Selective changes of resting-state networks in individuals at risk for Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder that prominently affects cerebral connectivity. Assessing the functional connectivity at rest, recent functional MRI (fMRI) studies reported on the existence of resting-state networks (RSNs). RSNs are characterized by spatially coherent, spontaneous fluctuations in the blood oxygen level-dependent signal and are made up of regional patterns commonly involved in functions such as sensory, attention, or default mode processing. In AD, the default mode network (DMN) is affected by reduced functional connectivity and atrophy. In this work, we analyzed functional and structural MRI data from healthy elderly (n = 16) and patients with amnestic mild cognitive…