Physical activity and network attack tolerance preserve motor function in Parkinson's disease: A pilot study

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Systems Neuroscience
• Computational Neuroscience

Background:

• Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by motor dysfunction.
• Network resilience, quantified by network attack tolerance (NAT), is a measure of a network's ability to withstand disruptions.
• Dopamine terminal (DaT) integrity is crucial for motor control and is affected in PD.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between network attack tolerance (NAT), dopamine terminal (DaT) integrity, motor function, and lifestyle factors in Parkinson's disease (PD).
• To explore the moderating role of lifestyle factors on the relationship between NAT and motor function in PD.

Main Methods:

• Assessed NAT at global and subnetwork levels using resting-state fMRI data from 22 individuals with PD and 39 healthy controls.
• Collected data on lifetime physical activity (PA), cognitive/motor performance, and putaminal DaT integrity.
• Employed linear-mixed-effects models to analyze the effects of PA, education, and DaT integrity on NAT, and the moderating effects of lifestyle factors on NAT-motor function association.

Main Results:

• Greater putaminal DaT integrity was associated with higher somatomotor NAT.
• Higher global and somatomotor NAT supported motor function, particularly in PD patients with moderate lifetime PA.
• Lifestyle factors demonstrated network-specific attack tolerance, potentially aiding motor function maintenance in early-stage PD.

Conclusions:

• Network resilience (NAT) is linked to dopamine integrity and motor function in Parkinson's disease.
• Lifestyle factors, such as physical activity, may play a protective role by enhancing network resilience and supporting motor function in PD.
• These findings highlight the potential of targeting lifestyle interventions to improve network health and motor outcomes in early PD.