Abstract
Stress affects the brain at a network level: the salience network is supposedly upregulated, while at the same time the executive control network is downregulated. While theoretically described, the effects in the aftermath of stress have thus far not been tested empirically. Here, we compared for the first time resting-state functional connectivity in a large sample of healthy volunteers before and after a mild social stressor. Following the theoretical prediction, we focused on connectivity of the salience network (SN), the executive control network (ECN) and the default mode network (DMN). The DMN exhibited increased resting-state functional connectivity following the cyberball task to the key nodes of the SN, namely the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) and the anterior insula, as well as sensorimotor regions and higher-order visual areas. We conclude that this increased connectivity of the DMN with key nodes of the SN and regions responsible for preparatory motor activity and visual motion processing indicates a shift towards an ‘alerted default mode’ in the aftermath of stress. This brain response may be triggered or aggravated by (social) stress induced by the cyberball task, enabling individuals to better reorient attention, detect salient external stimuli, and deal with the emotional and affective consequences of stress.
Highlights
The dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, dorso-medial prefrontal cortex and dorsal posterior parietal cortex[1,12], is suppressed in acute stress and up-regulated in the aftermath of stress
No significant differences between the first and the second resting-state measurement were found in salience network (SN) and ECN
In the contrast post-cyberball >pre-cyberball, significant differences in resting-state functional connectivity were found in the following regions, which all exhibited increased connectivity with the DMN after the cyberball task
Summary
The dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, dorso-medial prefrontal cortex and dorsal posterior parietal cortex[1,12], is suppressed in acute stress and up-regulated in the aftermath of stress. Maladaptive reallocation of neural resources, driven by noradrenergic bottom-up modulation triggered by the stressor is associated to default mode network hyperactivity[1,13]. This theoretical framework primarily provides a basis for neurochemical processes elicited during and after acute stress. The primary goal of the present study was to compare large-scale brain networks associated to adaptive stress responses before and after participants completed the cyberball task. We hypothesized that social stress induced by social exclusion might significantly influence the dynamics of large-scale brain networks that have previously been associated to stress. The DMN, executive control and SN were of primary interest for the present study
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