video: This animation illustrates activity in large-scale neural systems during natural brain functioning in a non-threatening situation and in a state of acute stress. In the neutral state, synchronized activity is mainly observed in sensory systems such as the occipital lobe (shown here). In the stress state, neural activity is reorganized and forms another large-scale neural system that has its own pattern of oscillation. This network integrates information flow between brain regions that have various functions that are essential for short-term survival, such as attention regulation, detection of threat, and regulation of the bodily fight-or-flight response. Our study also shows who is the conductor of this orchestrated response: elevated central release of noradrenaline causes some regions to increase their activity while it suppresses others, and thus triggers this network reorganization. This video relates to a paper that appeared in the Nov. 25, 2011, issue of Science, published by AAAS. The paper, by E.J. Hermans of Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre in Nijmegen, Netherlands, and colleagues, was titled, “Stress-Related Noradrenergic Activity Prompts Large-Scale Neural Network Reconfiguration.” view more
Credit: Video © <i>Science</i>/AAAS