The earliest addiction-related rsFC study reported marked reductions in connectivity within the primary visual and motor cortices after cocaine administration to addicted individuals, presumably reflecting changes in coherent neuronal firing patterns (Li et al., 2000). Subsequently, using a functional connectivity analysis on [15O] PET data, Daglish et al. (2003) identified two networks during opiate craving, one including anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and temporal cortex and a second involving orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), parietal, and insula, suggesting engagement of motivational and attentional circuits. These networks are similar to those seen following cocaine cue provocation (Garavan et al., 2000), again suggesting that circuits identified at rest reflect those engaged during active task performance. More recent rsFC endeavors in drug addiction have interrogated altered connectivity between specific regions of interest (i.e., “seed” regions) and their interconnected brain regions. As a broad organization principle, we have grouped findings from these initial studies according to general psychological constructs often associated with impairment in drug addiction: 1) reward dysregulation, 2) emotional dysregulation, and 3) cognitive dysregulation.
