Dopamine supports coupling of attention-related networks

Attentional processing has been associated with the dorsal attention, default mode, and frontoparietal control networks. The dorsal attention network is involved in externally focused attention whereas the default mode network is involved in internally directed attention. The frontoparietal control network has been proposed to mediate the transition between external and internal attention by coupling its activity to either the dorsal attention network or the default mode network, depending on the attentional demand. Dopamine is hypothesized to modulate attention and has been linked to the integrity of these three attention-related networks. We used PET with 6-[(18)F]fluoro-L-m-tyrosine to quantify dopamine synthesis capacity in vivo and fMRI to acquire stimulus-independent brain activity in cognitively healthy human subjects. We found that in the resting state where internal cognition dominates, dopamine enhances the coupling between the frontoparietal control network and the default mode network while reducing the coupling between the frontoparietal control network and the dorsal attention network. These results add a neurochemical perspective to the role of network interaction in modulating attention.