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The association between frontal-striatal connectivity and sensorimotor control in cocaine users
Colleen A Hanlon1, Michael J Wesley, Jennifer R Stapleton
1Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC 27157, USA.
Drug and Alcohol Dependence
|January 4, 2011
Summary
Chronic cocaine use impairs sensorimotor function by weakening frontal-striatal brain connectivity. This deficit in cocaine users during simple movement tasks may affect complex cognitive processes.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Science
- Addiction Research
Background:
- Chronic cocaine users exhibit deficits in sensorimotor tasks, attention, and planning.
- Dysfunction in frontal-striatal circuits is linked to compulsive behaviors and impaired cognitive functions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate impaired frontal-striatal connectivity in cocaine users during a simple motor task.
- To determine the association between frontal-striatal connectivity and sensorimotor deficits in cocaine users.
Main Methods:
- Functional MRI (fMRI) data were acquired from 14 cocaine users and 15 healthy controls during a finger-tapping task.
- Functional coupling was assessed by correlating timecourses of connected regions of interest.
- Behavioral performance was correlated with functional coupling coefficients.
Main Results:
- Healthy controls showed significant coupling between motor cortex, supplementary motor area (SMA), and dorsal striatum.
- Cocaine users displayed reduced fronto-striatal coupling compared to controls, while cortical-cortical coupling remained intact.
- In cocaine users, SMA-caudate coupling strength negatively correlated with reaction time.
Conclusions:
- Cocaine users demonstrate impaired cortical-striatal connectivity during simple motor tasks.
- This connectivity deficit suggests fundamental information processing impairments in cocaine users.
- Findings indicate potential links between sensorimotor deficits and broader cognitive impairments in chronic cocaine use.
