Neural Correlates of Impaired Cognitive Control in Individuals with Methamphetamine Dependence
Poster No:
916
Submission Type:
Abstract Submission
Authors:
Ani Zerekidze1, Meng Li1, Nooshin Javaheripour2, Laura Huff1, Thomas Weiss3, Martin Walter2, Gerd Wagner1
Institutions:
1Jena University Hospital, Jena, Thuringia, 2Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany, 3Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Thuringia
First Author:
Co-Author(s):
Introduction:
The abuse of methamphetamine (crystal meth) has markedly increased in the last decades (UNODC 2022), which gave rise to the discussion about its harmful effects on the brain function because of its strong and direct impact on the central nervous system. Because of these wide-ranging neurochemical effects of methamphetamine intake, chronic abuse of crystal meth has been related to alteration in several cognitive domains (Homer et al. 2008; Chang et al. 2002; Salo et al. 2002; Potvin et al. 2018). Impaired cognitive and behavioral control has often been observed in people who use methamphetamine. A meta-analysis of 18 studies summarized that individuals with methamphetamine use disorders showed medium size deficits in cognitive control functions involving response inhibition and problem-solving (Scott et al. 2007). The findings of abnormal cognitive control functions coincides well with the clinical observations (Monterosso et al. 2005; Rubenis et al. 2018). However, a comprehensive understanding of the neural substrates underlying these impairments is still lacking. The goal of the present study was to study the neural correlates of impaired cognitive control in individuals with methamphetamine dependence. As the cognitive control was associated with activation in dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, and striatal regions, we expected to find a reduced blood oxygenation level dependent signal in these brain regions in individuals with MA dependence, particularly in the incongruent condition of Stroop test. We also expected to find an association between altered brain activation and impaired behavioral performance in the task.
Methods:
Eighteen individuals with methamphetamine dependence and twenty-one healthy controls were investigated by the manual version of the Stroop task (Wagner et al. 2015) in an event-related fMRI design. All imaging data were collected on a 3 T whole body system equipped with a 64-element head matrix coil (MAGNETOM PRISMA FIT, Siemens Healthineers, Erlangen, Germany). Firstly, a structural T1 image was acquired followed by the Stroop test, presented in the MR scanner to measure activation patterns in dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, and striatal regions with respect to the degree of cognitive control during a Stroop task. Impulsivity was assessed by a German version of the impulsive behavior scale (Schmidt, Gay, and Van der Linden 2008), exploring four dimensions of impulsivity: lack of premeditation, urgency, sensation seeking, and lack of perseverance.
Results:
Patients were found to have significantly poorer overall accuracy in the Stroop task and higher self-rated impulsivity. Comparing brain activations during the task, decreased activation in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, anterior midcingulate cortex, and dorsal striatum was observed in individuals with methamphetamine dependence, compared to healthy controls. Altered functional magnetic resonance imaging signal in dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and anterior midcingulate cortex significantly correlated with impaired behavioral task performance in individuals with methamphetamine dependence. Furthermore, significantly lower and pronounced brain activations in the methamphetamine group were additionally detected in several sensory cortical regions, i.e., in the visual, auditory, and somatosensory cortices. The results of the current study provide evidence for the negative impact of chronic crystal meth consumption on the proper functioning of the fronto-cingulate and striatal brain regions, presumably underlying the often-observed deficits in executive functions in individuals with methamphetamine use disorder.
·Significant group differences in brain activation during the incongruent Stroop task condition voxel-level: p < 0.001 uncorr., cluster-level: corrected according to expected voxels per cluster ≥ 16)
Conclusions:
In this study, we observed decreased brain activation during the Stroop task performance in the fronto-cingulate and striatal regions, but also, as a new finding, in several sensory cortical regions in methamphetamine abusers relative to healthy controls.
Disorders of the Nervous System:
Psychiatric (eg. Depression, Anxiety, Schizophrenia)
Higher Cognitive Functions:
Executive Function, Cognitive Control and Decision Making 1
Novel Imaging Acquisition Methods:
BOLD fMRI 2
Keywords:
Addictions
Cognition
FUNCTIONAL MRI
Other - Stroop task
1|2Indicates the priority used for review
Provide references using author date format
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