Acute effects of meditation training on the waking and sleeping brain: Is it all about homeostasis?. (23rd September 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Dentico, Daniela; Bachhuber, David; Riedner, Brady A.; Ferrarelli, Fabio; Tononi, Giulio; Davidson, Richard J.; Lutz, Antoine
• Is Part Of: European journal of neuroscience. Volume 48:Number 6(2018)
• Page Start: 2310
• Page End: 2321
• Publication Date: 2018-09-23
• Subjects: cross‐frequency coupling -- high‐density EEG -- mindfulness and compassion‐and‐loving‐kindness meditation -- NREM sleep -- plasticity -- resting wakefulness; Nervous system -- Periodicals; 612.8
• DOI: 10.1111/ejn.14131
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0953-816X

Abstract

Abstract: Our recent finding of a meditation‐related increase in low‐frequency NREM sleep EEG oscillatory activities peaking in the theta‐alpha range (4–12 Hz) was not predicted. From a consolidated body of research on sleep homeostasis, we would expect a change peaking in slow wave activity (1–4 Hz) following an intense meditation session. Here we compared these changes in sleep with the post‐meditation changes in waking rest scalp power to further characterize their functional significance. High‐density EEG recordings were acquired from 27 long‐term meditators (LTM) on three separate days at baseline and following two 8‐hr sessions of either mindfulness or compassion‐and‐loving‐kindness meditation. Thirty‐one meditation‐naïve participants (MNP) were recorded at the same time points. As a common effect of meditation practice, we found increases in low and fast waking EEG oscillations for LTM only, peaking at eight and 15 Hz respectively, over prefrontal, and left centro‐parietal electrodes. Paralleling our previous findings in sleep, there was no significant difference between meditation styles in LTM as well as no difference between matched sessions in MNP. Meditation‐related changes in wakefulness and NREM sleep were correlated across space and frequency. A significant correlation was found in the EEG low frequencies (<12 Hz). Since the peak of coupling was observed in the theta‐alpha oscillatory range, sleep homeostatic response to meditation practice is not sufficient to explain our findings. Another likely phenomenon into play is a reverberation of meditation‐related processes during subsequent sleep. Future studies should ascertain the interplay between these processes in promoting the beneficial effects of meditation practice. Abstract : We compared our recent finding of a meditation‐related increase in low‐frequency NREM sleep EEG with the post‐meditation changes in waking rest scalp power in the same practitioners. Waking and sleep changes were correlated. The peak of coupling was observed within the sleep theta‐alpha range, and not the slow wave activity, known marker of sleep homeostasis. Therefore, another phenomenon might also be into play such as a reverberation of meditation‐related processes during subsequent sleep.