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Toward a transdiagnostic neurocircuitry-based biomarker model for pro-cognitive effects: challenges, opportunities, and next steps

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 March 2020

Cecilia S. Petersen  and
Kamilla W. Miskowiak Open the ORCID record for Kamilla W. Miskowiak [Opens in a new window]
Cecilia S. Petersen
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark CADIC, Psychiatric Centre Copenhagen, Copenhagen University Hospital, Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen, Denmark
Kamilla W. Miskowiak*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark CADIC, Psychiatric Centre Copenhagen, Copenhagen University Hospital, Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen, Denmark
*
*Kamilla W. Miskowiak, Email: kamilla@miskowiak.dk
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Abstract

Cognitive impairment has emerged as a key treatment priority in neuropsychiatric disorders. However, there is a lack of treatments with solid and lasting efficacy on cognition. A neurocircuitry-based biomarker model of pro-cognitive effects is critically needed to select among new candidate treatments. In a recent review of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies in mood disorders, we found that cognitive impairments are consistently accompanied by aberrant (hypo- and hyper-) activity in the dorsal prefrontal cortex (PFC) and the default mode network (DMN), and that activity change in these regions commonly occurs with cognitive improvements. Here, we (i) review the putative model from our recent review article, which explains the discrepant findings regarding the direction of aberrant dorsal PFC activity and treatment-related activity change in mood disorders. Inspired by the Research Domain Criteria project, we do this in order to (ii) examine whether a similar pattern of activity change occurs across distinct neuropsychiatric disorders and thereby provides a common biomarker for pro-cognitive effects. Lastly, we (iii) discuss whether dorsal PFC and DMN target engagement is a putative transdiagnostic neurocircuitry-based biomarker model for pro-cognitive effects, and (iv) outline the necessary next steps to address this question.

Keywords

Cognitive impairmentfMRIneural underpinningsdorsal prefrontal cortexdefault mode networkneurocircuitry-based biomarker model

Information

Type
Perspective
Information
CNS Spectrums , Volume 26 , Issue 4 , August 2021 , pp. 333 - 337
Copyright
© The Author(s) 2020. Published by Cambridge University Press

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