Pallidal functional connectivity changes are associated with disgust recognition in pure motor amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

In the present study, we aimed to investigate the resting-state functional connectivity (RS-FC) of the globus pallidus (GP) in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) compared to healthy controls, and the relationship between RS-FC changes and disgust recognition. Twenty-six pure-motor ALS patients and 52 healthy controls underwent RS functional MRI and a neuropsychological assessment including the Comprehensive Affect Testing System. A seed-based RS-FC analysis was performed between the left and right GP and the rest of the brain and compared between groups. Correlations between RS-FC significant changes and subjects’ performance in recognizing disgust were tested. Compared to controls, patients were significantly less able to recognize disgust. In ALS compared to controls, the seed-based analysis showed: reduced RS-FC between bilateral GP and bilateral middle and superior frontal and middle cingulate gyri, and increased RS-FC between bilateral GP and bilateral postcentral, supramarginal and superior temporal gyri and Rolandic operculum. Decreased RS-FC was further observed between left GP and left middle and inferior temporal gyri and bilateral caudate; and increased RS-FC was also shown between right GP and left lingual and fusiform gyri. In patients and controls, lower performance in recognizing disgust correlated with reduced RS-FC between left GP and left middle and inferior temporal gyri. In pure-motor ALS patients, we demonstrated altered RS-FC between GP and the rest of the brain. The reduced left pallidum-temporo-striatal RS-FC may have a role in the lower ability of patients in recognizing disgust.