Different Hippocampus Functional Connectivity Patterns in Healthy Young Adults with Mutations of APP/Presenilin-1/2 and APOEε4

This study aims to explore the hippocampus-based functional connectivity patterns in young, healthy APP and/or presenilin-1/2 mutation carriers and APOE e4 subjects. Seventy-eight healthy young adults (33 male, mean age 24.0 ± 2.2 years; 18 APP and/or presenilin1/2 mutation carriers [APP/presenilin-1/2 group], 30 APOE e4 subjects [APOE e4 group], and 30 subjects without the above-mentioned genes [control group]) underwent resting-state functional MR imaging and neuropsychological assessments. Bilateral hippocampus functional connectivity patterns were compared among three groups. The brain regions with statistical differences were then extracted, and correlation analyses were performed between Z values of the brain regions and neuropsychological results. Compared with control group, both APOE e4 group and APP/presenilin-1/2 group showed increased functional connectivity in medial prefrontal cortex and precuneus for the seeds of bilateral hippocampi. The APOE e4 group displayed increased functional connectivity from bilateral hippocampi to the left middle temporal gyrus compared with the control group. Moreover, compared with the APP/presenilin-1/2 group, the APOE e4 group also had markedly increased functional connectivity in right hippocampus-left middle temporal gyrus. The Z values of right hippocampus-left middle temporal gyrus correlated with various neuropsychological results across all the subjects, as well as in APOE e4 group. Young healthy adults carrying APOE e4 and APP/presenilin-1/2 displayed different hippocampus functional connectivity patterns, which may underlie the discrepant mechanisms of gene-modulated cognitive dysfunction in Alzheimer’s disease.