Shifted intrinsic connectivity of central executive and salience network in borderline personality disorder

Abstract

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is characterized by “stable instability” of emotions and behavior and their regulation. This emotional and behavioral instability corresponds with a neurocognitive triple network model of psychopathology, which suggests that aberrant emotional saliency and cognitive control is associated with aberrant interaction across three intrinsic connectivity networks [i.e., the salience network (SN), default mode network (DMN), and central executive network (CEN)]. The objective of the current study was to investigate whether and how such triple network intrinsic functional connectivity (iFC) is changed in patients with BPD. We acquired resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) data from 14 patients with BPD and 16 healthy controls. High-model order independent component analysis was used to extract spatiotemporal patterns of ongoing, coherent blood-oxygen-level-dependent signal fluctuations from rs-fMRI data. Main outcome measures were iFC within networks (intra-iFC) and between networks (i.e., network time course correlation inter-iFC). Aberrant intra-iFC was found in patients’ DMN, SN, and CEN, consistent with previous findings. While patients’ inter-iFC of the CEN was decreased, inter-iFC of the SN was increased. In particular, a balance index reflecting the relationship of CEN- and SN-inter-iFC across networks was strongly shifted from CEN to SN connectivity in patients. Results provide first preliminary evidence for aberrant triple network iFC in BPD. Our data suggest a shift of inter-network iFC from networks involved in cognitive control to those of emotion-related activity in BPD, potentially reflecting the persistent instability of emotion regulation in patients.

Inconsistency and social decision making in patients with Borderline Personality Disorder

“…BPD psychopathology has been described as "stable instability" (Schmideberg, 1959). This instability includes unstable mood and identity, ambivalent relationships, emotional instability, behavioral impulsivity (Doll et al, 2013;Leichsenring et al, 2011), and increased intra-individual variation in neuropsychological tests (Beblo et al, 2006). Taken together, these findings suggest that unstable and inconsistent cognitive and behavioral traits underlie the multifaceted psychopathology of BPD.…”

Mapping the brain correlates of borderline personality disorder: A functional neuroimaging meta-analysis of resting state studies

“…First, we conducted a meta-analysis to identify the main effect of BPD diagnosis on task-independent neural function. Second, we carried out two further metaanalyses based on the imaging modality: fMRI studies (Das et al, 2014;; Doll et al, 2013;; Salvador et al, 2016;; Wolf et al, 2011) and PET studies (Lange et al, 2005;; Salavert et al, 2011;; Soloff et al, 2005) (Table S.1). Meta-analyses were performed separately for the BPD>HC and the HC>BPD contrasts using SDM software (Signed Differential Mapping, www.sdmproject.com).…”

Converging Medial Frontal Resting State and Diffusion-Based Abnormalities in Borderline Personality Disorder

“…However, similar to volumetric studies, the scope of such connectivity results is restricted by the prior selection of brain areas of interest. In that sense, the discovery of intrinsic brain networks in the resting brain (17) has allowed analyses with a much broader extent showing various intranetwork and internetwork abnormalities (18,19). Still, such results are relevant only to the specific networks analyzed.…”