Tracking neural activity patterns during rapid high-altitude transitions

Rapid adaptation to dynamic changes in the environment is critical for human survival. Extensive studies have observed human behavior and brain activity in a stable environment, but there is still a lack of understanding of how our brain's functional activity drives behavioral changes when the natural environment changes. Here, we used a virtual environment platform named the hypobaric hypoxia chamber to investigate how human neural oscillations and related behaviors are affected by changes in barometric pressure and oxygen levels at different altitudes. We found that physiological compensations occurred in the hypobaric hypoxic environment followed by an increase in altitude, resulting in faster response times in working memory tasks. High-density EEG analysis revealed a significant decrease in the alpha band at high altitudes, while delta band activity gradually increased with altitude. Moreover, a predictive model based on differences in brain regions across frequency bands identified the left supramarginal gyrus and left lingual gyrus as two hub regions strongly associated with hypoxia-related behavioral changes, and activations in the pallidum and amygdala could effectively decode the specific altitude at which humans are located. Our study underscores the potential of hypobaric hypoxia chambers as a powerful tool for dynamic high-altitude research and provides novel insights into how altitude-related changes shape human cognition and brain activity.

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Publication Details

Journal
NeuroImage
Published
2025-04-09
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2025.121197
Citations
2
Primary Topic
High Altitude and Hypoxia
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
3.63
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article

Tracking neural activity patterns during rapid high-altitude transitions

Song Liu, Wenwen Duan, Ti‐Fei Yuan, Shoucong Ning et al.
2 citations
NeuroImage
High Altitude and Hypoxia
3.63
article

Tracking neural activity patterns during rapid high-altitude transitions

Song Liu, Wenwen Duan, Ti‐Fei Yuan, Shoucong Ning, Yue Du, Zhen Lyu, Hailin Ma, Yinghong Li, Rui Yang, Taicheng Huang, Weiming Shen, Quanhao Yu, Liping Chen, Xuemin Wang, Yi Zhang, Haitao Wu, Yimeng Liu, Li Xiao, Liying Wu, Quansheng Gao, Jingming Xie, Jie Weng
article en
2 citations

Abstract

Rapid adaptation to dynamic changes in the environment is critical for human survival. Extensive studies have observed human behavior and brain activity in a stable environment, but there is still a lack of understanding of how our brain's functional activity drives behavioral changes when the natural environment changes. Here, we used a virtual environment platform named the hypobaric hypoxia chamber to investigate how human neural oscillations and related behaviors are affected by changes in barometric pressure and oxygen levels at different altitudes. We found that physiological compensations occurred in the hypobaric hypoxic environment followed by an increase in altitude, resulting in faster response times in working memory tasks. High-density EEG analysis revealed a significant decrease in the alpha band at high altitudes, while delta band activity gradually increased with altitude. Moreover, a predictive model based on differences in brain regions across frequency bands identified the left supramarginal gyrus and left lingual gyrus as two hub regions strongly associated with hypoxia-related behavioral changes, and activations in the pallidum and amygdala could effectively decode the specific altitude at which humans are located. Our study underscores the potential of hypobaric hypoxia chambers as a powerful tool for dynamic high-altitude research and provides novel insights into how altitude-related changes shape human cognition and brain activity.

NeuroImageVol. 311
Tibet University (CN), Beijing Institute of Education (CN), Shanghai University of Sport (CN), Nantong University (CN), Wenzhou Medical University (CN), Shanghai Mental Health Center (CN), Tongren Hospital (CN), Songjiang District Central Hospital (CN), Tianjin haihe hospital (CN), Institute of Basic Medical Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences
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Openalex Percentile: Top 9%
High Altitude and Hypoxia
3.63
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