Functional connectivity during feedback learning in smokers

Abstract

Background: Although it has been traditionally assumed that dysregulation of psychological processes in smokers results from activity within specific brain regions, an emerging view regards such dysregulation as attributable to aberrant communication between distinct brain regions. These processes can be measured during appropriate task paradigms such as the learning from errors task. This study aims to elucidate interactions between brain regions underlying the process of learning from errors, punishment and sensitivity to reward in dependent smokers.Methods: Functional MRI data from 23 age-matched dependent smokers (8 females, mean age = 25.48, SD = 4.46) and 23 controls (13 females, mean age = 24.83, SD = 5.99) were analysed during a feedback-based associative learning task. Functional connectivity between the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, nucleus accumbens and reward/sensorimotor areas was investigated during a feedback learning task.Results: Behaviourally, smokers exhibited lower error correction rates and were less sensitive to punishment magnitude. Smokers showed increased functional connectivity between dorsal anterior cingulate cortex/nucleus accumbens seed regions and numerous reward-related target regions including the putamen, anterior cingulate and orbitofrontal cortex.Conclusions: Reduced learning from errors and widespread aberrant functional connectivity contribute to the emerging functional characterisation of dependent smokers and may bear significant implications when considering the efficacy of smoking interventions.

Functional Domains of Substance Use and Trauma: A Systematic Review of Neuroimaging Studies

“…During a feedback learning task, widespread greater FC in the dACC and other target regions of interest, including the ACC, was found in individuals who use tobacco (Duehlmeyer et al, 2022). Lastly, one study found that during an unconscious presentation of tobacco smoking images versus the unconscious presentation of neutral images greater FC between the right amygdala and right ACC in individuals who use tobacco than those who did not use tobacco (Zhang et al, 2009).…”

Functional Domains of Substance Use and their Implications to Trauma: A Systematic Review of Neuroimaging Studies

“… 42 During a feedback learning task, widespread greater FC in the dorsal ACC (dACC) and other target regions of interest, including the ACC, was found in individuals who use tobacco. 57 Lastly, one study found that during an unconscious presentation of tobacco smoking images versus the unconscious presentation of neutral images greater FC between the right amygdala and right ACC in individuals who use tobacco than those who did not use tobacco. 58 …”

“…During a monetary incentive delay task and feedback learning task, individuals who used tobacco exhibited greater OFC activation than controls. 43 , 57 During an attentional bias paradigm, individuals who used tobacco exhibited significantly lesser OFC activation than controls. 44 In response to an Iowa Gambling Task, individuals who used cannabis showed significantly greater activation in the right OFC during win versus loss trials than controls.…”

“…During cue-reactivity tasks, individuals diagnosed with DSM-IV alcohol dependence, 40 , 42 , 63 individuals with nicotine dependence, 61 , 64 and individuals who used cannabis 43 , 51 , 62 exhibited greater striatal activation to their preferred substance or other rewarding stimuli than controls. Similarly, using monetary reward and anticipatory tasks, 46 , 65 card guessing tasks, 54 , 66 incentive processing tasks, 47 , 52 attentional bias paradigms, 44 and feedback learning tasks 57 increased striatal activation is present than controls. During an incentive processing task, individuals with an AUD diagnosis exhibited lower effective directional connectivity between the ACC to the ventral and dorsal striatum than controls without AUD.…”

“… 42 When responding to feedback learning tasks, individuals who used tobacco showed increased connectivity between the ACC and OFC versus those who did not use tobacco. 57 …”