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It has been reported that cannabis consumption affects the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), a structure with a central role in mediating the empathic response. In this study, we compared psychometric scores of empathy subscales, between a group of regular cannabis users (85, users) and a group of non-consumers (51, controls). We found that users have a greater Emotional Comprehension, a cognitive empathy trait involving the understanding of the "other" emotional state. Resting state functional MRI in a smaller sample (users = 46, controls = 34) allowed to identify greater functional connectivity (FC) of the ACC with the left somatomotor cortex (SMC), in users when compared to controls. These differences were also evident within the empathy core network, where users showed greater within network FC. The greater FC showed by the users is associated with emotional representational areas and empathy-related regions. In addition, the differences in psychometric scores suggest that users have more empathic comprehension. These findings suggest a potential association between cannabis use, a greater comprehension of the other's affective state and the functional brain organization of the users. However, further research is needed to explore such association, since many other factors may be at play.
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Cannabis , Empatía , Giro del Cíngulo/diagnóstico por imagen , Emociones , Encéfalo , Agonistas de Receptores de CannabinoidesRESUMEN
TwinsMX registry is a national research initiative in Mexico that aims to understand the complex interplay between genetics and environment in shaping physical and mental health traits among the country's population. With a multidisciplinary approach, TwinsMX aims to advance our knowledge of the genetic and environmental mechanisms underlying ethnic variations in complex traits and diseases, including behavioral, psychometric, anthropometric, metabolic, cardiovascular and mental disorders. With information gathered from over 2800 twins, this article updates the prevalence of several complex traits; and describes the advances and novel ideas we have implemented such as magnetic resonance imaging. The future expansion of the TwinsMX registry will enhance our comprehension of the intricate interplay between genetics and environment in shaping health and disease in the Mexican population. Overall, this report describes the progress in the building of a solid database that will allow the study of complex traits in the Mexican population, valuable not only for our consortium, but also for the worldwide scientific community, by providing new insights of understudied genetically admixed populations.
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Interacción Gen-Ambiente , Sistema de Registros , Humanos , México/epidemiología , Masculino , Femenino , Adulto , Enfermedades en Gemelos/genética , Enfermedades en Gemelos/epidemiología , Persona de Mediana Edad , Gemelos Monocigóticos/genética , Gemelos Dicigóticos/genética , Trastornos Mentales/genética , Trastornos Mentales/epidemiología , Enfermedades Cardiovasculares/genética , Enfermedades Cardiovasculares/epidemiologíaRESUMEN
Reading learning disability (RLD) is characterized by a specific difficulty in learning to read that is not better explained by an intellectual disability, lack of instruction, psychosocial adversity, or a neurological disorder. According to the domain-general hypothesis, a working memory deficit is the primary problem. Working memory in this population has recently been linked to altered resting-state functional connectivity within the default mode network (DMN), salience network (SN), and frontoparietal network (FPN) compared to that in typically developing individuals. The main purpose of the present study was to compare the within-network functional connectivity of the DMN, SN, FPN, and reading network in two groups of children with RLD: a group with lower-than-average working memory (LWM) and a group with average working memory (AWM). All subjects underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and data were analyzed from a network perspective using the network brain statistics framework. The results showed that the LWM group had significantly weaker connectivity in a network that involved brain regions in the DMN, SN, and FPN than the AWM group. Although there was no significant difference between groups in reading network in the present study, other studies have shown relationship of the connectivity of the angular gyrus, supramarginal gyrus, and inferior parietal lobe with the phonological process of reading. The results suggest that although there are significant differences in functional connectivity in the associated networks between children with LWM and AWM, the distinctive cognitive profile has no specific effect on the reading network.
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Dislexia , Imagen por Resonancia Magnética , Memoria a Corto Plazo , Humanos , Memoria a Corto Plazo/fisiología , Niño , Masculino , Femenino , Dislexia/fisiopatología , Dislexia/diagnóstico por imagen , Encéfalo/diagnóstico por imagen , Encéfalo/fisiopatología , Red Nerviosa/diagnóstico por imagen , Red Nerviosa/fisiopatología , Lectura , Estudios de Casos y ControlesRESUMEN
Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified genetic variants associated with brain morphology and substance use behaviors (SUB). However, the genetic overlap between brain structure and SUB has not been well characterized. We leveraged GWAS summary data of 71 brain imaging measures and alcohol, tobacco, and cannabis use to investigate their genetic overlap using linkage disequilibrium score regression. We used genomic structural equation modeling to model a "common SUB genetic factor" and investigated its genetic overlap with brain structure. Furthermore, we estimated SUB polygenic risk scores (PRS) and examined whether they predicted brain imaging traits using the Adolescent Behavior and Cognitive Development (ABCD) study. We identified 8 significant negative genetic correlations, including between (1) alcoholic drinks per week and average cortical thickness, and (2) intracranial volume with age of smoking initiation. We observed 5 positive genetic correlations, including those between (1) insula surface area and lifetime cannabis use, and (2) the common SUB genetic factor and pericalcarine surface area. SUB PRS were associated with brain structure variation in ABCD. Our findings highlight a shared genetic etiology between cortical brain morphology and SUB and suggest that genetic variants associated with SUB may be causally related to brain structure differences.
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Cannabis , Estudio de Asociación del Genoma Completo , Adolescente , Encéfalo/diagnóstico por imagen , Humanos , Herencia Multifactorial , Nicotiana/genéticaRESUMEN
Astigmatism and myopia are two common ocular refractive errors that can impact daily life, including learning and productivity. Current knowledge suggests that the etiology of these conditions is the result of a complex interplay between genetic and environmental factors. Studies in populations of European ancestry have demonstrated a higher concordance of refractive errors in monozygotic (MZ) twins compared to dizygotic (DZ) twins. However, there is a lack of studies on genetically informative samples of multi-ethnic ancestry. This study aimed to estimate the genetic contribution to astigmatism and myopia in the Mexican population. A sample of 1399 families, including 243 twin pairs and 1156 single twins, completed a medical questionnaire about their own and their co-twin's diagnosis of astigmatism and myopia. Concordance rates for astigmatism and myopia were estimated, and heritability and genetic correlations were determined using a bivariate ACE Cholesky decomposition method, decomposed into A (additive genetic), C (shared environmental) and E (unique environmental) components. The results showed a higher concordance rate for astigmatism and myopia for MZ twins (.74 and .74, respectively) than for DZ twins (.50 and .55). The AE model, instead of the ACE model, best fitted the data. Based on this, heritability estimates were .81 for astigmatism and .81 for myopia, with a cross-trait genetic correlation of rA = .80, nonshared environmental correlation rE = .89, and a phenotypic correlation of rP = .80. These results are consistent with previous findings in other populations, providing evidence for a similar genetic architecture of these conditions in the multi-ethnic Mexican population.
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BACKGROUND: Glycolytic metabolism in the brain of pediatric patients, imaged with [18F] fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) is incompletely characterized. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the current study was to characterize [18F]FDG-PET brain uptake in a large sample of pediatric patients with non-central nervous system diseases as an alternative to healthy subjects to evaluate changes at different pediatric ages. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seven hundred ninety-five [18F]FDG-PET examinations from children < 18 years of age without central nervous system diseases were included. Each brain image was spatially normalized, and the standardized uptake value (SUV) was obtained. The SUV and the SUV relative to different pseudo-references were explored as a function of age. RESULTS: At all evaluated ages, the occipital lobe showed the highest [18F]FDG uptake (0.27 ± 0.04 SUV/year), while the parietal lobe and brainstem had the lowest uptake (0.17 ± 0.02 SUV/year, for both regions). An increase [18F]FDG uptake was found for all brain regions until 12 years old, while no significant uptake differences were found between ages 13 (SUV = 5.39) to 17 years old (SUV = 5.52) (P < 0.0001 for the whole brain). A sex dependence was found in the SUVmean for the whole brain during adolescence (SUV 5.04-5.25 for males, 5.68-5.74 for females, P = 0.0264). Asymmetries in [18F]FDG uptake were found in the temporal and central regions during infancy. CONCLUSIONS: Brain glycolytic metabolism of [18F]FDG, measured through the SUVmean, increased with age until early adolescence (< 13 years old), showing differences across brain regions. Age, sex, and brain region influence [18F]FDG uptake, with significant hemispheric asymmetries for temporal and central regions.
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Fluorodesoxiglucosa F18 , Tomografía de Emisión de Positrones , Masculino , Femenino , Adolescente , Humanos , Niño , Tomografía de Emisión de Positrones/métodos , Encéfalo/diagnóstico por imagen , Encéfalo/metabolismo , Voluntarios Sanos , RadiofármacosRESUMEN
Relating brain dynamics acting on time scales that differ by at least an order of magnitude is a fundamental issue in brain research. The same is true for the observation of stable dynamical structures in otherwise highly non-stationary signals. The present study addresses both problems by the analysis of simultaneous resting state EEG-fMRI recordings of 53 patients with epilepsy. Confirming previous findings, we observe a generic and temporally stable average correlation pattern in EEG recordings. We design a predictor for the General Linear Model describing fluctuations around the stationary EEG correlation pattern and detect resting state networks in fMRI data. The acquired statistical maps are contrasted to several surrogate tests and compared with maps derived by spatial Independent Component Analysis of the fMRI data. By means of the proposed EEG-predictor we observe core nodes of known fMRI resting state networks with high specificity in the default mode, the executive control and the salience network. Our results suggest that both, the stationary EEG pattern as well as resting state fMRI networks are different expressions of the same brain activity. This activity is interpreted as the dynamics on (or close to) a stable attractor in phase space that is necessary to maintain the brain in an efficient operational mode. We discuss that this interpretation is congruent with the theoretical framework of complex systems as well as with the brain's energy balance.
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Corteza Cerebral/fisiología , Conectoma/métodos , Red en Modo Predeterminado/fisiología , Electroencefalografía/métodos , Función Ejecutiva/fisiología , Imagen por Resonancia Magnética/métodos , Red Nerviosa/fisiología , Adolescente , Adulto , Anciano , Corteza Cerebral/diagnóstico por imagen , Red en Modo Predeterminado/diagnóstico por imagen , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Red Nerviosa/diagnóstico por imagen , Adulto JovenRESUMEN
Adolescence is a developmental period that dramatically impacts body and behavior, with pubertal hormones playing an important role not only in the morphological changes in the body but also in brain structure and function. Understanding brain development during adolescence has become a priority in neuroscience because it coincides with the onset of many psychiatric and behavioral disorders. However, little is known about how puberty influences the brain functional connectome. In this study, taking a longitudinal human sample of typically developing children and adolescents (of both sexes), we demonstrate that the development of the brain functional connectome better fits pubertal status than chronological age. In particular, centrality, segregation, efficiency, and integration of the brain functional connectome increase after the onset of the pubertal markers. We found that these effects are stronger in attention and task control networks. Lastly, after controlling for this effect, we showed that functional connectivity between these networks is related to better performance in cognitive flexibility. This study points out the importance of considering longitudinal nonlinear trends when exploring developmental trajectories, and emphasizes the impact of puberty on the functional organization of the brain in adolescence.
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Encéfalo/diagnóstico por imagen , Conectoma/tendencias , Red Nerviosa/diagnóstico por imagen , Dinámicas no Lineales , Pubertad/fisiología , Adolescente , Encéfalo/crecimiento & desarrollo , Niño , Femenino , Estudios de Seguimiento , Humanos , Estudios Longitudinales , Imagen por Resonancia Magnética/métodos , Masculino , Red Nerviosa/crecimiento & desarrollo , Adulto JovenRESUMEN
PURPOSE: Heating of gradient coils and passive shim components is a common cause of instability in the B0 field, especially when gradient intensive sequences are used. The aim of the study was to set a benchmark for typical drift encountered during MR spectroscopy (MRS) to assess the need for real-time field-frequency locking on MRI scanners by comparing field drift data from a large number of sites. METHOD: A standardized protocol was developed for 80 participating sites using 99 3T MR scanners from 3 major vendors. Phantom water signals were acquired before and after an EPI sequence. The protocol consisted of: minimal preparatory imaging; a short pre-fMRI PRESS; a ten-minute fMRI acquisition; and a long post-fMRI PRESS acquisition. Both pre- and post-fMRI PRESS were non-water suppressed. Real-time frequency stabilization/adjustment was switched off when appropriate. Sixty scanners repeated the protocol for a second dataset. In addition, a three-hour post-fMRI MRS acquisition was performed at one site to observe change of gradient temperature and drift rate. Spectral analysis was performed using MATLAB. Frequency drift in pre-fMRI PRESS data were compared with the first 5:20 minutes and the full 30:00 minutes of data after fMRI. Median (interquartile range) drifts were measured and showed in violin plot. Paired t-tests were performed to compare frequency drift pre- and post-fMRI. A simulated in vivo spectrum was generated using FID-A to visualize the effect of the observed frequency drifts. The simulated spectrum was convolved with the frequency trace for the most extreme cases. Impacts of frequency drifts on NAA and GABA were also simulated as a function of linear drift. Data from the repeated protocol were compared with the corresponding first dataset using Pearson's and intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC). RESULTS: Of the data collected from 99 scanners, 4 were excluded due to various reasons. Thus, data from 95 scanners were ultimately analyzed. For the first 5:20 min (64 transients), median (interquartile range) drift was 0.44 (1.29) Hz before fMRI and 0.83 (1.29) Hz after. This increased to 3.15 (4.02) Hz for the full 30 min (360 transients) run. Average drift rates were 0.29 Hz/min before fMRI and 0.43 Hz/min after. Paired t-tests indicated that drift increased after fMRI, as expected (p < 0.05). Simulated spectra convolved with the frequency drift showed that the intensity of the NAA singlet was reduced by up to 26%, 44 % and 18% for GE, Philips and Siemens scanners after fMRI, respectively. ICCs indicated good agreement between datasets acquired on separate days. The single site long acquisition showed drift rate was reduced to 0.03 Hz/min approximately three hours after fMRI. DISCUSSION: This study analyzed frequency drift data from 95 3T MRI scanners. Median levels of drift were relatively low (5-min average under 1 Hz), but the most extreme cases suffered from higher levels of drift. The extent of drift varied across scanners which both linear and nonlinear drifts were observed.
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Encéfalo/diagnóstico por imagen , Encéfalo/metabolismo , Análisis de Datos , Bases de Datos Factuales/normas , Imagen por Resonancia Magnética/normas , Espectroscopía de Resonancia Magnética/normas , Humanos , Imagen por Resonancia Magnética/métodos , Espectroscopía de Resonancia Magnética/métodosRESUMEN
Several neuroimaging studies have reported associations between brain white matter microstructure and chronotype. However, it is unclear whether those phenotypic relationships are causal or underlined by genetic factors. In the present study, we use genetic data to examine the genetic overlap and infer causal relationships between chronotype and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) measures. We identify 29 significant pairwise genetic correlations, of which 13 also show evidence for a causal association. Genetic correlations were identified between chronotype and brain-wide mean, axial and radial diffusivities. When exploring individual tracts, 10 genetic correlations were observed with mean diffusivity, 10 with axial diffusivity, 4 with radial diffusivity and 2 with mode of anisotropy. We found evidence for a possible causal association of eveningness with white matter microstructure measures in individual tracts including the posterior limb and the retrolenticular part of the internal capsule; the genu and splenium of the corpus callosum and the posterior, superior and anterior regions of the corona radiata. Our findings contribute to the understanding of how genes influence circadian preference and brain white matter and provide a new avenue for investigating the role of chronotype in health and disease.
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Sustancia Blanca , Anisotropía , Encéfalo/diagnóstico por imagen , Imagen de Difusión Tensora , Humanos , Neuroimagen , Sustancia Blanca/diagnóstico por imagenRESUMEN
A voxel-based method for measuring sulcal width was developed, validated and applied to a database. This method (EDT-based LM) employs the 3D Euclidean Distance Transform (EDT) of the pial surface and a Local Maxima labeling algorithm. A computational phantom was designed to test method performance; results revealed the method's inaccuracy δ, to range between 0.1 and 0.5 voxels, for a width that varied between 1 and 7 voxels. Two morphological descriptors were computed to characterize each defined sulcus: mean sulcal width (MSW) and mean absolute deviation (MAD). The former is the average width for all available width measurements within the sulcus, and the latter is the deviation of these measurements. The EDT-based LM method was applied to the Minimal Interval Resonance Imaging in the Alzheimer's Disease (MIRIAD) database, for a set of high-resolution Magnetic Resonance (MR) images of 66 subjects: 43 patients with Alzheimer Disease (AD) and 23 control subjects. AD causes significant gray matter loss; hence, some sulci were expected to broaden. Methodological results concurred with this hypothesis. After a Wilcoxon test, MSW was grater in the case of all sulci pertaining to AD patients, (pâ¯<â¯0.05, FDR corrected), whereas MAD showed significant differences in 8 sulci (pâ¯<â¯0.05, FDR corrected). This work presents a novel voxel-based method for measuring sulcal width and extracting descriptors to characterize and compare the sulci within and across subjects.
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Enfermedad de Alzheimer/patología , Enfermedad de Alzheimer/fisiopatología , Corteza Cerebral/patología , Corteza Cerebral/fisiopatología , Procesamiento de Imagen Asistido por Computador , Algoritmos , Mapeo Encefálico , Femenino , Humanos , Procesamiento de Imagen Asistido por Computador/métodos , Imagen por Resonancia Magnética/métodos , MasculinoRESUMEN
TwinsMX is a national twin registry in Mexico recently created with institutional support from the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. It aims to serve as a platform to advance epidemiological and genetic research in the country and to disentangle the genetic and environmental contributions to health and disease in the admixed Mexican population. Here, we describe our recruitment and data collection strategies and discuss both the progress to date and future directions. More information about the registry is available on our website: https://twinsmxofficial.unam.mx/ (content in Spanish).
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Enfermedades en Gemelos/epidemiología , Enfermedades en Gemelos/genética , Interacción Gen-Ambiente , Sistema de Registros/estadística & datos numéricos , Gemelos Dicigóticos/genética , Gemelos Monocigóticos/genética , Adolescente , Adulto , Femenino , Estudios de Seguimiento , Humanos , Masculino , México/epidemiología , Persona de Mediana Edad , Selección de Paciente , Adulto JovenRESUMEN
Hemispheric specialization of cognitive functions is a developmental process that shapes the brain from the gestational stage to adulthood. Functional connectivity of the resting brain has been largely used to infer the hemispheric organization of the spontaneous brain activity. In particular, two main properties have been largely explored throughout development: hemispheric asymmetry of functional connectivity and homotopic functional connectivity. However, their relation with specific cognitive processes typically associated with hemispheric specialization, such as visuospatial abilities, remains largely unexplored. Such relationships could be particularly relevant for the quest of developmental cognitive biomarkers in childhood, a significant maturation period of visuospatial abilities. Moreover, the relation between asymmetry and homotopy of brain functional connectivity is not well understood. We have examined these two properties in a sample of 60 typically developing children between 6 and 10 years of age, and explored their relation with visuospatial abilities. First, we identified a strong negative relation between homotopy and asymmetry across the brain. In addition, these properties showed areas in the posterior portion of the brain, with significant correlation with performance in visual memory and visual attention tasks. These results highlight the relevance of the hemispheric organization of spontaneous brain activity for developmental cognition, particularly for visuospatial abilities.
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Atención/fisiología , Cerebro/fisiología , Lateralidad Funcional , Memoria/fisiología , Percepción Espacial/fisiología , Percepción Visual/fisiología , Mapeo Encefálico , Niño , Femenino , Humanos , Imagen por Resonancia Magnética , Masculino , Pruebas NeuropsicológicasRESUMEN
The human insula is a complex region characterized by heterogeneous cytoarchitecture, connectivity, and function. Subregional parcellation of the insula in adults has revealed an interesting anterior-posterior subdivision pattern that is highly consistent with its functional differentiation. However, the development of the insula's subregional segregation during the first 2 years of life remains unknown. The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that similar segregation of the insula exists during this critical time period based on the resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging study of a large cohort of infants (n = 143) with longitudinal scans. Our results confirmed a consistent anterior-posterior subdivision of the insula during the first 2 years of life with dissociable connectivity patterns associated with each cluster. Specifically, the anterior insula coupled more with frontal association areas, whereas the posterior insula integrated more with sensorimotor-related regions. More importantly, dramatic development of each subregion's functional network was observed, providing important neuronal correlates for the rapid advancement of its related functions during this time period.
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Corteza Cerebral/anatomía & histología , Corteza Cerebral/fisiología , Desarrollo Infantil/fisiología , Imagen por Resonancia Magnética , Red Nerviosa/fisiología , Vías Nerviosas/fisiología , Mapeo Encefálico/instrumentación , Mapeo Encefálico/métodos , Preescolar , Femenino , Humanos , Lactante , Recién Nacido , Estudios Longitudinales , MasculinoRESUMEN
The first postnatal year is characterized by the most dramatic functional network development of the human lifespan. Yet, the relative sequence of the maturation of different networks and the impact of socioeconomic status (SES) on their development during this critical period remains poorly characterized. Leveraging a large, normally developing infant sample with multiple longitudinal resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging scans during the first year (N = 65, scanned every 3 months), we aimed to delineate the relative maturation sequence of 9 key brain functional networks and examine their SES correlations. Our results revealed a maturation sequence from primary sensorimotor/auditory to visual to attention/default-mode, and finally to executive control networks. Network-specific critical growth periods were also identified. Finally, marginally significant positive SES-brain correlations were observed at 6 months of age for both the sensorimotor and default-mode networks, indicating interesting SES effects on functional brain maturation. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study delineating detailed longitudinal growth trajectories of all major functional networks during the first year of life and their SES correlations. Insights from this study not only improve our understanding of early brain development, but may also inform the critical periods for SES expression during infancy.
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Mapeo Encefálico , Encéfalo/crecimiento & desarrollo , Vías Nerviosas/crecimiento & desarrollo , Clase Social , Estadística como Asunto , Factores de Edad , Encéfalo/irrigación sanguínea , Femenino , Estudios de Seguimiento , Humanos , Procesamiento de Imagen Asistido por Computador , Lactante , Imagen por Resonancia Magnética , Masculino , Vías Nerviosas/irrigación sanguínea , Oxígeno/sangre , Padres/psicologíaRESUMEN
Infancy is a period featuring a high level of intersubject variability but the brain basis for such variability and the potential genetic/environmental contributions remain largely unexplored. The assessment of the brain's functional connectivity during infancy by the resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rsfMRI) technique (Biswal et al., 1995) provides a unique means to probe the brain basis of intersubject variability during infancy. In this study, an unusually large typically developing human infant sample including 58 singletons, 132 dizygotic twins, and 98 monozygotic twins with rsfMRI scans during the first 2 years of life was recruited to delineate the spatial and temporal developmental patterns of both the intersubject variability of and genetic effects on the brain's functional connectivity. Through systematic voxelwise functional connectivity analyses, our results revealed that the intersubject variability at birth features lower variability in primary functional areas but higher values in association areas. Although the relative pattern remains largely consistent, the magnitude of intersubject variability undergoes an interesting U-shaped growth during the first 2 years of life. Overall, the intersubject variability patterns during infancy show both adult-like and infant-specific characteristics (Mueller et al., 2013). On the other hand, age-dependent genetic effects were observed showing significant but bidirectional relationships with intersubject variability. The temporal and spatial patterns of the intersubject variability of and genetic contributions to the brain's functional connectivity documented in this study shed light on the largely uncharted functional development of the brain during infancy.
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Encéfalo/irrigación sanguínea , Encéfalo/crecimiento & desarrollo , Red Nerviosa/fisiología , Vías Nerviosas/fisiología , Factores de Edad , Mapeo Encefálico , Desarrollo Infantil/fisiología , Preescolar , Femenino , Humanos , Procesamiento de Imagen Asistido por Computador , Lactante , Recién Nacido , Imagen por Resonancia Magnética , Masculino , Red Nerviosa/irrigación sanguínea , Vías Nerviosas/irrigación sanguínea , Oxígeno/sangre , Descanso/fisiología , Gemelos Dicigóticos , Gemelos MonocigóticosRESUMEN
Although commonly viewed as a sensory information relay center, the thalamus has been increasingly recognized as an essential node in various higher-order cognitive circuits, and the underlying thalamocortical interaction mechanism has attracted increasing scientific interest. However, the development of thalamocortical connections and how such development relates to cognitive processes during the earliest stages of life remain largely unknown. Leveraging a large human pediatric sample (N = 143) with longitudinal resting-state fMRI scans and cognitive data collected during the first 2 years of life, we aimed to characterize the age-dependent development of thalamocortical connectivity patterns by examining the functional relationship between the thalamus and nine cortical functional networks and determine the correlation between thalamocortical connectivity and cognitive performance at ages 1 and 2 years. Our results revealed that the thalamus-sensorimotor and thalamus-salience connectivity networks were already present in neonates, whereas the thalamus-medial visual and thalamus-default mode network connectivity emerged later, at 1 year of age. More importantly, brain-behavior analyses based on the Mullen Early Learning Composite Score and visual-spatial working memory performance measured at 1 and 2 years of age highlighted significant correlations with the thalamus-salience network connectivity. These results provide new insights into the understudied early functional brain development process and shed light on the behavioral importance of the emerging thalamocortical connectivity during infancy.
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Mapeo Encefálico , Corteza Cerebral/crecimiento & desarrollo , Desarrollo Infantil , Cognición/fisiología , Red Nerviosa/crecimiento & desarrollo , Tálamo/crecimiento & desarrollo , Corteza Cerebral/fisiología , Femenino , Estudios de Seguimiento , Juegos Experimentales , Humanos , Lactante , Recién Nacido , Imagen por Resonancia Magnética , Masculino , Memoria a Corto Plazo/fisiología , Red Nerviosa/fisiología , Vías Nerviosas/crecimiento & desarrollo , Vías Nerviosas/fisiología , Pruebas Neuropsicológicas , Conducta Espacial/fisiología , Tálamo/fisiologíaRESUMEN
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is characterized by inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity, but there is no consensus regarding whether ADHD exists on the extreme end of a continuum of normal behavior or represents a discrete disorder. In this study, we sought to characterize both the categorical and dimensional variations in network functional connectivity in order to identify neural connectivity mechanisms of ADHD. Functional connectivity analyses of resting-state fMRI data from 155 children with ADHD and 145 typically developing children (TDC) defined the dorsal attention network (DA), default mode network (DM), salience processing network (SAL) and executive control network (CON). Regional alterations in connectivity associated with categorical diagnoses and dimensional symptom measures (inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity) as well as their interaction were systematically characterized. Dimensional relationships between symptom severity measures and functional connectivity that did not differ between TDC and children with ADHD were observed for each network, supporting a dimensional characterization of ADHD. However, categorical differences in functional connectivity magnitude between TDC and children with ADHD were detected after accounting for dimensional relationships, indicating the existence of categorical mechanisms independent of dimensional effects. Additionally, differential dimensional relationships for TDC versus ADHD children demonstrated categorical differences in brain-behavior relationships. The patterns of network functional organization associated with categorical versus dimensional measures of ADHD accentuate the complexity of this disorder and support a dual characterization of ADHD etiology featuring both dimensional and categorical mechanisms.
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Trastorno por Déficit de Atención con Hiperactividad/fisiopatología , Encéfalo/fisiopatología , Modelos Neurológicos , Trastorno por Déficit de Atención con Hiperactividad/diagnóstico , Trastorno por Déficit de Atención con Hiperactividad/etiología , Trastorno por Déficit de Atención con Hiperactividad/psicología , Mapeo Encefálico , Niño , Conducta Infantil/fisiología , Conducta Infantil/psicología , Humanos , Imagen por Resonancia Magnética , Vías Nerviosas/fisiopatología , Escalas de Valoración Psiquiátrica , DescansoRESUMEN
The claustrum is an irregular and fine sheet of grey matter in the basolateral telencephalon present in almost all mammals. The claustrum has been the object of several studies using animal models and, more recently, in human beings using neuroimaging. One of the most extended cognitive processes attributed to the claustrum is the salience process, which is also related to the insular cortex. In the same way, studies with human subjects and functional magnetic resonance imaging have reported the coactivation of the claustrum/insular cortex in the integration of sensory signals. This coactivation has been reported in the left claustrum/insular cortex or in the right claustrum/insular cortex. The asymmetry has been reported in task studies and literature related to neurological disorders such as Alzheimer's disease and schizophrenia, relating the severity of delusions with the reduction in left claustral volume. We present a functional connectivity study of the claustrum. Resting-state functional and anatomical MRI data from 100 healthy subjects were analyzed; taken from the Human Connectome Project (HCP, NIH Blueprint: The Human Connectome Project), with 2x2x2 mm3 voxel resolution. We hypothesize that 1) the claustrum is a node involved in different brain networks, 2) the functional connectivity pattern of the claustrum is different from the insular cortex's pattern, and 3) the asymmetry is present in the claustrum's functional connectivity. Our findings include at least three brain networks related to the claustrum. We found functional connectivity between the claustrum, frontoparietal network, and the default mode network as a distinctive attribute. The functional connectivity between the right claustrum with the frontoparietal network and the dorsal attention network supports the hypothesis of claustral asymmetry. These findings provide functional evidence, suggesting that the claustrum is coupled with the frontoparietal network serving together to instantiate new task states by flexibly modulating and interacting with other control and processing networks.
Asunto(s)
Claustro , Conectoma , Animales , Humanos , Encéfalo , Sustancia Gris/patología , Corteza Cerebral/diagnóstico por imagen , Imagen por Resonancia Magnética , MamíferosRESUMEN
Objective: To introduce MexOMICS, a Mexican Consortium focused on establishing electronic databases to collect, cross-reference, and share health-related and omics data on the Mexican population. Methods: Since 2019, the MexOMICS Consortium has established three electronic-based registries: the Mexican Twin Registry (TwinsMX), Mexican Lupus Registry (LupusRGMX), and the Mexican Parkinson's Research Network (MEX-PD), designed and implemented using the Research Electronic Data Capture web-based application. Participants were enrolled through voluntary participation and on-site engagement with medical specialists. We also acquired DNA samples and Magnetic Resonance Imaging scans in subsets of participants. Results: The registries have successfully enrolled a large number of participants from a variety of regions within Mexico: TwinsMX (n = 2,915), LupusRGMX (n = 1,761) and MEX-PD (n = 750). In addition to sociodemographic, psychosocial, and clinical data, MexOMICS has collected DNA samples to study the genetic biomarkers across the three registries. Cognitive function has been assessed with the Montreal Cognitive Assessment in a subset of 376 MEX-PD participants. Furthermore, a subset of 267 twins have participated in cognitive evaluations with the Creyos platform and in MRI sessions acquiring structural, functional, and spectroscopy brain imaging; comparable evaluations are planned for LupusRGMX and MEX-PD. Conclusions: The MexOMICS registries offer a valuable repository of information concerning the potential interplay of genetic and environmental factors in health conditions among the Mexican population.