title: A dual-networks architecture of top-down control.
abstract: Complex systems ensure resilience through multiple controllers acting at rapid and slower timescales. The need for efficient information flow through complex systems encourages small-world network structures. On the basis of these principles, a group of regions associated with top-down control was examined. Functional magnetic resonance imaging showed that each region had a specific combination of control signals; resting-state functional connectivity grouped the regions into distinct 'fronto-parietal' and 'cingulo-opercular' components. The fronto-parietal component seems to initiate and adjust control; the cingulo-opercular component provides stable 'set-maintenance' over entire task epochs. Graph analysis showed dense local connections within components and weaker 'long-range' connections between components, suggesting a small-world architecture. The control systems of the brain seem to embody the principles of complex systems, encouraging resilient performance.
authors.affiliation: Washington University in St Louis School of Medicine, 4525 Scott Ave, St Louis, MO 63110, USA. ndosenbach@wustl.edu
authors.forename: Nico U F
authors.initials: NU
authors.lastname: Dosenbach
authors.forename: Damien A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Fair
authors.forename: Alexander L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Cohen
authors.forename: Bradley L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Schlaggar
authors.forename: Steven E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Petersen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000098:blood supply / Q000502:physiology*; D001931:Brain Mapping; D006801:Humans; D008959:Models, Neurological; D009434:Neural Pathways / Q000098:blood supply / Q000502:physiology*