Abstract
Magnetoencephalography (MEG) is known for its temporal precision and good spatial resolution in cognitive brain research. Nonetheless, it is still rarely used in developmental research, and its role in developmental cognitive neuroscience is not adequately addressed. The current review focuses on the source analysis of MEG measurement and its potential to answer critical questions on neural activation origins and patterns underlying infants’ early cognitive experience. The advantages of MEG source localization are discussed in comparison with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), two leading imaging tools for studying cognition across age. Challenges of the current MEG experimental protocols are highlighted, including measurement and data processing, which could potentially be resolved by developing and improving both software and hardware. A selection of infant MEG research in auditory, speech, vision, motor, sleep, cross-modality, and clinical application is then summarized and discussed with a focus on the source localization analyses. Based on the literature review and the advancements of the infant MEG systems and source analysis software, typical practices of infant MEG data collection and analysis are summarized as the basis for future developmental cognitive research.
Highlights
Magnetoencephalography (MEG) is an important and completely non-invasive imaging technique for mapping functional brain activities in normal as well as pathological populations for basic research and clinical purposes
Another noticeable feature is that despite the widely claimed advantages of magnetic source imaging over EEG, many infant MEG studies did not attempt or report source localization analysis to improve our understanding of the source loci of brain activations, hemispheric laterality, cortical distribution and connectivity patterns that illustrate the neuroanatomical basis of computational processes involved in the chosen experimental protocol
Localizing brain activities has long been associated with functional magnetic resonance imaging or functional near-infrared spectroscopy as the two mainstream options for their high spatial resolution
Summary
Magnetoencephalography (MEG) is an important and completely non-invasive imaging technique for mapping functional brain activities in normal as well as pathological populations for basic research and clinical purposes It uses special sensors called superconducting quantum interference devices (SQUIDs) to measure and visualize the exquisite online magnetic field changes from post-synaptic neuronal currents on the millisecond or sub-millisecond scale depending on the sampling rate of signal recording. Considering that the largest MEG manufacturer alone (Elekta) has sold over 100 MEG systems worldwide, it is surprising to see that the number of infant MEG studies is still far from reaching 100 Another noticeable feature is that despite the widely claimed advantages of magnetic source imaging over EEG, many infant MEG studies did not attempt or report source localization analysis to improve our understanding of the source loci of brain activations, hemispheric laterality, cortical distribution and connectivity patterns that illustrate the neuroanatomical basis of computational processes involved in the chosen experimental protocol. We summarized the typical practices for infant MEG data acquisition and analysis based on the literature review
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