A plethora of neural centers in the central nervous system control the fundamental respiratory pattern. This control is ensured by neurons that act as pacemakers, modulating activity through chemical control driven by changes in the O ₂ /CO ₂ balance. Most of the respiratory neural centers are located in the brainstem, but difficult to localize on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) due to their small size, lack of visually-detectable borders with neighboring areas, and significant physiological noise hampering detection of its activity with functional MRI (fMRI). Yet, several approaches make it possible to study the normal response to different abnormal stimuli or conditions such as CO ₂ inhalation, induced hypercapnia, volitional apnea, induced hypoxia etc. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the majority of available studies on central respiratory control in humans.