Coupling between BOLD & Electrophysiological Brain Network Measurements

Joanne R. Hale¹, Susan T. Francis¹, Matthew J. Brookes¹, Peter G. Morris¹

fMRI allows identification of functional brain networks with unparalleled spatial resolution. However, BOLD is an in-direct measure of brain activity and thus cannot probe neither the electrophysiological basis nor the most rapid temporal dynamics of network activity. Here we employ parallel BOLD and magnetoencephalography (MEG) experiments to assess the relationship between haemodynamic and electrodynamic measures of network activity during an N-back working memory task. Specifically, we explore coupling between BOLD and / band neural oscillatory signals in the default mode network. Results are in agreement with electrophysiological studies and highlight the benefits of a multi-modal approach to network elucidation.