Amyloid Plaques Disrupt Resting State Default Mode Network Connectivity in Cognitively Normal Elderly
Biological Psychiatry October 15, 2009 Yvette I. Sheline, Marcus E. Raichle, Abraham Z. Snyder et al. 608 citations
Functional connections within the default mode network are disrupted in Alzheimer's disease, likely due to amyloid-beta plaque toxicity. In cognitively normal participants with preclinical amyloid deposition, resting-state fMRI revealed differences in functional connectivity between the precuneus and several brain regions—including the hippocampus, parahippocampus, and cingulate cortex—that matched the pattern seen in Alzheimer's disease patients. These findings suggest that early amyloid-beta toxicity can be detected with resting-state fMRI before any cognitive or behavioral changes appear.