Session Information
Date: Monday, October 8, 2018
Session Title: Parkinson's Disease: Neuroimaging And Neurophysiology
Session Time: 1:15pm-2:45pm
Location: Hall 3FG
Objective: To assess the dynamic brain responses during a working memory n-back fMRI task in an early-stage PD cohort with variable mild cognitive impairment
Background: Working memory dysfunction is common at early stages of Parkinson’s disease (PD), even without cognitive impairment. The neural basis of working memory and executive function is still debated, although it seems to be associated to dysfunction of cortico-striatal pathways. In this study, we aimed to investigate the dynamic functional activity of the cortico-striatal circuitry by using n-back working memory fMRI task in early-stage PD subjects
Methods: Thirty-eight early stage non-demented PD subject and 18 age and gender matched healthy controls underwent a letter n-back working memory task fMRI study in the practically defined off-state. Behavioural performance and task-related activation analysis of 0-back and 2-back blocks was performed in order to investigate the difference between study groups. Additional regression analysis of task-related activation with behavioural measures and cognitive scores was performed in the PD cohort
Results: Performance of the 2-back scanning working memory task showed reduced accuracy (total correct answers) in PD subjects compared to controls. Further total number of errors correlated with ACE-R (p<0.01) in the PD cohort. Compared with controls, PD subjects displayed significant functional under-recruitment in an extensive brain network including midbrain, left caudate, right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and parietal and occipital cortex in the analysis of 2-back vs 0-back. Moreover, parietal cortex, right orbitofrontal cortex and putamenal nuclei displayed positive correlations with ACE-R, whereas bilateral putamen, left caudate, right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, premotor and parietal cortex negatively correlated with the total number of errors of the 2-back task in the PD group.
Conclusions: Our results provide evidence that at early stages of Parkinson’s disease subjects display significant reduction of cortico-striatal functional recruitment related to working memory task, being further associated with the task performance and total cognitive scores.
To cite this abstract in AMA style:
A. Martin-Bastida, N. Lao-Kaim, S. Pietracupa, M. Wall, A. Roussakis, Y. Xing, S. Schwarz, D. Auer, P. Piccini. Assessing working memory dysfunction with letter n-back functional MRI task in early-stage Parkinson’s disease [abstract]. Mov Disord. 2018; 33 (suppl 2). https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/assessing-working-memory-dysfunction-with-letter-n-back-functional-mri-task-in-early-stage-parkinsons-disease/. Accessed May 9, 2025.« Back to 2018 International Congress
MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/assessing-working-memory-dysfunction-with-letter-n-back-functional-mri-task-in-early-stage-parkinsons-disease/