Search Results (16)

The insular cortex has emerged as a key region implicated in a wide array of cognitive, emotional, and sensory processes. The anterior part of the insula (AIC) is central to emotional awareness, decision-making, and interoception, while the posterior insula (PIC) is more associated with somatosensory processing. The insula acts as a functional hub within the salience network and integrates homeostatic, affective, and cognitive information; thus, its role in different mental disorders seems to be prominent. Altered structure and connectivity of the insular cortex are evident in several psychiatric conditions. In schizophrenia, reductions in insular volume—especially on the left—correlate with hallucinations, emotional dysregulation, and cognitive deficits. Bipolar and major depressive disorders exhibit AIC volume loss and aberrant connectivity patterns linked to impaired affect regulation and interoceptive awareness. Anxiety disorders show functional hyperactivity of the insula, especially in response to fear-inducing stimuli, though findings on structural changes are mixed. Overall, growing evidence underscores the insular cortex’s central role in psychiatric pathophysiology and highlights its potential as a target for future diagnostic and therapeutic strategies. Full article

Aberrant salience, defined as the inappropriate attribution of significance to neutral stimuli, is increasingly recognized as a critical mechanism in the onset of psychotic disorders. In young individuals at ultra-high risk (UHR) for psychosis, abnormal salience processing may serve as a precursor to full-blown psychotic symptoms, contributing to distorted perceptions and the onset of psychotic ideation. This review examines current literature on aberrant salience among UHR youth, exploring its neurobiological, psychological, and behavioral dimensions. Through a comprehensive analysis of studies involving neuroimaging, cognitive assessments, and symptomatology, we assess the consistency of findings across diverse methodologies. Additionally, we evaluate factors contributing to aberrant salience, including neurochemical imbalances, dysregulation in dopamine pathways, and environmental stressors, which may jointly increase psychosis vulnerability. Identifying aberrant salience as a measurable trait in UHR populations could facilitate earlier identification and targeted interventions. Implications for clinical practice are discussed, highlighting the need for specialized therapeutic approaches that address cognitive and emotional dysregulation in salience attribution. Recent research underscores the importance of aberrant salience in early psychosis research and advocates for further studies on intervention strategies to mitigate progression to psychosis among UHR individuals. Full article

Background: Chronic insomnia (CID) is a highly prevalent sleep disorder, yet the precise mechanisms underlying it remain incompletely understood. The aim of this study is to analyze effective connectivity between key regions of the default mode network (DMN), executive control network (ECN), and salience network (SN) in patients with CID as potential neurologic correlates of the hyperarousal state. Methods: Thirty-one CID patients and 24 healthy controls (HC) were recruited. All the subjects filled out the Insomnia severity index scale (ISI), Beck depression inventory (BDI), and Epworth sleepiness scale (ESS), underwent polysomnography, and were scanned on functional magnetic resonance imaging. Statistical Parametric Mapping 12 was used to analyze the results. Spectral dynamic causal modeling was applied to the chosen regions of interest. Results: There were three significant connections present in the CID group—inhibitory from the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) to the right hippocampus (Hippocamp R); excitatory from the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex to the ventromedial prefrontal cortex; and excitatory from the common medial prefrontal cortex to the right anterior insula (AIR). Two statistically significant excitatory connections were lacking in the patients’ group—from the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) to AIR, and from precuneus to PCC. CID patients scored higher on the ISI and BDI. Significant negative correlations between DLPFC-Hippocamp R connectivity and both ISI and BDI scores were identified. Conclusions: Disruptions within the DMN and between the DMN, SN, and ECN reflect an impaired ability to appropriately shift between internally and externally directed cognitive states—an imbalance that potentially underlies the hyperarousal state of CID. Full article

Individuals with schizophrenia (SZ) show impairment in social functioning. The reward network and the emotional salience network are considered to play important roles in social interaction. The current study investigated alterations in the resting-state (rs-) amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF), fractional ALFF (fALFF), regional homogeneity (ReHo) and functional connectivity (fc) in the reward network and the emotional salience network in SZ patients. MRI scans were collected from 60 subjects, including 30 SZ patients and 30 matched healthy controls. SZ symptoms were measured using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). We analyzed the ALFF, fALFF and ReHo in key brain regions in the reward network and emotional salience network as well as rs-fc among the bilateral amygdala, lateral orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), medial OFC and insula between groups. The SZ patients demonstrated increased ALFF in the right caudate and right putamen, increased fALFF and ReHo in the bilateral caudate, putamen and pallidum, along with decreased fALFF in the bilateral insula. Additionally, reduced rs-fc was found between the right lateral OFC and the left amygdala, which simultaneously belong to the reward network and the emotional salience network. These findings highlight the association between impaired social functioning in SZ patients and aberrant resting-state ALFF, fALFF, ReHo and fc. Future studies are needed to conduct network-based statistical analysis and task-state fMRI, reflecting live social interaction to advance our understanding of the mechanism of social interaction deficits in SZ. Full article

Background and Objectives: This present study was aimed at exploring hyperarousal and aberrant salience in a sample of the Italian general population to understand their possible role in the acceptance of anti-COVID-19 vaccination. Materials and Methods: Sociodemographic data questions, the “Acceptance of Vaccination” measure, the Hyperarousal Scale (H-Scale), and the Aberrant Salience Inventory (ASI) were sent as an unpaid online survey to the general population (age range 18–80 years) within the Italian territory. Results: The enrolled subjects were divided into two subgroups: “Pro-vax” (n = 806; 87.4%) and “No-vax” (n = 116; 12.6%). Statistical analysis showed significant differences between groups in the “Education Level” (p = 0.001) category, higher in the “Pro-vax” group, and in the ASI “Senses Sharpening” (p = 0.007), “Heightened Emotionality” (p = 0.008), and “Heightened Cognition” (p = 0.002) subscales with the “Total Score” (p = 0.015), all higher in “No-vax” subjects. Furthermore, a linear regression model evidenced that only ”Education Level” (β = 0.143; p < 0.0001) and “Senses Sharpening” (β = −0.150; p = 0.006) were, respectively, direct and inverse predictors of “Acceptance of Vaccination”. Conclusions: Our results show that several subthreshold conditions, such as somatosensory amplification, anxiety traits, and panic experiences, should be taken into account by authoritative sources involved in health education, communication, and policy to alleviate public concerns about vaccine safety, for the present and also future pandemics, and to provide more inclusive, informed, and accurate public health preventive and treatment programs. Full article

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurodegenerative disorder that progressively affects bulbar and limb function. Despite increasing recognition of the disease as a multinetwork disorder characterized by aberrant structural and functional connectivity, its integrity agreement and its predictive value for disease diagnosis remain to be fully elucidated. In this study, we recruited 37 ALS patients and 25 healthy controls (HCs). High-resolution 3D T1-weighted imaging and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging were, respectively, applied to construct multimodal connectomes. Following strict neuroimaging selection criteria, 18 ALS and 25 HC patients were included. Network-based statistic (NBS) and the coupling of grey matter structural–functional connectivity (SC–FC coupling) were performed. Finally, the support vector machine (SVM) method was used to distinguish the ALS patients from HCs. Results showed that, compared with HCs, ALS individuals exhibited a significantly increased functional network, predominantly encompassing the connections between the default mode network (DMN) and the frontoparietal network (FPN). The increased structural connections predominantly involved the inter-regional connections between the limbic network (LN) and the DMN, the salience/ventral attention network (SVAN) and FPN, while the decreased structural connections mainly involved connections between the LN and the subcortical network (SN). We also found increased SC–FC coupling in DMN-related brain regions and decoupling in LN-related brain regions in ALS, which could differentiate ALS from HCs with promising capacity based on SVM. Our findings highlight that DMN and LN may play a vital role in the pathophysiological mechanism of ALS. Additionally, SC–FC coupling could be regarded as a promising neuroimaging biomarker for ALS and shows important clinical potential for early recognition of ALS individuals. Full article

(1) Background: The Embodied Sense-of-Self Scale (ESSS) is the only validated measure for self-assessing embodiment abnormalities, which differentiate people with anomalous embodied self-representations such as schizophrenic patients from controls. The aim of the current study was to translate the ESSS from English to Italian and to examine its factor structure, reliability, and validity in the Italian context. (2) Methods: We tested the fit of the original three-factor structure (agency, ownership, and narrative identity) across a community sample (N = 269) and the reliability as well as the convergent and divergent validity of the ESSS. (3) Results: The three-factor structure of the ESSS was confirmed. However, three different factors have emerged from our analysis (self-recognition, self-consistence, and self-awareness). Higher internal consistency of the ESSS was obtained by removing six items that seemed problematic. The three ESSS scales show highly intercorrelated constructs. The measure was reliable and positively correlated with schizotypy (via the Perceptual Aberration Scale) and aberrant salience (via the Aberrant Salience Inventory), and negatively correlated with empathy (via the Italian Short Empathy Quotient scale), generalized self-efficacy (via the Generalized Self-Efficacy Scale), and social self-efficacy (via the Perceived Social Self-Efficacy Scale). (4) Conclusions: The 19-item Italian version of the ESSS is a suitable measure with which to assess embodiment abnormalities in Italian samples. Full article

Background: Core symptoms of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) are associated to aberrant connectivity of the triple network system (salience network [SN], default mode network [DMN], executive control network [ECN]). While functional abnormalities are widely reported, structural connectivity (SC) and anatomical changes have not yet been investigated. Here, we explored the triple network’s SC, structure, and its association with BPD clinical features. Methods: A total of 60 BPD and 26 healthy controls (HC) underwent a multidomain neuropsychological and multimodal MRI (diffusion- and T1-weighted imaging) assessment. Metrics (fractional anisotropy [FA], mean diffusivity [MD], cortical thickness) were extracted from SN, DMN, ECN (triple network), and visual network (control network) using established atlases. Multivariate general linear models were conducted to assess group differences in metrics and associations with clinical features. Results: Patients showed increased MD in the anterior SN, dorsal DMN, and right ECN compared to HC. Diffusivity increases were more pronounced in patients with higher behavioral dysregulation, i.e., suicidal attempting, self-harm, and aggressiveness. No differences were detected in network structure. Conclusions: These results indicate that the triple network system is impaired in BPD at the microstructural level. The preferential involvement of anterior and right-lateralized subsystems and their clinical association suggests that these abnormalities could contribute to behavioral dysregulation. Full article

Recent evidence suggests that the aberrant signaling of salience is associated with psychotic illness. Salience, however, can take many forms in task environments. For example, salience may refer to any of the following: (1) the valence of an outcome, (2) outcomes that are unexpected, called reward prediction errors (PEs), or (3) cues associated with uncertain outcomes. Here, we measure brain responses to different forms of salience in the context of a passive PE-signaling task, testing whether patients with schizophrenia (SZ) showed aberrant signaling of particular types of salience. We acquired event-related MRI data from 29 SZ patients and 23 controls during the performance of a passive outcome prediction task. Across groups, we found that the anterior insula and posterior parietal cortices were activated to multiple different types of salience, including PE magnitude and heightened levels of uncertainty. However, BOLD activation to salient events was not significantly different between patients and controls in many regions, including the insula, posterior parietal cortices, and default mode network nodes. Such results suggest that deficiencies in salience processing in SZ may not result from an impaired ability to signal salience per se, but instead the ability to use such signals to guide future actions. Notably, no between-group differences were observed in BOLD signal changes associated with PE-signaling in the striatum. However, positive symptom severity was found to significantly correlate with the magnitudes of salience contrasts in default mode network nodes. Our results suggest that, in an observational environment, SZ patients may show an intact ability to activate striatal and cortical regions to rewarding and non-rewarding salient events. Furthermore, reduced deactivation of a hypothesized default mode network node for SZ participants with high levels of positive symptoms, following salient events, point to abnormalities in interactions of the salience network with other brain networks, and their potential importance to positive symptoms. Full article

Cognitive biases are an important factor contributing to the development and symptom severity of psychosis. Despite the fact that various cognitive biases are contributing to psychosis, they are rarely investigated together. In the current systematic review, we aimed at investigating specific and shared functional neural correlates of two important cognitive biases: aberrant salience and source monitoring. We conducted a systematic search of fMRI studies of said cognitive biases. Eight studies on aberrant salience and eleven studies on source monitoring were included in the review. We critically discussed behavioural and neuroimaging findings concerning cognitive biases. Various brain regions are associated with aberrant salience and source monitoring in individuals with schizophrenia and the risk of psychosis. The ventral striatum and insula contribute to aberrant salience. The medial prefrontal cortex, superior and middle temporal gyrus contribute to source monitoring. The anterior cingulate cortex and hippocampus contribute to both cognitive biases, constituting a neural overlap. Our review indicates that aberrant salience and source monitoring may share neural mechanisms, suggesting their joint role in producing disrupted external attributions of perceptual and cognitive experiences, thus elucidating their role in positive symptoms of psychosis. Account bridging mechanisms of these two biases is discussed. Further studies are warranted. Full article

Depression and early life adversity (ELA) are associated with aberrant resting state functional connectivity (FC) of the default mode (DMN), salience (SN), and central executive networks (CEN). However, the specific and differential associations of depression and ELA with FC of these networks remain unclear. Applying a dimensional approach, here we analyzed associations of FC between major nodes of the DMN, SN, and CEN with severity of depressive symptoms and ELA defined as childhood abuse and neglect in a sample of 83 healthy and depressed subjects. Depressive symptoms were linked to increased FC within the SN and decreased FC of the SN with the DMN and CEN. Childhood abuse was associated with increased FC within the SN, whereas childhood neglect was associated with decreased FC within the SN and increased FC between the SN and the DMN. Our study thus provides evidence for differential associations of depressive symptoms and ELA with resting state FC and contributes to a clarification of previously contradictory findings. Specific FC abnormalities may underlie specific cognitive and emotional impairments. Future research should link specific clinical symptoms resulting from ELA to FC patterns thereby characterizing depression subtypes with specific neurobiological signatures. Full article

Previous studies have demonstrated the relationship between the accumulation of situations involving interpersonal violence (IV) and psychotic-like experiences. This study explored whether IV is related to aberrant salience (AS), using a sequential mediation model that included memories of relationship with parents (submission, devaluation, and threat; Early Life Experiences Scale (ELES)), ideas of reference (IR), and dissociative symptoms (absorption and depersonalization), and whether the patient/nonpatient condition moderated this effect. The sample was made of 401 participants (including 43 patients with psychotic disorders) aged 18 to 71 years (Mage = 30.43; SD = 11.19). Analysis of a serial multiple mediator model revealed that IR, ELES, absorption, and depersonalization fully mediated the effect of IV on AS, explaining 39% of the variance, regardless of the patient/nonpatient condition. The indirect paths, which place IR and dissociation (especially absorption, the variable to which the IR and ELES lead) in a primordial position for being related to AS, are discussed. This continuum model could be useful for understanding processes related to the onset of psychosis unmoderated by the patient/nonpatient condition. Full article

An increasing body of experimental data have suggested that aberrant functional interactions between large-scale networks may be the most plausible explanation of psychopathology across multiple mental disorders, including substance-related and addictive disorders. In the current research, we have investigated the association between problematic cannabis use (PCU) and triple-network electroencephalographic (EEG) functional connectivity. Twelve participants with PCU and 24 non-PCU participants were included in the study. EEG recordings were performed during resting state (RS). The exact Low-Resolution Electromagnetic Tomography software (eLORETA) was used for all EEG analyses. Compared to non-PCU, PCU participants showed an increased delta connectivity between the salience network (SN) and central executive network (CEN), specifically, between the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex and right posterior parietal cortex. The strength of delta connectivity between the SN and CEN was positively and significantly correlated with higher problematic patterns of cannabis use after controlling for age, sex, educational level, tobacco use, problematic alcohol use, and general psychopathology (r_p = 0.40, p = 0.030). Taken together, our results show that individuals with PCU could be characterized by a specific dysfunctional interaction between the SN and CEN during RS, which might reflect the neurophysiological underpinnings of attentional and emotional processes of cannabis-related thoughts, memories, and craving. Full article

Background: Ideas of reference (IRs) are observed in the general population on the continuum of the psychotic phenotype (as a type of psychotic-like experiences, PLE). The instruments usually used to evaluate IRs show some problems: They depend on the cooperation of the participant, comprehension of items, social desirability, etc. Aims: The Testal emotional counting Stroop (TECS) was developed for the purpose of improving evaluation of individuals vulnerable to psychosis and its relationship with ideas of reference. The TECS (two versions) was applied as an implicit evaluation instrument for IRs and related processes for early identification of persons vulnerable to psychosis and to test the possible influence of emotional symptomatology. Method: A total of 160 participants (67.5% women) from the general population were selected (Mean (M) = 24.12 years, standard deviation (SD) = 5.28), 48 vulnerable and 112 non-vulnerable. Results: Vulnerability to psychosis was related to greater latency in response to referential stimuli. Version 4 of the TECS showed a slight advantage in identifying more latency in response to referential stimuli among participants with vulnerability to psychosis (Cohen’s d = 1.08). Emotional symptomatology (especially stress), and IQ (premorbid) mediated the relationship between vulnerability and IR response latency. Conclusions: The application of the implicit Testal emotional counting Stroop test (TECS) is useful for evaluating processes related to vulnerability to psychosis, as demonstrated by the increased latency of response to referential stimuli. Full article

Exposure to traumatic life events (TLE) is a risk factor for psychosis. Yet, a dearth of studies examines factors linking TLE to psychosis, while considering differences in TLE frequency. This study investigated dissociation and aberrant salience as mediators and moderators of the relation between three TLE groups (none, 1–3 TLE and 4+ TLE) and psychotic-like experiences (PLE) in a multi-ethnic sample of 816 emerging adults. The participants completed self-report inventories of PLE (Prodromal Questionnaire), TLE (Life Events Checklist), dissociative experiences (Dissociative Symptoms Scale), and aberrant salience (Aberrant Salience Inventory). As expected, groups with higher TLE frequency endorsed higher PLE. Parallel mediation models indicated that, while aberrant salience mediated the relation between both levels of cumulative traumatic experiences (1–3 TLE and 4+ TLE) and PLE, dissociation only mediated the relation between exposure to at least four different traumatic experiences and PLE. The moderation results showed that risk of PLE was highest among individuals with 1–3 TLE who endorsed dissociation. Our results suggest that, while aberrant salience processing explains why TLE may relate to higher psychosis risk, dissociation’s role in this relation is dependent on the number of different TLE exposures. Full article