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Default Network Connectivity Is Linked to Memory Status in Multiple Sclerosis

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 September 2014

Victoria M. Leavitt ,
Jessica Paxton  and
James F. Sumowski
Victoria M. Leavitt*
Affiliation:
Columbia University Multiple Sclerosis Clinical Care and Research Center, Cognitive Neuroscience Division, Department of Neurology, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, New York
Jessica Paxton
Affiliation:
SUNY Plattsburgh, Plattsburgh, New York
James F. Sumowski
Affiliation:
Kessler Foundation, Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, West Orange, New Jersey
*
Correspondence and reprint requests to: Victoria Leavitt, Columbia University Multiple Sclerosis Clinical Care and Research Center, Cognitive Neuroscience Division, Department of Neurology, Columbia University Medical Center, 630 W. 168th Street, P&S Box 16, New York, NY 10032. E-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

Memory impairment affects 50% of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. Altered resting-state functional connectivity (FC) has been observed in the default network (DN) of MS patients. No study to date has examined the association of DN FC to its behavioral concomitant, memory. The approach of the present study represents a methodological shift allowing straightforward interpretation of FC alterations in MS, as it presupposes specificity of a network to its paired cognitive function. We examined FC from fMRI collected during rest in the DN of 43 MS patients with and without memory-impairment. Memory-intact patients showed increased DN FC relative to memory-impaired patients. There were no regions of higher FC in memory-impaired patients. DN FC was positively correlated with memory function, such that higher FC was associated with better memory performance. Results were unchanged after controlling for cognitive efficiency, supporting specificity of the DN to memory and not cognitive status more generally. These findings support DN FC as a marker of memory function in MS patients that can be targeted by future treatment interventions. Pairing a functional network with its behavioral concomitant represents a straightforward method for interpreting FC alterations in patients with MS. (JINS, 2014, 20, 1–8)

Keywords

Multiple sclerosisMemoryDefault networkFunctional connectivityfMRICognition
Type
Research Articles
Information
Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society , Volume 20 , Issue 9 , October 2014 , pp. 937 - 944
Copyright
Copyright © The International Neuropsychological Society 2014 

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