Hyperconnectivity of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex in obsessive-compulsive disorder. (November 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Apergis-Schoute, Annemieke M.; Bijleveld, Bastiaan; Gillan, Claire M.; Fineberg, Naomi A.; Sahakian, Barbara J.; Robbins, Trevor W.
• Is Part Of: Brain and neuroscience advances. Volume 2(2018)
• Publication Date: 2018-11
• Subjects: Ventromedial prefrontal cortex -- prefrontal cortex -- obsessive-compulsive disorder -- resting state -- functional magnetic resonance imaging -- neuroimaging; Brain -- Periodicals; Neurosciences -- Periodicals; Brain; Nervous System; Brain; Neurosciences; Periodicals; Periodical; 616.8
• DOI: 10.1177/2398212818808710
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2398-2128

Abstract

Neuroimaging research has highlighted maladaptive thalamo-cortico-striatal interactions in obsessive-compulsive disorder as well as a more general deficit in prefrontal functioning linked with compromised executive functioning. More specifically, dysfunction in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, a central hub in coordinating flexible behaviour, is thought to be central to obsessive-compulsive disorder symptomatology. We sought to determine the intrinsic alterations of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex in obsessive-compulsive disorder employing resting-state functional connectivity magnetic resonance imaging analyses with a ventromedial prefrontal cortex seed region of interest. A total of 38 obsessive-compulsive disorder patients and 33 matched controls were included in our analyses. We found widespread ventromedial prefrontal cortex hyperconnectivity during rest in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder, displaying increased connectivity with its own surrounding region in addition to hyperconnectivity with several areas along the thalamo-cortico-striatal loop: thalamus, caudate and frontal gyrus. Obsessive-compulsive disorder patients also exhibited increased functional connectivity from the ventromedial prefrontal cortex to temporal and occipital lobes, cerebellum and the motor cortex, reflecting ventromedial prefrontal cortex hyperconnectivity in large-scale brain networks. Furthermore, hyperconnectivity of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and caudate correlated with obsessive-compulsive disorder symptomatology. Additionally, we used three key thalamo-cortico-striatal regions that were hyperconnected with our ventromedial prefrontal cortex seed as supplementary seed regions, revealing hypoconnectivity along the orbito- and lateral prefrontal cortex-striatal pathway. Taken together, these results confirm a central role of a hyperconnected ventromedial prefrontal cortex in obsessive-compulsive disorder, with a special role for maladaptive crosstalk with the caudate, and indications for hypoconnectivity along the lateral and orbito pathways.