WTF is this? Yep today we are talking a new language and it is one of brain anatomy. The White matter of the brain looks white and contains the axons with their fatty myelin sheath. The grey matter on the outside of the brain and inside of the spinal cord contains the nerve cell bodies. Here they look at lesions and split the networks of nerves into six regions
Dorsal (Top, Upper) Default mode and the Ventral (Lower)Default Left/right Executive Control, and anterior/posterior Salience Networks
This based on an atlas of human white matter tracts/regions underlying several well-known resting state brain networks (e.g., dorsal and ventral Default Mode, left and right Executive Control, anterior and posterior Salience, Basal Ganglia, Language, Sensorimotor, Visuospatial).
Default mode network
Default Mode Network is active when your mind is at rest and not focused on the outside world.
Key functions:
- Self-referential thinking (thinking about yourself)
- Daydreaming and mind-wandering
- Remembering the past and imagining the future
- Social cognition (thinking about others)
This your brain’s “internal mode”—active when you’re reflecting, daydreaming, or lost in thought.
Dorsal DN Abstract, cognitive, and self-reflective thinking.“What does this mean about me or other people?”
Salience Network (SN)
The Salience Network detects what is important (or “salient”) and helps switch your attention.
This is your brain’s “attention switch”—it decides what deserves focus.
Anterior SN: Detecting important (salient) stimuli and initiating responses. It decides what matters right now and mobilizes resources.
Posterior SN:Integrating sensory and contextual information. It gathers bodily and sensory information
Executive Control Network (ECN)
Also called the Central Executive Network, this network is active during tasks that require focus and control.
Key functions:
- Working memory
- Decision-making
- Problem-solving
- Cognitive control and attention
This is your brain’s “task manager”—used when concentrating, planning, or solving problems.
Left Executive Control Network exhibits Structured, language-linked, goal-directed control. It helps you Follow the plan, step by step, using words or rules
Right Executive Control NetworkFlexible, attentional, and context-sensitive control helps you Stay alert, adapt, and respond to what’s happening.”
Figley TD, Kornelsen J, Uddin MN, Wong K, Pirzada S, Carter S, Helmick CA, O’Grady CB, Mazerolle EL, Patel R, Bernstein CN, Fisk JD, Marrie RA, Figley CR; CCOMS Study Group. White matter damage in multiple sclerosis disproportionately targets default mode, executive control, and salience networks. J Neurosci. 2026:e0278252026. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0278-25.2026. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 41963089.
Multiple sclerosis (MS) and several other neurodegenerative disorders affect structurally- and functionally-connected brain networks. However, the extent of structural damage within specific networks relative to global white matter has not been systematically explored in MS. The aims of this study were therefore to investigate white matter within six brain networks – i.e., dorsal/ventral Default Mode, left/right Executive Control, and anterior/posterior Salience Networks – to: 1) determine whether MS white matter lesions are disproportionately prevalent in these regions compared to global white matter; 2) quantify microstructural degradation in these regions among persons with MS (pwMS) compared to healthy controls (HCs); and 3) ascertain whether network degradation is larger than expected compared to global white matter differences between pwMS and HCs. White matter lesion maps, global white matter masks, and whole-brain diffusion MRI maps of mean diffusivity from 104 pwMS (48±12 years; 85 female) and 100 HCs (39±16; 65 female), were analyzed using the UManitoba-JHU Functionally-Defined Human White Matter Atlases.
Among pwMS, 4/6 white matter networks contained disproportionately high lesion volumes (p < 0.008). All 6 networks exhibited lower microstructure among pwMS compared to HCs (p < 0.008); and even after controlling for subject-specific global white matter values, 5/6 white matter networks exhibited disproportionately reduced tissue microstructure among pwMS compared to HCs (p < 0.008). These findings suggest that MS disproportionately affects white matter structural connections underlying specific intrinsic brain networks, including the Default Mode, Executive Control, and Salience Networks.Significance statement White matter lesions and diffuse white matter damage are among the hallmark pathologies of multiple sclerosis (MS). However, although MS-related functional activity and connectivity changes throughout large-scale brain networks (including the Default Mode, Executive Control, and Salience Networks) have been previously characterized, the current study is the first to systematically examine the concentration of white matter lesions and the degree of diffuse white matter damage underlying these networks. Our findings suggest that white matter structural connections underlying the Default Mode, Executive Control, and Salience Networks are disproportionately affected in persons with MS, with higher-than-expected concentrations of cerebral white matter lesions and greater than expected amounts of diffuse white matter damage.
Source: multiple-sclerosis-research.org