Resting-state fMRI: a window into human brain plasticity

Abstract

Although brain plasticity is greatest in the first few years of life, the brain continues to be shaped by experience throughout adulthood. Advances in fMRI have enabled us to examine the plasticity of large-scale networks using blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) correlations measured at rest. Resting-state functional connectivity analysis makes it possible to measure task-independent changes in brain function and therefore could provide unique insights into experience-dependent brain plasticity in humans. Here, we evaluate the hypothesis that resting-state functional connectivity reflects the repeated history of co-activation between brain regions. To this end, we review resting-state fMRI studies in the sensory, motor, and cognitive learning literature. This body of research provides evidence that the brain's resting-state functional architecture displays dynamic properties in young adulthood.

Keywords: adult; brain plasticity; cognitive; experience; functional connectivity; motor; practice; resting-state fMRI; sensory; training.