive function during prolonged intermittent exercise

Intensity-dependent effect of ageing on fatigue during intermittent contractions of the human calf muscle in males and females

The interactive effect of cooling and hypoxia on forearm fatigue development