The Neural Substrates of Self-Evaluation of Mental Fatigue: A Magnetoencephalography Study

There have been several studies of the neural mechanisms underlying sensation of fatigue. However, little is known about the neural mechanisms underlying self-evaluation of the level of fatigue. The aim of this study was to identify the neural substrates involved in self-evaluation of the level of mental fatigue. We used magnetoencephalography (MEG) with high temporal resolution on 14 healthy participants. During MEG recordings, participants were asked to evaluate their level of mental fatigue in time with execution cues (evaluation trials) or to do nothing in time with execution cues (control trials). The MEG data were analyzed with equivalent current dipole (ECD) and spatial filtering methods to localize the neural activity related to the evaluation of mental fatigue. The daily level of fatigue sensation was assessed using the Checklist Individual Strength questionnaire. In evaluation trials, ECDs were observed in the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) in seven of 14 participants, with a mean latency of 366.0 ms. The proportion of the participants with ECDs in the PCC was higher in evaluation trials than in control trials (P<0.05, McNemar test). The extent of the decreased delta band power in the PCC (Brodmann’s area 31) 600–700 ms after the onset of the execution cue and that in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC; Brodmann’s area 9) 800–900 ms after the onset of the execution cue were greater in the evaluation trials than in the control trials. The decrease in delta band power in the DLPFC was positively related to that in the PCC and to the daily level of fatigue sensation. These data suggest that the PCC and DLPFC are involved in the self-evaluation of mental fatigue.