Valence-dependent sensory-rhythmic neural entrainment modulates cortico-subcortical dynamics, attention, and memory
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Recent studies have shown that sensory rhythmic stimulation can enhance executive functions by synchronizing, entraining, oscillations within higher-order cortical networks. However, whether this entrainment extends to subcortical structures and shapes human behavior remains unclear. In a first experiment, we used intracranial EEG recordings in epileptic patients during a visual search task. While neutral stimulation induced moderate entrainment, we demonstrated that 5 Hz negative-valence stimulation can significantly entrain theta oscillations in a widespread task-related cortico-subcortical network, with increased synchrony in the ventral visual stream, the hippocampus, and the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. In a second behavioral experiment in healthy individuals, visual search performance improved under both stimulation conditions, but memory for target images, assessed through an additional recognition task, was significantly enhanced after negative stimulation. These findings unravel the role of valence in modulating subcortical brain activity and behaviors through rhythmic sensory stimulation and pave the way for its further application in clinical intervention.
