title: Functional correlates of preserved naming performance in amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment.
abstract: Naming abilities are typically preserved in amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment (aMCI), a condition associated with increased risk of progression to Alzheimer's disease (AD). We compared the functional correlates of covert picture naming and word reading between a group of aMCI subjects and matched controls. Unimpaired picture naming performance was associated with more extensive activations, in particular involving the parietal lobes, in the aMCI group. In addition, in the condition associated with higher processing demands (blocks of categorically homogeneous items, living items), increased activity was observed in the aMCI group, in particular in the left fusiform gyrus. Graph analysis provided further evidence of increased modularity and reduced integration for the homogenous sets in the aMCI group. The functional modifications associated with preserved performance may reflect, in the case of more demanding tasks, compensatory mechanisms for the subclinical involvement of semantic processing areas by AD pathology.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Advanced Study IUSS Pavia, Palazzo del Broletto - Piazza della Vittoria n.15, 27100, Pavia, Italy. Electronic address: eleonora.catricala@iusspavia.it.
authors.forename: Eleonora
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Catricalà
authors.affiliation: Institute of Molecular Bioimaging and Physiology, National Research Council (IBFM-CNR), Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Pasquale A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Della Rosa
authors.affiliation: Division of Neuroscience, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Parisi
authors.affiliation: Institute of Molecular Bioimaging and Physiology, National Research Council (IBFM-CNR), Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Antonio G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Zippo
authors.affiliation: Division of Neuroscience, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Virginia M
authors.initials: VM
authors.lastname: Borsa
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroradiology and CERMAC, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Antonella
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Iadanza
authors.affiliation: Institute of Molecular Bioimaging and Physiology, National Research Council (IBFM-CNR), Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Isabella
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Castiglioni
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroradiology and CERMAC, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Falini
authors.affiliation: Institute for Advanced Study IUSS Pavia, Palazzo del Broletto - Piazza della Vittoria n.15, 27100, Pavia, Italy; Division of Neuroscience, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Stefano F
authors.initials: SF
authors.lastname: Cappa
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000647:Amnesia / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001921:Brain / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001931:Brain Mapping; D060825:Cognitive Dysfunction / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D011939:Mental Recall / Q000502:physiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual / Q000502:physiology*; D011932:Reading; D012660:Semantics
keywords: Amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment fMRI; Functional connectivity; Fusiform gyrus; Graph analysis; Living–nonliving; Picture naming; Semantic context effect