Research findings have consistently indicated that asthma might be correlated with neural activity in brain circuits, especially the insular and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), which are primary nodes of the salience network (SN). However, little is known about the relationships between the SN and other brain regions that are affected by asthma. Therefore, we explored the role of the SN to determine whether its neural activity was disrupted by asthma. Forty asthmatic patients and 40 well-matched healthy controls (HCs) underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging scanning and clinical assessments, including the asthma control test and 17-item Hamilton depression scale (HAMD). Altered spatial, network and temporal connections of the SN were investigated. Compared to HCs, patients showed increased functional connectivity (FC) between the dorsal ACC (dACC) and left middle frontal gyrus. In addition, network FC analysis suggested that the SN has increased connections with both the default mode network (DMN) and executive control network (ECN), which are both related to asthma. Asthma decreased the network connections between the DMN and ECN. Furthermore, Granger causality (GC) strengths from both the DMN and ECN to the bilateral anterior insula were increased in asthmatic patients. A positive correlation was found between GC strengths from the left parietal cortex to the right anterior insula and HAMD scores in asthmatic patients (r = 0.434, P = 0.005). The findings from this study suggested that the SN plays an important role in asthma. The aberrant spatial FC of the SN and its directional network connections with the DMN and ECN may contribute to the potential neural underpinnings of asthma.

研究结果一致表明，哮喘可能与大脑回路中的神经活动相关，尤其是岛叶和前扣带皮层 (ACC)，它们是显着网络 (SN) 的主要节点。然而，关于 SN 与其他受哮喘影响的大脑区域之间的关系知之甚少。因此，我们探索了 SN 的作用，以确定其神经活动是否被哮喘破坏。40 名哮喘患者和 40 名匹配良好的健康对照 (HC) 接受了功能性磁共振成像扫描和临床评估，包括哮喘控制测试和 17 项汉密尔顿抑郁量表 (HAMD)。研究了 SN 改变的空间、网络和时间连接。与HC相比，患者表现出背侧 ACC (dACC) 和左侧额中回之间的功能连接性 (FC) 增加。此外，网络 FC 分析表明，SN 增加了与默认模式网络（DMN）和执行控制网络（ECN）的连接，这两个网络都与哮喘有关。哮喘减少了 DMN 和 ECN 之间的网络连接。此外，哮喘患者从 DMN 和 ECN 到双侧前岛叶的格兰杰因果关系 (GC) 强度均有所增加。从左顶叶皮层到右前岛叶的 GC 强度与哮喘患者的 HAMD 评分呈正相关。网络FC分析表明，SN增加了与默认模式网络（DMN）和执行控制网络（ECN）的连接，这两个网络都与哮喘有关。哮喘减少了 DMN 和 ECN 之间的网络连接。此外，哮喘患者从 DMN 和 ECN 到双侧前岛叶的格兰杰因果关系 (GC) 强度均有所增加。从左顶叶皮层到右前岛叶的 GC 强度与哮喘患者的 HAMD 评分呈正相关。网络FC分析表明，SN增加了与默认模式网络（DMN）和执行控制网络（ECN）的连接，这两个网络都与哮喘有关。哮喘减少了 DMN 和 ECN 之间的网络连接。此外，哮喘患者从 DMN 和 ECN 到双侧前岛叶的格兰杰因果关系 (GC) 强度均有所增加。从左顶叶皮层到右前岛叶的 GC 强度与哮喘患者的 HAMD 评分呈正相关。r  = 0.434，P  = 0.005）。这项研究的结果表明，SN 在哮喘中起重要作用。SN 的异常空间 FC 及其与 DMN 和 ECN 的定向网络连接可能有助于哮喘的潜在神经基础。