Default mode network

The default mode network (DMN) or task-negative network (TNN) is a network of brain regions that are active when the brain is at rest. It is characterized by coherent neuronal oscillations at a rate lower than 0.1 Hz (one every ten seconds). During goal-oriented activity, the DMN is deactivated and another network, the task-positive network (TPN) is activated. It is thought that the TNN corresponds to task-independent introspection, or self-referential thought, while the TPN corresponds to action, and that perhaps the TNN and TPN should be considered elements of a single default mode network with anticorrelated components.

The DMN includes the the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) and the adjacent precuneus, the medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC), and the medial, lateral and inferior parietal cortex. In the infant brain, there is limited evidence of the DMN, but DMN connectivity is more consistent in children aged 9–12 years, suggesting that the DMN undergoes developmental change.

Marcus Raichle coined "default-mode" in 2001 to describe resting state brain function; [cite journal |author= Raichle ME, MacLeod AM, Snyder AZ, Powers WJ, Gusnard DA, Shulman GL |title= A default mode of brain function |journal= Proc Natl Acad Sci USA |volume=98 |issue=2 |pages=676–82 |year=2001 |pmid=11209064 |pmc=14647 |doi=10.1073/pnas.98.2.676] the concept rapidly became a central theme in neuroscience. The brain may have other Low Frequency Resting State Networks (LFRSNs), such as visual and auditory networks.cite journal |author= Broyd SJ, Demanuele C, Debener S, Helps SK, James CJ, Sonuga-Barke EJS |title= Default-mode brain dysfunction in mental disorders: a systematic review |journal= Neurosci Biobehav Rev |year=2008 |pmid=18824195 |doi=10.1016/j.neubiorev.2008.09.002]

References