Aberrant cortical subcortical somatosensory network organization is associated with impaired tactile-motion perception in akinetic-rigid Parkinson's disease

Background: Parkinson's disease (PD) is associated with somatosensory dysfunction, yet higher-order tactile motion processing and its neural basis remain poorly understood. Here, we combined psychophysical assessment of tactile-motion perception with resting-state functional MRI (rs fMRI) to investigate how altered sensorimotor network organization relates to tactile perceptual deficits in akinetic-rigid dominant PD (PDAR). Methods: Forty-six participants (25 PDAR and 21 healthy controls, HCs) underwent clinical evaluation and resting-state functional MRI scanning. A subset of participants (15 PDAR and 15 HCs) additionally completed a tactile-motion perception task assessing directional bias and speed sensitivity. ROI-to-ROI functional connectivity analyses were performed within a customized 26-node sensorimotor and cortico-basal ganglia-thalamo-cortical (CBGTC) network. Results: Compared with HCs, PDAR patients exhibited significantly altered tactile-motion perception, including greater directional bias (p = 0.047) and reduced sensitivity to dynamic tactile speed (p < 0.001), reflecting diminished sensitivity to mid-to-high speeds. Resting-state functional connectivity analyses revealed widespread reductions in connectivity within cortical somatosensory regions (Areas 1, 2, 3a, 3b, 5), particularly between primary somatosensory and motor cortices. In contrast, increased connectivity was observed between basal ganglia-thalamic structures and cortical sensorimotor regions, including thalamus-M1 and GPi-sensorimotor connections (all p-FDR < 0.05). Conclusions: These findings demonstrate a dual pattern of sensorimotor network reorganization in PDAR, characterized by disrupted cortical somatosensory integration alongside enhanced subcortical-cortical coupling. The present study provides evidence that higher-order tactile-motion dysfunction in PD is associated with large-scale abnormalities in distributed sensorimotor networks and highlights the somatosensory system as a potential target for future therapeutic intervention.

Qu, B., Jiang, Y., Yue, Y., Shen, T., Gao, C., Huang, D., Shen, Y., De Zeeuw, C., Zhang, B., Lai, H.-Y.

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