Brain structural basis of individual variability in dream recall frequency.
Shuqin Zhou, Jing Xu, Zihui Su, Yuezhen Li, Yan Shao, Hongqiang Sun, Huaiqiu Zhu, Qihong Zou, Jia-Hong Gao
Brain Imaging and Behavior October 1, 2019 DOI: 10.1007/s11682-018-9964-3 (opens in new tab) via PubMed
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractPeople who more frequently recall their dreams have less cortical volume in the medial portion of the right fusiform gyrus and parahippocampal gyrus, as well as lower fractional anisotropy in the white matter fibers connected to those regions. These relationships were not affected by regular sleep. The findings provide direct evidence that brain structure is linked to individual differences in dream recall frequency.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Observational cohort Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 43 |
| Population | Healthy volunteers |
| Duration | 2-week sleep diary |
| Keywords | Cortical volume Dream recall frequency Magnetic resonance imaging White matter tractography |
| Key finding | Cortical volume of the medial right fusiform gyrus and parahippocampal gyrus, and fractional anisotropy of connected white matter fibers, were significantly negatively correlated with dream recall frequency. |
Abstract
Recent neuroimaging studies have indicated that inter-individual variability in dream recall frequency (DRF) is associated with both resting-state regional cerebral blood flow and task-induced brain activations. However, the brain structure underpinning this inter-individual variability in DRF remains unclear. The aim of the current study is to investigate the relationship between brain structural characteristics and DRF. We collected both T1-weighted and diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging data from 43 healthy volunteers. DRF was obtained from a two-week sleep diary with a subjective report of dream recall upon waking every morning. General linear model analysis was used to evaluate the relationship between brain structural characteristics (cortical volume and white matter integrity) and DRF. Not only the cortical volume of the medial portion of the right fusiform gyrus and parahippocampal gyrus but also the fractional anisotropy of white matter fibers connected to these regions were significantly negatively correlated with DRF, and these relationships were not modulated by a regular sleep. These findings provide direct evidence that brain structural characteristics are associated with inter-individual variability in DRF and may help us to better understand the structural mechanisms in the brain underlying dream recall.