Functional segregation and integration within fronto-parietal networks

Valeria Parlatini (1, 2) , Joaquim Radua (3, 4) , Flavio Dell’acqua (5, 2, 6) , Anoushka Leslie (2, 6, 5) , Andy Simmons (7, 6, 5) , Declan G. Murphy (1) , Marco Catani (1, 2) , Michel Thiebaut de Schotten (8, 1, 2)

1 Sackler Institute of Translational Neurodevelopment [London]
2 Natbrainlab, Department of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences
3 Department of Psychosis Studies
4 FIDMAG Germanes Hospitalaries
5 NIHR Biomedical Research Centre for Mental Health at South London
6 Department of Neuroimaging
7 MRC Centre for Neurodegeneration Research
8 ICM - Institut du Cerveau et de la Moëlle Epinière = Brain and Spine Institute

Experimental data on monkeys and functional studies in humans support the existence of a complex fronto-parietal system activating for cognitive and motor tasks, which may be anatomically supported by the superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF). Advanced tractography methods have recently allowed the separation of the three branches of the SLF but are not suitable for their functional investigation. In order to gather comprehensive information about the functional organisation of these fronto-parietal connections, we used an innovative method, which combined tractography of the SLF in the largest dataset so far (129 participants) with 14 meta-analyses of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies. We found that frontal and parietal functions can be clustered into a dorsal spatial/motor network associated with the SLF I, and a ventral non-spatial/motor network associated with the SLF III. Further, all the investigated functions activated a middle network mostly associated with the SLF II. Our findings suggest that dorsal and ventral fronto-parietal networks are segregated but also share regions of activation, which may support flexible response properties or conscious processing. In sum, our novel combined approach provided novel findings on the functional organisation of fronto-parietal networks, and may be successfully applied to other brain connections.

Mots clés: Frontal parietal; Functional magnetic resonance imaging; (fMRI); Meta-analysis; Superior longitudinal fasciculus; Diffusion tractography

Domaines: Neurosciences [q-bio.NC]

Valeria Parlatini, Joaquim Radua, Flavio Dell’acqua, Anoushka Leslie, Andy Simmons, et al.. Functional segregation and integration within fronto-parietal networks. NeuroImage, 2016, ⟨10.1016/j.neuroimage.2016.08.031⟩. ⟨hal-01420312⟩