A network-level test of the role of the co-activated default mode network in episodic recall and social cognition.
Rebecca L Jackson, Gina F. Humphreys, Grace E Rice, Richard J. Binney, Matthew A. Lambon Ralph
Cortex August 2023 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2022.12.016 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational study using independent component analysis of task-based functional imaging datasets Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Default mode network |
| Keywords | Episodic memory Independent component analysis Resting-state networks Social cognition |
| Key findings | The co-activated default mode network did not show greater activity during episodic retrieval, person knowledge, or theory of mind tasks than during high-level baseline conditions. The authors conclude that no evidence supports the hypothesis that the co-activated DMN is involved in explicit episodic or social tasks at the network level, and they consider implications for prior univariate findings. |
Abstract
Resting-state network research is extremely influential, yet the functions of many networks remain unknown. In part, this is due to typical (e.g., univariate) analyses independently testing the function of individual regions and not examining the full set of regions that form a network whilst co-activated. Connectivity is dynamic and the function of a region may change based on its current connections. Therefore, determining the function of a network requires assessment at this network-level. Yet popular theories implicating the default mode network (DMN) in episodic memory and social cognition, rest principally upon analyses performed at the level of individual brain regions. Here we use independent component analysis to formally test the role of the DMN in episodic and social processing at the network level. As well as an episodic retrieval task, two independent datasets were employed to assess DMN function across the breadth of social cognition; a person knowledge judgement and a theory of mind task. Each task dataset was separated into networks of co-activated regions. In each, the co-activated DMN, was identified through comparison to an a priori template and its relation to the task model assessed. This co-activated DMN did not show greater activity in episodic or social tasks than high-level baseline conditions. Thus, no evidence was found to support hypotheses that the co-activated DMN is involved in explicit episodic or social tasks at a network-level. The networks associated with these processes are described. Implications for prior univariate findings and the functional significance of the co-activated DMN are considered.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on default mode network, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| A default mode of brain function Normal adult human brain | 2001 | Observational study | |
| Resting-State Functional Connectivity Reflects Structural Connectivity in the Default Mode Network Healthy subjects | 2008 | Observational cohort | |
| Meditation experience is associated with increased cortical thickness Participants with extensive Insight meditation experience and matched controls | 2005 | Observational cohort | n = 20 |
| Meditation experience is associated with differences in default mode network activity and connectivity Experienced meditators and matched meditation-naive controls | 2011 | Observational cohort | |
| The precuneus/posterior cingulate cortex plays a pivotal role in the default mode network: Evidence from a partial correlation network analysis Healthy subjects | 2008 | Observational study |
Citations in the library
Cites 11
- A default mode of brain function Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences January 16, 2001
- Resting-State Functional Connectivity Reflects Structural Connectivity in the Default Mode Network Cerebral Cortex April 9, 2008
- Functional connectivity of default mode network components: Correlation, anticorrelation, and causality Human Brain Mapping January 24, 2008
- Patterns of Brain Activity Supporting Autobiographical Memory, Prospection, and Theory of Mind, and Their Relationship to the Default Mode Network Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience July 6, 2009
- On the relationship between the “default mode network” and the “social brain” Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2012
and 6 more in the library