title: Situating the default-mode network along a principal gradient of macroscale cortical organization.
abstract: Understanding how the structure of cognition arises from the topographical organization of the cortex is a primary goal in neuroscience. Previous work has described local functional gradients extending from perceptual and motor regions to cortical areas representing more abstract functions, but an overarching framework for the association between structure and function is still lacking. Here, we show that the principal gradient revealed by the decomposition of connectivity data in humans and the macaque monkey is anchored by, at one end, regions serving primary sensory/motor functions and at the other end, transmodal regions that, in humans, are known as the default-mode network (DMN). These DMN regions exhibit the greatest geodesic distance along the cortical surface-and are precisely equidistant-from primary sensory/motor morphological landmarks. The principal gradient also provides an organizing spatial framework for multiple large-scale networks and characterizes a spectrum from unimodal to heteromodal activity in a functional metaanalysis. Together, these observations provide a characterization of the topographical organization of cortex and indicate that the role of the DMN in cognition might arise from its position at one extreme of a hierarchy, allowing it to process transmodal information that is unrelated to immediate sensory input.
authors: Max Planck Research Group for Neuroanatomy & Connectivity, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig 04103, Germany; margulies@cbs.mpg.de.
authors: Daniel S
authors: DS
authors: Margulies
authors: McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139.|Department of Otolaryngology, Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, MA 02115.
authors: Satrajit S
authors: 0000-0002-5312-6729
authors: SS
authors: Ghosh
authors: Department of Computational Neuroscience, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg 20246, Germany.
authors: Alexandros
authors: A
authors: Goulas
authors: Max Planck Research Group for Neuroanatomy & Connectivity, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig 04103, Germany.
authors: Marcel
authors: M
authors: Falkiewicz
authors: Max Planck Research Group for Neuroanatomy & Connectivity, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig 04103, Germany.|Neurocomputation and Neuroimaging Unit, Department of Education and Psychology, Free University of Berlin, Berlin 14195, Germany.
authors: Julia M
authors: JM
authors: Huntenburg
authors: Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-Guided Therapy, Computational Imaging Research Laboratory, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna A-1090, Austria.|Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139.
authors: Georg
authors: G
authors: Langs
authors: McConnell Brain Imaging Centre, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada H3A 2B4.
authors: Gleb
authors: G
authors: Bezgin
authors: Institute for Neuroscience and Medicine, Research Center Jülich, Juelich 52428, Germany.|Institute of Clinical Neuroscience and Medical Psychology, Heinrich Heine University, Duesseldorf 40225, Germany.
authors: Simon B
authors: SB
authors: Eickhoff
authors: Child Study Center, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY 10016.|Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, Orangeburg, NY 10962.
authors: F Xavier
authors: FX
authors: Castellanos
authors: Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada H3A 2B4.
authors: Michael
authors: M
authors: Petrides
authors: Department of Psychology, University of York, York YO10 5DD, United Kingdom.|York Neuroimaging Centre, University of York, York YO10 5DD, United Kingdom.
authors: Elizabeth
authors: E
authors: Jefferies
authors: Department of Psychology, University of York, York YO10 5DD, United Kingdom.|York Neuroimaging Centre, University of York, York YO10 5DD, United Kingdom.
authors: Jonathan
authors: J
authors: Smallwood
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D001931:Brain Mapping; D006801:Humans; D008251:Macaca; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods; D008959:Models, Neurological; D009415:Nerve Net / Q000502:physiology*; D012677:Sensation / Q000502:physiology*; D066191:Sensorimotor Cortex / Q000502:physiology*
keywords: connectivity; cortical organization; default-mode network; gradients; topography