Cortex electrical activity during switching of motor programs among men and women

Abstract

The inhibition of motor response is considered as an important aspect of executive control, as a way of changing behaviour. Gender, as a biological characteristic, stipulates different peculiarities of brain processes and, as a consequence, different behaviour of men and women. In the context of the Stop-Change task, the aim of our study was to examine whether there were differences in the brain processes between men and women. The method of “event-related desynchronization / synchronization” – ERD / ERS EEG – was used to clarify that issue. 36 men and 38 women, healthy, between the ages of 18 and 22, right-handed, participated in the experiment of compliance with bioethical requirements. The application of Stop-Change task required from the participants under the condition of a low tone (600 Hz sound) to quickly press with the help of the index finger and release the left button of the remote control. If there was a high tone (1600 Hz sound) the participant had to rapidly press and release with the help of middle finger the right button of the console. The prevalence of event-related synchronization phenomena of the α- and β-EEG-activity in cortical areas was distinguished in groups of men and women. It was apparently related to some deactivation of the cortex during the switching of motor program that was launched. At the same time, cortical electrical activity acquired certain specific features of the frequency-spatial organization, which could indicate the existence of certain gender characteristics of the brain processes. The weaker ERG EEG among women (compared with men) at 10 Hz, 16 Hz in symmetrical frontal and left central and parietal areas was found. Instead, the relative increase of ERS EEG among women was set in the range of 10 Hz (right central areas), 13 Hz (frontal central areas) and 19 Hz (central parietal areas). Gender differences in the electrical activity of the cortex in the range above 25 Hz of the EEG were characterized by some instability of the ERS and ERD responses in the frequency and spatial aspects.