Cited by 188Functional Brain Connectivity StudiesPosttraumatic Stress Disorder ResearchTraumatic Brain Injury Research

Default mode network abnormalities in posttraumatic stress disorder: A novel network-restricted topology approach

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Akiki, Teddy J., Averill, Christopher L., Wrocklage, Kristen M., Scott, J. Cobb, Averill, Lynnette A., Schweinsburg, Brian, Alexander-Bloch, Aaron, Martini, Brenda +3 more·2018·NeuroImage

Abstract

Disruption in the default mode network (DMN) has been implicated in numerous neuropsychiatric disorders, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, studies have largely been limited to seed-based methods and involved inconsistent definitions of the DMN. Recent advances in neuroimaging and graph theory now permit the systematic exploration of intrinsic brain networks. In this study, we used resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), diffusion MRI, and graph theoretical analyses to systematically examine the DMN connectivity and its relationship with PTSD symptom severity in a cohort of 65 combat-exposed US Veterans. We employed metrics that index overall connectivity strength, network integration (global efficiency), and network segregation (clustering coefficient). Then, we conducted a modularity and network-based statistical analysis to identify DMN regions of particular importance in PTSD. Finally, structural connectivity analyses were used to probe whether white matter abnormalities are associated with the identified functional DMN changes. We found decreased DMN functional connectivity strength to be associated with increased PTSD symptom severity. Further topological characterization suggests decreased functional integration and increased segregation in subjects with severe PTSD. Modularity analyses suggest a spared connectivity in the posterior DMN community (posterior cingulate, precuneus, angular gyrus) despite overall DMN weakened connections with increasing PTSD severity. Edge-wise network-based statistical analyses revealed a prefrontal dysconnectivity. Analysis of the diffusion networks revealed no alterations in overall strength or prefrontal structural connectivity. DMN abnormalities in patients with severe PTSD symptoms are characterized by decreased overall interconnections. On a finer scale, we found a pattern of prefrontal dysconnectivity, but increased cohesiveness in the posterior DMN community and relative sparing of connectivity in this region. The DMN measures established in this study may serve as a biomarker of disease severity and could have potential utility in developing circuit-based therapeutics.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2018.05.005

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  • All three disorders (BPD, PTSD, major depression) show increased activation in the DMN.

    “All three disorders showed increased activation in the DMN, a system that tends to be disconnected from the PfC in PTSD [2] and to be hypoactivated in executive function tasks in BPD [1].”

    From Complex PTSD and borderline personality disorder (2021) · cites this paper as [2]

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Authors
Akiki, T. J., Averill, C. L., Wrocklage, K. M., Scott, J. C., Averill, L. A., Schweinsburg, B., Alexander-Bloch, A., Martini, B., Southwick, S. M., Krystal, J. H., & Abdallah, C. G.
Affiliations
  • United States Department of Veterans Affairs (US)
  • Philadelphia VA Medical Center (US)
Corresponding author
Abdallah, Chadi G.
Venue
NeuroImage
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2018-08
Volume
176
Pages
489-498
ISSN
1053-8119 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2801553051
Cited by
188
References
93
Citations by year
2026: 16 · 2025: 21 · 2024: 17 · 2023: 30 · 2022: 24 · 2021: 20 · 2020: 32 · 2019: 20 · 2018: 7
FWCI
11.76
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • NeuroImage (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • Janssen Research and Development
  • Center for Integrated Healthcare, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
  • National Institutes of Health (MH-101498)
  • Astellas Pharma Global Development
  • U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (IK2CX000772)
  • AstraZeneca
  • Genentech
  • Bristol-Myers Squibb
  • Eli Lilly and Company
  • Pfizer (14/197,767)
  • Otsuka America Pharmaceutical
  • Brain and Behavior Research Foundation
  • National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression
  • Amgen
  • National Center for PTSD, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Functional Brain Connectivity Studies
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Research
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Traumatic Brain Injury Research
Keywords
default mode network, post-traumatic stress disorder, combat veterans, functional connectivity, network topology, global efficiency, clustering coefficient, network modularity, white matter connectivity, PTSD symptom severity, biomarkers
MeSH terms
Adult, Cerebral Cortex, Humans, Male, Nerve Net, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, Veterans, Prefrontal Cortex, Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Connectome

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