Effects of changes in end ‐tidal PO2 and PCO2 on neural responses during rest and sustained attention

Changes in arterial blood gases (e.g., from high-altitude exposure) are associated with impairments of a variety of cognitive functions, potentially via disruption of how blood flow responds to brain activity. We used a novel multimodal approach to simultaneously measure human brain electrical activity using electroencephalography and blood flow using transcranial Doppler ultrasound, while participants performed a demanding sustained attention task at varying levels of arterial oxygen and carbon dioxide (CO2). We observed changes in both spontaneous and task-related brain activity as a function of changes in arterial CO2 as well as disruptions in neurovascular coupling, suggesting that transient changes in arterial CO2 can affect multiple stages of cognitive processing. AbstractImpairments of cognitive function during alterations in arterial blood gases (e.g., high-altitude hypoxia) may result from the disruption of neurovascular coupling; however, the link between changes in arterial blood gases, cognition, and cerebral blood flow (CBF) is poorly understood. To interrogate this link, we developed a multimodal empirical strategy capable of monitoring neural correlates of cognition and CBF simultaneously. Human participants performed a sustained attention task during hypoxia, hypercapnia, hypocapnia, and normoxia while electroencephalographic (EEG) activity and CBF (middle and posterior cerebral arteries; transcranial Doppler ultrasound) were simultaneously measured. The proto...
Source: Physiological Reports - Category: Physiology Authors: Tags: ORIGINAL ARTICLE Source Type: research