Quality of life is related to the functional connectivity of the default mode network at rest.
Inessa Kraft, Joana Bisol Balardin, João Ricardo Sato, Jens Sommer, Patricia Tobo, Carla Barrichello, Edson Amaro, Elisa Harumi Kozasa
Brain Imaging and Behavior October 1, 2019 DOI: 10.1007/s11682-018-9954-5 (opens in new tab) via PubMed
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractIn a cross-sectional study of 42 healthy female working managers, social quality of life was significantly associated with functional connectivity of the default mode network (DMN) at rest. Higher social quality of life scores corresponded to reduced connectivity between the right and left lateral parietal regions of the DMN. The study examined four quality of life domains—physiological, psychological, social, and environmental—but only the social domain showed a link to DMN connectivity. This is described as the first analysis of neural correlates of quality of life in the brain, though limited to a female subgroup.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Cross-sectional study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 42 |
| Population | Healthy working female managers |
| Topics | Default mode network |
| Keywords | Connectivity Quality of life Women |
| Key finding | Social quality of life is significantly associated with functional connectivity of the default mode network, with high social quality of life linked to right-left lateral parietal hypoconnectivity. |
Abstract
Quality of life is an important issue concerning people all over the world and affecting patients in the mental health field. When considering the potential neural links between quality of life and the brain, a brain network that comes into mind is the default mode network (DMN). Its architecture and function has been investigated in relation to various research fields including social and emotional cognition, meditation and neuropsychiatric disorders as well as happiness. In this cross-sectional study we investigated the relationship between various quality of life domains (physiological, psychological, social and environmental) and the functional connectivity of the default mode network at rest in a sample of 42 healthy working female managers. The results indicate that there is a significant association between the social quality of life domain and the functional connectivity of the default mode network. Post-hoc analysis revealed that high social quality of life scores were associated with right-left lateral parietal hypoconnectivity. By adopting a wide ranging perspective, our study approaches to fundamental research about quality of life but so far only applied on a female subgroup. As far as we know, it is the first to analyze the neuronal correlates of quality of life in the brain and therefore sets an initial step in its investigation.