title: Altered modular organization of intrinsic brain functional networks in patients with Parkinson's disease.
abstract: Although previous studies reported altered topology of brain functional networks in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD), the modular organization of brain functional networks in PD patients remains largely unknown. Using the resting-state functional MRI (R-fMRI) and graph theory, we examined the modular organization of brain functional networks in 32 unmedicated patients with early-to-mid motor stage PD and 31 healthy controls. Compared to the controls, the PD patients tended to show decreased integrity and segregation, both within and between modules. This was inferred by significantly increased intra-modular characteristic path length (Lp) within four modules: mPFC, SN, SMN, and FPN, decreased inter-modular functional connectivity (FC) between mPFC and SN, SMN, and VN, and decreased intra-modular clustering in the PD patients. Intra-modular characteristic path length within the mPFC showed significantly positive correlation with general cognitive ability in the PD group. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis revealed that FC between mPFC and SN had the highest significant accuracy in differentiating the patients from the controls. Our findings may provide new insight in understanding the pathological changes that underlie impairment in cognition and movement in Parkinson's disease.
authors: Center for the Study of Applied Psychology, Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science of Guangdong Province, School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China.
authors: Qing
authors: Q
authors: Ma
authors: Department of Radiology, Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, Guangdong General Hospital, Guangzhou, China. cjr.huangbiao@vip.163.com.
authors: Biao
authors: B
authors: Huang
authors: Center for Cognition and Brain Disorders, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, 310015, China.|Zhejiang Key Laboratory for Research in Assessment of Cognitive Impairments, Hangzhou, 310015, China.
authors: Jinhui
authors: J
authors: Wang
authors: Center for the Study of Applied Psychology, Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science of Guangdong Province, School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China.|Department of Psychology and Program in Molecular, Cellular, and Integrative Neurosciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA.
authors: Carol
authors: C
authors: Seger
authors: Department of Radiology, Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, Guangdong General Hospital, Guangzhou, China.
authors: Wanqun
authors: W
authors: Yang
authors: Center for the Study of Applied Psychology, Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science of Guangdong Province, School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China.
authors: Changhong
authors: C
authors: Li
authors: Center for the Study of Applied Psychology, Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science of Guangdong Province, School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China.
authors: Junjing
authors: J
authors: Wang
authors: Department of Radiology, Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, Guangdong General Hospital, Guangzhou, China.
authors: Jieying
authors: J
authors: Feng
authors: Center for the Study of Applied Psychology, Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science of Guangdong Province, School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China.
authors: Ling
authors: L
authors: Weng
authors: Center for the Study of Applied Psychology, Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science of Guangdong Province, School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China.
authors: Wenjie
authors: W
authors: Jiang
authors: Center for the Study of Applied Psychology, Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science of Guangdong Province, School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China. ruiwang.huang@gmail.com.
authors: Ruiwang
authors: R
authors: Huang
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D001921:Brain / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001931:Brain Mapping / Q000379:methods*; D003198:Computer Simulation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008959:Models, Neurological; D009415:Nerve Net / Q000503:physiopathology*; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000503:physiopathology*
keywords: Graph theory; Medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC); Modularity; Salience network (SN)