Reduced functional connectivity of fronto-parietal sustained attention networks in severe childhood abuse

Sustained attention is a critical cognitive function reflected in an individuals whole-brain pattern of fMRI functional connectivity. However sustained attention is not a purely static trait. Rather, attention waxes and wanes over time. Do functional brain networks that underlie individual differences in sustained attention also underlie changes in attentional state? To investigate, we replicate the finding that a validated connectome-based model of individual differences in sustained attention tracks pharmacologically induced changes in attentional state. Specifically, preregistered analyses revealed that participants exhibited functional connectivity signatures of stronger attention when awake than when under deep sedation with the anesthetic agent propofol. Furthermore, this effect was relatively specific to the predefined sustained attention networks: propofol administration modulated strength of the sustained attention networks more than it modulated strength of canonical resting-state networks and a network defined to predict fluid intelligence, and the functional connections most affected by propofol sedation overlapped with the sustained attention networks. Thus, propofol modulates functional connectivity signatures of sustained attention within individuals. More broadly these findings underscore the utility of pharmacological intervention in testing both the generalizability and specificity of network-based models of cognitive function.

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Overlapping attentional networks yield divergent behavioral predictions across tasks: Neuromarkers for diffuse and focused attention?

10.1101/713339 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Esther X.W. Wu ◽

Gwenisha J. Liaw ◽

Rui Zhe Goh ◽

Tiffany T.Y. Chia ◽

Alisia M.J. Chee ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Attentional Blink ◽

Sustained Attention ◽

Attention Networks ◽

Domain Specific ◽

Performance Predictions ◽

Connectivity Patterns ◽

Reading Recall ◽

The Common ◽

Attention Performance ◽

Behavioral Predictions

AbstractAttention is a critical cognitive function, allowing humans to select, enhance, and sustain focus on information of behavioral relevance. Attention contains dissociable neural and psychological components. Nevertheless, some brain networks support multiple attentional functions. Connectome-based Predictive Models (CPM), which associate individual differences in task performance with functional connectivity patterns, provide a compelling example. A sustained attention network model (saCPM) successfully predicted performance for selective attention, inhibitory control, and reading recall tasks. Here we constructed a visual attentional blink (VAB) model (vabCPM), comparing its performance predictions and network edges associated with successful and unsuccessful behavior to the saCPM’s. In the VAB, attention devoted to a target often causes a subsequent item to be missed. Although frequently attributed to attentional limitations, VAB deficits may attenuate when participants are distracted or deploy attention diffusely. Participants (n=73; 24 males) underwent fMRI while performing the VAB task and while resting. Outside the scanner, they completed other cognitive tasks over several days. A vabCPM constructed from these data successfully predicted VAB performance. Strikingly, the network edges that predicted better VAB performance (positive edges) predicted worse selective and sustained attention performance, and vice versa. Predictions from the saCPM mirrored these results, with the network’s negative edges predicting better VAB performance. Furthermore, the vabCPM’s positive edges significantly overlapped with the saCPM’s negative edges, and vice versa. We conclude that these partially overlapping networks each have general attentional functions. They may indicate an individual’s propensity to diffusely deploy attention, predicting better performance for some tasks and worse for others.Significance statementA longstanding question in psychology and neuroscience is whether we have general capacities or domain-specific ones. For such general capacities, what is the common function? Here we addressed these questions using the attentional blink (AB) task and neuroimaging. Individuals searched for two items in a stream of distracting items; the second item was often missed when it closely followed the first. How often the second item was missed varied across individuals, which was reflected in attention networks. Curiously, the networks’ pattern of function that was good for the AB was bad for other tasks, and vice versa. We propose that these networks may represent not a general attentional ability, but rather the tendency to attend in a less focused manner.

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F45. Interaction Between Childhood Abuse and rs1360780 of the FKBP5 Gene on Amygdala Resting State Functional Connectivity in Young Adults

Biological Psychiatry ◽

10.1016/j.biopsych.2018.02.658 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 83 (9) ◽

pp. S255

Author(s):

Laura Daedelow ◽

Ilya M. Veer ◽

Nicole Y.L. Oei ◽

Jakob Kaminski ◽

Andreas Heinz ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Young Adults ◽

Functional Connectivity ◽

Childhood Abuse ◽

Resting State ◽

Resting State Functional Connectivity

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Task-residual functional connectivity of language and attention networks

Brain and Cognition ◽

10.1016/j.bandc.2018.02.003 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 122 ◽

pp. 52-58 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Stella M. Tran ◽

Keith M. McGregor ◽

George Andrew James ◽

Kaundinya Gopinath ◽

Venkatagiri Krishnamurthy ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Functional Connectivity ◽

Attention Networks ◽

Residual Functional

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Resting-State Default Mode Network Related Functional Connectivity Is Associated With Sustained Attention Deficits in Schizophrenia and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience ◽

10.3389/fnbeh.2018.00319 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Jie Fan ◽

Jun Gan ◽

Wanting Liu ◽

Mingtian Zhong ◽

Haiyan Liao ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Functional Connectivity ◽

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder ◽

Sustained Attention ◽

Default Mode Network ◽

Resting State ◽

Attention Deficits ◽

Obsessive Compulsive ◽

Default Mode ◽

Compulsive Disorder

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Neural signatures of attentional engagement during narratives and its consequences for event memory

10.1101/2020.08.26.266320 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Hayoung Song ◽

Emily S. Finn ◽

Monica D. Rosenberg

Keyword(s):

Functional Connectivity ◽

Sustained Attention ◽

Empirical Work ◽

Event Memory ◽

Functional Connections ◽

Behavioral Studies ◽

Attentional Engagement ◽

Narrative Engagement ◽

Event Recall ◽

Neural Signatures

AbstractAs we comprehend narratives, our attentional engagement fluctuates over time. Despite theoretical conceptions of narrative engagement as emotion-laden attention, little empirical work has characterized the cognitive and neural processes that comprise subjective engagement in naturalistic contexts or its consequences for memory. Here, we relate fluctuations in narrative engagement to patterns of brain coactivation, and test whether neural signatures of engagement predict later recall. In behavioral studies, participants continuously rated how engaged they were as they watched a television episode or listened to a story. Self-reported engagement was synchronized across individuals and driven by the emotional content of the narratives. During fMRI, we observed highly synchronized activity in the default mode network when people were, on average, more engaged in the same narratives. Models based on time-varying whole-brain functional connectivity predicted evolving states of engagement across participants and even across different datasets. The same functional connections also predicted post-scan event recall, suggesting that engagement during encoding impacts subsequent memory. Finally, group-average engagement was related to fluctuations of an independent functional connectivity index of sustained attention. Together, our findings characterize the neural signatures of engagement dynamics and elucidate relationships between narrative engagement, sustained attention, and event memory.

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Longitudinal changes in within-salience network functional connectivity mediate the relationship between childhood abuse and neglect, and mental health during adolescence

Psychological Medicine ◽

10.1017/s0033291721003135 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-13

Author(s):

Divyangana Rakesh ◽

Nicholas B. Allen ◽

Sarah Whittle

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Substance Use ◽

Functional Connectivity ◽

Childhood Abuse ◽

Childhood Maltreatment ◽

Resting State Fmri ◽

Poor Mental Health ◽

Risk And Resilience ◽

Abuse And Neglect ◽

Problematic Substance

Abstract Background Understanding the neurobiological underpinnings of childhood maltreatment is vital given consistent links with poor mental health. Dimensional models of adversity purport that different types of adversity likely have distinct neurobiological consequences. Adolescence is a key developmental period, during which deviations from normative neurodevelopment may have particular relevance for mental health. However, longitudinal work examining links between different forms of maltreatment, neurodevelopment, and mental health is limited. Methods In the present study, we explored associations between abuse, neglect, and longitudinal development of within-network functional connectivity of the salience (SN), default mode (DMN), and executive control network in 142 community residing adolescents. Resting-state fMRI data were acquired at age 16 (T1; M = 16.46 years, s.d. = 0.52, 66F) and 19 (T2; mean follow-up period: 2.35 years). Mental health data were also collected at T1 and T2. Childhood maltreatment history was assessed prior to T1. Results Abuse and neglect were both found to be associated with increases in within-SN functional connectivity from age 16 to 19. Further, there were sex differences in the association between neglect and changes in within-DMN connectivity. Finally, increases in within-SN connectivity were found to mediate the association between abuse/neglect and lower problematic substance use and higher depressive symptoms at age 19. Conclusions Our findings suggest that childhood maltreatment is associated with altered neurodevelopmental trajectories, and that changes in salience processing may be linked with risk and resilience for the development of depression and substance use problems during adolescence, respectively. Further work is needed to understand the distinct neurodevelopmental and mental health outcomes of abuse and neglect.

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Dorsal and Ventral Attention Systems Underlie Social and Symbolic Cueing

Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience ◽

10.1162/jocn_a_00461 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 26 (1) ◽

pp. 63-80 ◽

Cited By ~ 33

Author(s):

Alicia Callejas ◽

Gordon L. Shulman ◽

Maurizio Corbetta

Keyword(s):

Functional Connectivity ◽

Eye Gaze ◽

Inferior Frontal Gyrus ◽

Occipital Cortex ◽

Attention Networks ◽

Differential Modulations ◽

Attention Systems ◽

Symbolic Cues ◽

Attentional Mechanism ◽

Gaze Cues

Eye gaze is a powerful cue for orienting attention in space. Studies examining whether gaze and symbolic cues recruit the same neural mechanisms have found mixed results. We tested whether there is a specialized attentional mechanism for social cues. We separately measured BOLD activity during orienting and reorienting attention following predictive gaze and symbolic cues. Results showed that gaze and symbolic cues exerted their influence through the same neural networks but also produced some differential modulations. Dorsal frontoparietal regions in left intraparietal sulcus (IPS) and bilateral MT+/lateral occipital cortex only showed orienting effects for symbolic cues, whereas right posterior IPS showed larger validity effects following gaze cues. Both exceptions may reflect the greater automaticity of gaze cues: Symbolic orienting may require more effort, while disengaging attention during reorienting may be more difficult following gaze cues. Face-selective regions, identified with a face localizer, showed selective activations for gaze cues reflecting sensory processing but no attentional modulations. Therefore, no evidence was found linking face-selective regions to a hypothetical, specialized mechanism for orienting attention to gaze cues. However, a functional connectivity analysis showed greater connectivity between face-selective regions and right posterior IPS, posterior STS, and inferior frontal gyrus during gaze cueing, consistent with proposals that face-selective regions may send gaze signals to parts of the dorsal and ventral frontoparietal attention networks. Finally, although the default-mode network is thought to be involved in social cognition, this role does not extend to gaze orienting as these regions were more deactivated following gaze cues and showed less functional connectivity with face-selective regions during gaze cues.

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Connectome-based Models Predict Separable Components of Attention in Novel Individuals

Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience ◽

10.1162/jocn_a_01197 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 30 (2) ◽

pp. 160-173 ◽

Cited By ~ 38

Author(s):

Monica D. Rosenberg ◽

Wei-Ting Hsu ◽

Dustin Scheinost ◽

R. Todd Constable ◽

Marvin M. Chun

Keyword(s):

Functional Connectivity ◽

Sustained Attention ◽

Executive Control ◽

Resting State ◽

Functional Organization ◽

Cognitive Conflict ◽

Annual Review ◽

Resting State Functional Connectivity ◽

Independent Components ◽

Functional Brain Networks

Although we typically talk about attention as a single process, it comprises multiple independent components. But what are these components, and how are they represented in the functional organization of the brain? To investigate whether long-studied components of attention are reflected in the brain's intrinsic functional organization, here we apply connectome-based predictive modeling (CPM) to predict the components of Posner and Petersen's influential model of attention: alerting (preparing and maintaining alertness and vigilance), orienting (directing attention to a stimulus), and executive control (detecting and resolving cognitive conflict) [Posner, M. I., & Petersen, S. E. The attention system of the human brain. Annual Review of Neuroscience, 13, 25–42, 1990]. Participants performed the Attention Network Task (ANT), which measures these three factors, and rested during fMRI scanning. CPMs tested with leave-one-subject-out cross-validation successfully predicted novel individual's overall ANT accuracy, RT variability, and executive control scores from functional connectivity observed during ANT performance. CPMs also generalized to predict participants' alerting scores from their resting-state functional connectivity alone, demonstrating that connectivity patterns observed in the absence of an explicit task contain a signature of the ability to prepare for an upcoming stimulus. Suggesting that significant variance in ANT performance is also explained by an overall sustained attention factor, the sustained attention CPM, a model defined in prior work to predict sustained attentional abilities, predicted accuracy, RT variability, and executive control from task-based data and predicted RT variability from resting-state data. Our results suggest that, whereas executive control may be closely related to sustained attention, the infrastructure that supports alerting is distinct and can be measured at rest. In the future, CPM may be applied to elucidate additional independent components of attention and relationships between the functional brain networks that predict them.

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