Impairment and compensation coexist in amnestic MCI default mode network
NeuroImage December 17, 2009 Zhigang Qi, Xia Wu, Zhiqun Wang et al. 328 citations
People with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), a transitional stage between healthy aging and Alzheimer's disease, show altered brain activity in the default mode network (DMN) compared to healthy older adults. Using resting-state fMRI, 14 healthy elderly participants showed increased activity in DMN regions including the bilateral precuneus/posterior cingulate cortex, right inferior parietal lobule, and left fusiform gyrus, with a trend toward increased right medial temporal lobe activity. The 14 aMCI patients showed increased activity in the left prefrontal cortex, inferior parietal lobule, and middle temporal gyrus, which may reflect compensatory processes. These abnormal DMN activity patterns could serve as an imaging biomarker for diagnosing and monitoring aMCI.