Effects of stress on functional connectivity during verbal processing
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ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Effects of stress on functional connectivity during verbal processing Neetu Nair 1,2,3 & John P. Hegarty II 1,3,4 & Bradley J. Ferguson 1,3,7 & Sara J. Hooshmand 8 & Patrick M. Hecht 1,5 & Michael Tilley 11 & Shawn E. Christ 1,6 & David Q. Beversdorf 1,2,3,6,8,9,10
# Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2019
Abstract Effects of stress on functional connectivity (FC) in specific language processing regions of the brain during verbal fluency tasks were explored. Roles of gender and serotonin transporter gene polymorphisms (5-HTTLPR), associated with stress susceptibility, were also examined to understand their effect. Forty-five healthy volunteers (Mean age: 19.6 ± 1.6 years; 28 females) participated. Functional magnetic resonance imaging was carried out while participants performed letter and category fluency tasks. These tasks were interposed with the Montreal Imaging Stress Test to induce stress or a no-stress control task. Buccal swabs collected were used to genotype for the presence of polymorphisms on the SLC6A4 gene known to contribute to atypical stress responses. Significant variations in strength of FC were noted between several ROIs, including left inferior frontal gyrus and left middle temporal gyrus. Overall, males showed regional increases in FC strength over long and short distances during task under stress. Additionally, variability in effects of stress on task performance was associated with effects of stress on FC. Results suggest that long distance FC may be strengthened to compensate for additional cognitive load of the stressor but that specific short distance functional connections may be strengthened in a gender specific manner. Additionally, FC may serve as a marker for effects of stress on performance. This is the first study exploring stress effects on language tasks with imaging markers. Future studies will need to explore stress susceptible populations and establish the role of FC as a marker, with implications for targeted therapeutic interventions. Keywords Stress . Verbal fluency . fMRI . Functional connectivity . Serotonin transporter . Gender
Introduction The stress response is the body’s normal physiological reaction to a situation that is perceived as threatening or overwhelming (Lucassen et al. 2014). While the stress response serves to promote survival in challenging situations,
* David Q. Beversdorf [email protected] 1
Interdisciplinary Neuroscience Program, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA
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Department of Radiology, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA
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Thompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders, Research and Training, University of Missouri, 205 Portland Street, Columbia, MO 65211, USA Present address: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA Present address: Avanir Pharmaceuticals Inc., Aliso Viejo, CA, USA
prolonged exposure is known to have a major impact on an individual’s physiological and psychological well-being. For ex
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