Effects of stress on functional connectivity during problem solving
Aim: Our purpose was to examine how stress affects functional connectivity (FC) in language processing regions of the brain during a verbal problem solving task associated with creativity. We additionally explored how gender and the presence of the stress-susceptible short allele of the serotonin tr...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2020-03-01
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| Series: | NeuroImage |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S105381191930998X |
| _version_ | 1818841101225689088 |
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| author | Neetu Nair John P. Hegarty, II Bradley J. Ferguson Patrick M. Hecht Michael Tilley Shawn E. Christ David Q. Beversdorf |
| author_facet | Neetu Nair John P. Hegarty, II Bradley J. Ferguson Patrick M. Hecht Michael Tilley Shawn E. Christ David Q. Beversdorf |
| author_sort | Neetu Nair |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Aim: Our purpose was to examine how stress affects functional connectivity (FC) in language processing regions of the brain during a verbal problem solving task associated with creativity. We additionally explored how gender and the presence of the stress-susceptible short allele of the serotonin transporter gene polymorphism influenced this effect. Methods: Forty-five healthy participants (Mean age: 19.6 ± 1.6 years; 28 females) were recruited to be a part of this study and genotyped to determine the presence or absence of at least one copy of the short (S) allele of the serotonin transporter gene, which is associated with greater susceptibility to stress. The participants underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging in two separate sessions (stress and no stress control). One session utilized a modified version of the Montreal Imaging Stress Test (MIST) to induce stress while the other session consisted of a no stress control task. The MIST and control tasks were interleaved with task blocks during which the participants performed the compound remote associates task, a convergent task that engages divergent thinking, which is a critical component of creativity. We examined the relationship between stress effects on performance and effects on connectivity of language processing regions activated during this task. Results: There was no main effect of stress on functional connectivity for individual ROI pairs. However, in the examination of whether stress effects on performance related to effects on connectivity, changes in middle temporal gyrus connectivity with stress correlated positively with changes in solution latency for individuals with the S allele, but anti-correlated for those with only the L allele. A trend towards a gene × stress interaction on solution latency was also observed. Discussion: Results from the study suggest that genetic susceptibility to stress, such as the presence of the S allele, affects neural correlates of performance on tasks related to verbal problem solving, as indicated by connectivity of the middle temporal gyrus. Future work will need to determine whether connectivity of the middle temporal gyrus serves as a marker for the effect of stress susceptibility on cognition, extending into stress susceptible patient populations. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-19T04:20:43Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-388983e9a8b44a509e41057ed59f09bb |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1095-9572 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-19T04:20:43Z |
| publishDate | 2020-03-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | NeuroImage |
| spelling | doaj.art-388983e9a8b44a509e41057ed59f09bb2022-12-21T20:36:09ZengElsevierNeuroImage1095-95722020-03-01208116407Effects of stress on functional connectivity during problem solvingNeetu Nair0John P. Hegarty, II1Bradley J. Ferguson2Patrick M. Hecht3Michael Tilley4Shawn E. Christ5David Q. Beversdorf6Interdisciplinary Neuroscience Program, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA; Department of Radiology, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA; Thompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USAInterdisciplinary Neuroscience Program, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USAInterdisciplinary Neuroscience Program, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA; Thompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA; School of Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USAInterdisciplinary Neuroscience Program, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USADivision of Science, Math and Computer Science, Central Methodist University, Fayette, MO, USAInterdisciplinary Neuroscience Program, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA; Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USAInterdisciplinary Neuroscience Program, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA; Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA; Department of Radiology, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA; Department of Neurology, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA; Thompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA; William and Nancy Thompson Endowed Chair in Radiology, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA; School of Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA; Corresponding author. Thompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders Research and Training, University of Missouri, 205 Portland Street, Columbia, MO, 65211, USA.Aim: Our purpose was to examine how stress affects functional connectivity (FC) in language processing regions of the brain during a verbal problem solving task associated with creativity. We additionally explored how gender and the presence of the stress-susceptible short allele of the serotonin transporter gene polymorphism influenced this effect. Methods: Forty-five healthy participants (Mean age: 19.6 ± 1.6 years; 28 females) were recruited to be a part of this study and genotyped to determine the presence or absence of at least one copy of the short (S) allele of the serotonin transporter gene, which is associated with greater susceptibility to stress. The participants underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging in two separate sessions (stress and no stress control). One session utilized a modified version of the Montreal Imaging Stress Test (MIST) to induce stress while the other session consisted of a no stress control task. The MIST and control tasks were interleaved with task blocks during which the participants performed the compound remote associates task, a convergent task that engages divergent thinking, which is a critical component of creativity. We examined the relationship between stress effects on performance and effects on connectivity of language processing regions activated during this task. Results: There was no main effect of stress on functional connectivity for individual ROI pairs. However, in the examination of whether stress effects on performance related to effects on connectivity, changes in middle temporal gyrus connectivity with stress correlated positively with changes in solution latency for individuals with the S allele, but anti-correlated for those with only the L allele. A trend towards a gene × stress interaction on solution latency was also observed. Discussion: Results from the study suggest that genetic susceptibility to stress, such as the presence of the S allele, affects neural correlates of performance on tasks related to verbal problem solving, as indicated by connectivity of the middle temporal gyrus. Future work will need to determine whether connectivity of the middle temporal gyrus serves as a marker for the effect of stress susceptibility on cognition, extending into stress susceptible patient populations.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S105381191930998XCreativityDivergent thinkingFunctional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)Serotonin transporterGenetic susceptibilityFunctional connectivity |
| spellingShingle | Neetu Nair John P. Hegarty, II Bradley J. Ferguson Patrick M. Hecht Michael Tilley Shawn E. Christ David Q. Beversdorf Effects of stress on functional connectivity during problem solving NeuroImage Creativity Divergent thinking Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) Serotonin transporter Genetic susceptibility Functional connectivity |
| title | Effects of stress on functional connectivity during problem solving |
| title_full | Effects of stress on functional connectivity during problem solving |
| title_fullStr | Effects of stress on functional connectivity during problem solving |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effects of stress on functional connectivity during problem solving |
| title_short | Effects of stress on functional connectivity during problem solving |
| title_sort | effects of stress on functional connectivity during problem solving |
| topic | Creativity Divergent thinking Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) Serotonin transporter Genetic susceptibility Functional connectivity |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S105381191930998X |
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