Longitudinal effects of meditation on brain resting-state functional connectivity.
Zongpai Zhang, Wen-Ming Luh, Wenna Duan, Grace D Zhou, George Weinschenk, Adam K. Anderson, Weiying Dai
Scientific Reports May 31, 2021 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-90729-y (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Longitudinal study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 10 |
| Population | Novice meditators from a university meditation course |
| Intervention | focused attention meditation |
| Duration | 2-month intervention |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | Two months of focused attention meditation increased resting-state functional connectivity within and between the dorsal attention network and default mode network, with the connectivity between the left superior parietal lobule and medial prefrontal cortex associated with practice time. |
Abstract
Changes in brain resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) were investigated using a longitudinal design by following a 2-month focused attention meditation (FAM) practice and analyzing their association with FAM practice time. Ten novice meditators were recruited from a university meditation course. Participants were scanned with a resting-state fMRI sequence with multi-echo EPI acquisition at baseline and at the 2-month follow-up. Total FAM practice time was calculated from the daily log of the participants. We observed significantly increased rsFC between the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) and dorsal attention network (DAN), the right middle temporal (RMT) region and default mode network (DMN), the left and right superior parietal lobules (LSPL/RSPL) and DMN, and the LSPL/RSPL and DAN. Furthermore, the rsFC between the LSPL and medial prefrontal cortex was significantly associated with the FAM practice time. These results demonstrate increased connectivity within the DAN, between the DMN and DAN, and between the DMN and visual cortex. These findings demonstrate that FAM can enhance the brain connection among and within brain networks, especially DMN and DAN, indicating potential effect of FAM on fast switching between mind wandering and focused attention and maintaining attention once in the attentive state.