Abnormal Spontaneous Neural Activity in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: A Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study

Abstract

Neuroimaging studies of obsessive-compulsive disorder have found abnormalities in orbitofronto-striato-thalamic circuitry, including the orbitofrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, caudate, and thalamus, but few studies have explored abnormal intrinsic or spontaneous brain activity in the resting state. We investigated both intra- and inter-regional synchronized activity in twenty patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder and 20 healthy controls using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging. Regional homogeneity (ReHo) and functional connectivity methods were used to analyze the intra- and inter-regional synchronized activity, respectively. Compared with healthy controls, patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder showed significantly increased ReHo in the orbitofrontal cortex, cerebellum, and insula, and decreased ReHo in the ventral anterior cingulate cortex, caudate, and inferior occipital cortex. Based on ReHo results, we determined functional connectivity differences between the orbitofrontal cortex and other brain regions in both patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder and controls. We found abnormal functional connectivity between the orbitofrontal cortex and ventral anterior cingulate cortex in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder compared with healthy controls. Moreover, ReHo in the orbitofrontal cortex was correlated with the duration of obsessive-compulsive disorder. These findings suggest that increased intra- and inter-regional synchronized activity in the orbitofrontal cortex may have a key role in the pathology of obsessive-compulsive disorder. In addition to orbitofronto-striato-thalamic circuitry, brain regions such as the insula and cerebellum may also be involved in the pathophysiology of obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Reduced Interhemispheric Resting-State Functional Homotopy in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

“…Decreased gray matter volumes in the orbitofrontal cortex, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and anterior cingulate cortex, and increased gray matter volumes in the putamen, caudate and thalamus have been reported in previous OCD studies [3,4]. Local abnormal regional functional characteristics in the orbitofrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, caudate and thalamus have been detected in OCD patients [5][6][7]. Moreover, changes in the resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) among these brain regions have also been…”

Corticolimbic connectivity as a possible biomarker for bipolar disorder

“…These findings are consistent with an overactive error control system in OCD subserving suppression of prepotent responses during decision-making. Several studies of FC connectivity confirmed alteration in the fronto-striato-thalamo-cortical (i.e., [199][200][201][202][203][204][205][206][207]). The dysregulation of the fronto-striato-thalamo-cortical circuit may be one of the major findings, which can help to differentiate the two disorders, as the presence of an increased WM integrity during in pediatric and adolescent patients affected by OCD.…”

Impulsive aggressive obsessions following cerebellar strokes: a case study

“…The cerebellum seems to be less activated in patients with OCD [7,8], but there is a lack of studies exploring the clinical implications of this phenomenon. Several studies & Arnaud Tessier…”

“…The cerebellum seems to be less activated in patients with OCD [7,8], but there is a lack of studies exploring the clinical implications of this phenomenon. Several studies have investigated the potential role of cerebellar infarcts in the occurrence of post-stroke behavior changes [9,10].…”

“…Chronology and infarct localization suggest that the second cerebellar stroke, involving lobules VI and Crus I, was preferentially responsible of the onset of psychiatric disorder and fully supports our hypothesis. However, we cannot exclude the potential influence of the first stroke's stress, or the influence of bilateral lesions.The cerebellum seems to be less activated in patients with OCD [7,8], but there is a lack of studies exploring the clinical implications of this phenomenon. Several studies & Arnaud Tessier…”