Alpha oscillations govern interhemispheric spike timing coordination in the honey bee brain

Abstract

In 1929 Hans Berger discovered the alpha oscillations: a prominent, ongoing 10 Hz rhythm in the human electroencephalogram (EEG). These alpha oscillations are amongst the most widely studied cerebral signals, related to cognitive phenomena such as attention, memory, and consciousness. However, the mechanisms by which alpha oscillations affect human cognition await demonstration. Here we suggest the honey bee brain as an experimentally more accessible model system for investigating the functional roles of alpha oscillations. We found a prominent alpha wave-like spontaneous neural activity (~ 18 Hz) that is reduced in amplitude upon stimulus presentation. The phase of this alpha activity biased both timing of neuronal spikes and amplitude of high-frequency gamma activity (~ 30 Hz). These results suggest a common role of oscillatory neuronal activity across phyla and provide an unprecedented new venue for causal studies on the relationship between neuronal spikes, brain oscillations, and cognition.