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Functional network integrity presages cognitive decline in preclinical Alzheimer disease
Buckley RF, Schultz AP, Hedden T, Papp KV, Hanseeuw BJ, Marshall G, Sepulcre J, Smith EE et al.. Neurology, 2017-06-07
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Objective To examine the utility of resting-state functional connectivity MRI (rs-fcMRI) measurements of network integrity as a predictor of future cognitive decline in preclinical Alzheimer disease (AD). Methods A total of 237 clinically normal older adults (aged 63-90 years, Clinical Dementia Rating 0) underwent baseline β-amyloid (Aβ) imaging with Pittsburgh compound B PET and structural and rs-fcMRI. We identified 7 networks for analysis, including 4 cognitive networks (default, salience, dorsal attention, and frontoparietal control) and 3 noncognitive networks (primary visual, extrastriate visual, motor). Using linear and curvilinear mixed models, we used baseline connectivity in these networks to predict longitudinal changes in preclinical Alzheimer cognitive composite (PACC) performance, both alone and interacting with Aβ burden. Median neuropsychological follow-up was 3 years. Results Baseline connectivity in the default, salience, and control networks predicted longitudinal PACC decline, unlike connectivity in the dorsal attention and all noncognitive networks. Default, salience, and control network connectivity was also synergistic with Aβ burden in predicting decline, with combined higher Aβ and lower connectivity predicting the steepest curvilinear decline in PACC performance. Conclusions In clinically normal older adults, lower functional connectivity predicted more rapid decline in PACC scores over time, particularly when coupled with increased Aβ burden. Among examined networks, default, salience, and control networks were the strongest predictors of rate of change in PACC scores, with the inflection point of greatest decline beyond the fourth year of follow-up. These results suggest that rs-fcMRI may be a useful predictor of early, AD-related cognitive decline in clinical research settings.
Key findings
- Results Baseline connectivity in the default, salience, and control networks predicted longitudinal PACC decline, unlike connectivity in the dorsal attention and all noncognitive networks.
- These results suggest that rs-fcMRI may be a useful predictor of early, AD-related cognitive decline in clinical research settings.
Why it matters
In clinically normal older adults, lower functional connectivity in the default, salience, and control networks predicted later cognitive decline, and combining this with higher amyloid burden predicted the steepest decline. This suggests resting-state functional connectivity MRI may be useful as a predictor of early Alzheimer-related cognitive decline in research settings.
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Study details
- Study designlongitudinal study
- Participants237
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 66/100
Published in a leading specialty journal, and it is a longitudinal study following the same people over time. Scored zero for effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 9 / 10 | Tier 2 — leading specialty journal (Neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | 4 / 4 | Neurology: journal h-index 525 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 7 / 12 | A longitudinal study following the same people over time |
| Strength of evidence | 3 / 5 | Rated “moderate” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 2 / 5 | 2017 — within 10 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 2 / 4 | 237 participants |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 5 / 7 | Cited 142 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 12.9 citations a year over 11 year(s) since 2017 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 8.8× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 4 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 2 / 4 | Cited 38 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Jasmeer P. Chhatwal: h-index 64 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 3 / 3 | Harvard University: institution h-index 3,235 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 6 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 28592457) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 66 / 100 | — |
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Read the original
- DOI: 10.1212/wnl.0000000000004059
- PubMed: 28592457
- Original source →
- Free full text: PubMed Central →
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Buckley, R. F., Schultz, A. P., Hedden, T., Papp, K. V., Hanseeuw, B. J., Marshall, G., et al. (2017). Functional network integrity presages cognitive decline in preclinical Alzheimer disease. Neurology. https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.0000000000004059
Vancouver
Buckley RF, Schultz AP, Hedden T, Papp KV, Hanseeuw BJ, Marshall G, et al. Functional network integrity presages cognitive decline in preclinical Alzheimer disease. Neurology. 2017. doi:10.1212/wnl.0000000000004059. PMID: 28592457.
BibTeX
@article{buckley2017-28592457,
author = {Buckley, R. F. and Schultz, A. P. and Hedden, T. and Papp, K. V. and Hanseeuw, B. J. and Marshall, G. and Sepulcre, J. and Smith, E. E. and others},
title = {{Functional network integrity presages cognitive decline in preclinical Alzheimer disease}},
journal = {Neurology},
year = {2017},
doi = {10.1212/wnl.0000000000004059},
pmid = {28592457},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.0000000000004059}
}
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