Notwithstanding similarities in global, whole-brain, small-world network properties, functional connectivity patterns in children were significantly different from those in young-adults. SVM-based pattern classification analysis showed that connectivity patterns in children could be distinguished from those in young-adults with an accuracy of over 90%. Accuracy was highest (91%) for connectivity patterns in the low frequency interval (scale 3; 0.01–0.05 Hz). Previous studies have reported that resting-state functional connectivity is most robust at frequencies below 0.1 Hz [20],[54],[55] and that these low frequency fMRI fluctuations are related to interregional coupling of local field potentials in the gamma band [56],[57]. Overall, these findings suggest that observed developmental changes in the functional connectivity measured by fMRI resting state signals are likely to reflect underlying differences in coupling of neuronal signals. We discuss below the nature of developmental changes in the context of hierarchical and regional organization of brain connectivity.
