posterior cingulate
Research Papers
Connectome-wide search for functional connectivity locus associated with pathological rumination as a target for real-time fMRI neurofeedback intervention
Real-time fMRI neurofeedback (rtfMRI-nf) enables noninvasive targeted intervention in brain activation with high spatial specificity. To achieve this promise of rtfMRI-nf, we introduced and demonstrated a data-driven framework to design a rtfMRI-nf intervention through the discovery of precise target location associated with clinical symptoms and neurofeedback signal optimization. Specifically, we identified the functional connectivity locus associated with rumination symptoms, utilizing a connectome-wide search in resting-state fMRI data from a large cohort of mood and anxiety disorder individuals (N = 223) and healthy controls (N = 45). Then, we performed a rtfMRI simulation analysis to optimize the online functional connectivity neurofeedback signal for the identified functional connectivity. The connectome-wide search was performed in the medial prefrontal cortex and the posterior cingulate cortex/precuneus brain regions to identify the precise location of the functional connectivity associated with rumination severity as measured by the ruminative response style (RRS) scale. The analysis found that the functional connectivity between the loci in the precuneus (-6, −54, 48 mm in MNI) and the right temporo-parietal junction (RTPJ; 49, −49, 23 mm) was positively correlated with RRS scores (depressive, p < 0.001; brooding, p < 0.001; reflective, p = 0.002) in the mood and anxiety disorder group. We then performed a rtfMRI processing simulation to optimize the online computation of the precuneus-RTPJ connectivity. We determined that the two-point method without a control region was appropriate as a functional connectivity neurofeedback signal with less dependence on signal history and its accommodation of head motion. The present study offers a discovery framework for the precise location of functional connectivity targets for rtfMRI-nf intervention, which could help directly translate neuroimaging findings into clinical rtfMRI-nf interventions.
View Full Paper →The effects of neurofeedback in the default mode network: pilot study results of medicated children with ADHD
Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have difficulty activating the Default Mode Network (DMN) in a resting or quiet state. The DMN function assists in processing and understanding a person's internal, reflective world and the world of self and others. Neurofeedback (NFB), a type of EEG operant conditioning, trains self-regulation skills using a brain-computer interface. The hardware and software have audio/video capabilities to correct irregular brainwave patterns and regional cerebral blood flow associated with mental health and cognitive concerns. Individual treatment sessions usually last approximately 20 min; to gain the largest overall treatment effect, NFB users need to experience about 30 to 40 sessions. This study randomly assigned 12 children diagnosed with ADHD and currently on a stimulant medication to a treatment or control group. Subjects in the treatment group completed 40 NFB sessions. Pre- and posttest fMRIs were administered on the treatment and control groups. Evidence showed that the forty 20-min sessions of Sensory Motor Rhythm NFB consolidated the DMN allowing for appropriate activation in the posterior cingulate, precuneus, the temporoparietal junction and the cerebellar tonsils. In addition to regulating and increasing SMR at 12-15 Hz, our research results showed activation of the DMN in a resting state after 40 NFB sessions. Assisting children with ADHD to appropriately activate the DMN may help them be more adaptive and reflective and to better understand their own internal world and the world of others
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