Network-based characterization of brain functional connectivity in Zen practitioners.
Phebe B Kemmer, Ying Guo, Yikai Wang, Giuseppe Pagnoni
Frontiers in Psychology 2015 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00603 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational cohort Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 24 |
| Population | Experienced Zen meditators and meditation-naïve matched controls |
| Intervention | attention-to-breathing protocol |
| Topics | Meditation Buddhism |
| Keywords | FMRI Functional connectivity Network analysis Sustained attention |
| Key findings | Resting-state functional connectivity differences between meditators and controls were found in frontoparietal circuits with visual and executive control areas, and connectivity patterns classified group membership with 79% accuracy. |
Abstract
In the last decade, a number of neuroimaging studies have investigated the neurophysiological effects associated with contemplative practices. Meditation-related changes in resting state functional connectivity (rsFC) have been previously reported, particularly in the default mode network, frontoparietal attentional circuits, saliency-related regions, and primary sensory cortices. We collected functional magnetic resonance imaging data from a sample of 12 experienced Zen meditators and 12 meditation-naïve matched controls during a basic attention-to-breathing protocol, together with behavioral performance outside the scanner on a set of computerized neuropsychological tests. We adopted a network system of 209 nodes, classified into nine functional modules, and a multi-stage approach to identify rsFC differences in meditators and controls. Between-group comparisons of modulewise FC, summarized by the first principal component of the relevant set of edges, revealed important connections of frontoparietal circuits with early visual and executive control areas. We also identified several group differences in positive and negative edgewise FC, often involving the visual, or frontoparietal regions. Multivariate pattern analysis of modulewise FC, using support vector machine (SVM), classified meditators, and controls with 79% accuracy and selected 10 modulewise connections that were jointly prominent in distinguishing meditators and controls; a similar SVM procedure based on the subjects' scores on the neuropsychological battery yielded a slightly weaker accuracy (75%). Finally, we observed a good correlation between the across-subject variation in strength of modulewise connections among frontoparietal, executive, and visual circuits, on the one hand, and in the performance on a rapid visual information processing test of sustained attention, on the other. Taken together, these findings highlight the usefulness of employing network analysis techniques in investigating the neural correlates of contemplative practices.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on buddhism, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| AN ELECTROENCEPHALOGRAPHIC STUDY ON THE ZEN MEDITATION (ZAZEN) Zen priests and disciples of Zen sects of Buddhism | 1966 | Observational study | n = 48 |
| “Thinking about Not-Thinking”: Neural Correlates of Conceptual Processing during Zen Meditation Regular Zen practitioners and matched control subjects | 2008 | Observational cohort | |
| Individual Trait Anxiety Levels Characterizing the Properties of Zen Meditation Healthy adults who had not previously practiced any form of meditation | 2004 | Observational cohort | n = 22 |
| Zen meditation, Length of Telomeres, and the Role of Experiential Avoidance and Compassion 20 Zen meditation experts and 20 healthy matched non-meditators | 2016 | Observational cohort | n = 40 |
| EEG dynamics of experienced Zen meditation practitioners probed by complexity index and spectral measure Experienced Zen meditation practitioners and matched controls | 2009 | Observational cohort | n = 46 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 24
- The brain on silent: mind wandering, mindful awareness, and states of mental tranquility Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences June 1, 2016
- Meta-analytic evidence that mindfulness training alters resting state default mode network connectivity Scientific Reports July 18, 2022
- Beyond the veil of duality—topographic reorganization model of meditation Neuroscience of Consciousness 2022
- Meditation-induced effects on whole-brain structural and effective connectivity Brain Structure and Function May 6, 2022
- Decoding Depth of Meditation: Electroencephalography Insights From Expert Vipassana Practitioners Biological Psychiatry Global Open Science October 17, 2024
and 19 more in the library
Cites 18
- A default mode of brain function Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences January 16, 2001
- Experience sampling during fMRI reveals default network and executive system contributions to mind wandering. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences May 26, 2009
- Meditation experience is associated with differences in default mode network activity and connectivity Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences November 23, 2011
- Attending to the present: mindfulness meditation reveals distinct neural modes of self-reference Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience August 13, 2007
- Mindfulness meditation training alters cortical representations of interoceptive attention Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience June 11, 2012
and 13 more in the library