Biology subjects

Donovan, N. J.

Publications and source records attributed to Donovan, N. J..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

Network Localization of Anxiety as an Early Manifestation of Alzheimer's Disease-related Neurodegeneration

Objective Anxiety is a prominent neuropsychiatric symptom in preclinical Alzheimer's disease (AD), but the neural circuitry linking anxiety and AD remains uncharacterized. We assessed whether anxiety in preclinical AD is independently associated with AD-related neurodegeneration and localizes to a common anxiety network. Methods In cognitively unimpaired (CU) older adults with 3T MRI and amyloid-beta PET (N=1,775), we examined whether an established AD-related atrophy network is associated with anxiety (STAI-6). Then, using Atrophy Network Mapping (ANM), which maps individual cortical atrophy patterns onto a normative functional connectome (N=1000), we derived an anxiety network. We tested its 1) spatial convergence with the AD network and with a causal anxiety network derived from lesion and neuromodulation data, 2) specificity relative to depression, 3) generalizability in samples from independent cohorts with AD and Parkinson's disease (total n=878), and 4) association with longitudinal outcomes. Results In CU older adults, greater AD-network atrophy was associated with higher anxiety, independent of depression, cognition, cortical atrophy, and amyloid burden. Anxiety localized to a network closely resembling the AD network (r=0.74, p=0.04) and the causal anxiety network (r=0.72, p=0.02). This convergence extended across the AD continuum and to the Parkinson's disease cohort and was specific to anxiety relative to depression. Greater anxiety-network atrophy was associated with cognitive decline over 4.6 years. Conclusion Anxiety localizes to a brain circuit resembling the AD-related atrophy network, is consistent across the AD continuum and may extend beyond AD. These findings support anxiety as an independent marker of early AD-related neurodegeneration.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2023

Auditory and Reward Connectivity in Young and Older Adults During Music Listening and Rest

The intrinsic organization of functional brain networks is known to change with age, and is affected by perceptual input and task conditions. Here, we compare functional activity and connectivity during music listening and rest between younger (N=24) and older (N=24) adults, using whole brain regression, seed-based connectivity, and ROI-ROI connectivity analyses. As expected, activity and connectivity of auditory and reward networks scaled with liking during music listening in both groups. Younger adults show higher within-network connectivity of auditory and reward regions as compared to older adults, both at rest and during music listening, but this age-related difference at rest was reduced during music listening, especially in individuals who self-report high musical reward. Furthermore, younger adults showed higher functional connectivity between auditory network and medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) that was specific to music listening, whereas older adults showed a more globally diffuse pattern of connectivity, including higher connectivity between auditory regions and bilateral lingual and inferior frontal gyri. Finally, connectivity between auditory and reward regions was higher when listening to music selected by the participant. These results highlight the roles of aging and reward sensitivity on auditory and reward networks. Results may inform the design of music- based interventions for older adults, and improve our understanding of functional network dynamics of the brain at rest and during a cognitively engaging task.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2021

Music-Based Intervention Connects Auditory and Reward Systems

Listening to pleasurable music is known to engage the brains reward system. This has motivated many cognitive-behavioral interventions for healthy aging, but little is known about the effects of music-based intervention (MBI) on activity and connectivity of the brains auditory and reward systems. Here we show preliminary evidence that brain network connectivity can change after receptive MBI in cognitively unimpaired older adults. Using a combination of whole-brain regression, seed-based connectivity analysis, and representational similarity analysis (RSA), we examined fMRI responses during music listening in older adults before and after an eight-week personalized MBI. Participants rated self-selected and researcher-selected musical excerpts on liking and familiarity. Parametric effects of liking, familiarity, and selection showed simultaneous activation in auditory, reward, and default mode network (DMN) areas. Functional connectivity within and between auditory and reward networks was modulated by participant liking and familiarity ratings. RSA showed significant representations of selection and novelty at both time-points, and an increase in striatal representation of musical stimuli following intervention. An exploratory seed-based connectivity analysis comparing pre- and post-intervention showed significant increase in functional connectivity between auditory regions and medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). Taken together, results show how regular music listening can provide an auditory channel towards the mPFC, thus offering a potential neural mechanism for MBI supporting healthy aging.

neuroscience↗