Cortical bursts provide spatio-temporal frames for the large-scale phase synchrony emerging across the birth transition

Burst-framed connectivity in 233 preterm-born infants (33–45 weeks postmenstrual age) reorganizes toward sensorimotor-association connectivity, while general phase-based modularity stays stable.

• Why it matters: Structural corticocortical wiring grows around birth, but the spatiotemporal mechanisms that support large-scale phase synchrony for later neurocognitive function are unclear.
• What they did: Using repeated high-density EEG, the study quantified three phase-based interaction modes tied to cortical bursts, including burst-framed connectivity via nested phase-phase correlation.
• The result: General phase-based connectivity initially concentrates along burst-framed links, but this coupling weakens with age; its persistence near term age is associated with poorer neurocognitive outcomes.

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