Correction: A Multi-Methodological MR Resting State Network Analysis to Assess the Changes in Brain Physiology of Children with ADHD.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0099119.].

A multi-methodological MR resting state network analysis to assess the changes in brain physiology of children with ADHD.

The purpose of this work was to highlight the neurological differences between the MR resting state networks of a group of children with ADHD (pre-treatment) and an age-matched healthy group. Results were obtained using different image analysis techniques. A sample of n = 46 children with ages between 6 and 12 years were included in this study (23 per cohort). Resting state image analysis was performed using ReHo, ALFF and ICA techniques. ReHo and ICA represent connectivity analyses calculated with different mathematical approaches. ALFF represents an indirect measurement of brain activity. The ReHo and ICA analyses suggested differences between the two groups, while the ALFF analysis did not. The ReHo and ALFF analyses presented differences with respect to the results previously reported in the literature. ICA analysis showed that the same resting state networks that appear in healthy volunteers of adult age were obtained for both groups. In contrast, these networks were not identical when comparing the healthy and ADHD groups. These differences affected areas for all the networks except the Right Memory Function network. All techniques employed in this study were used to monitor different cerebral regions which participate in the phenomenological characterization of ADHD patients when compared to healthy controls. Results from our three analyses indicated that the cerebellum and mid-frontal lobe bilaterally for ReHo, the executive function regions in ICA, and the precuneus, cuneus and the clacarine fissure for ALFF, were the "hubs" in which the main inter-group differences were found. These results do not just help to explain the physiology underlying the disorder but open the door to future uses of these methodologies to monitor and evaluate patients with ADHD.

On the use of α-chloralose for repeated BOLD fMRI measurements in rats.

Most animal experiments in neurosciences require anesthesia of the experimental animal. For fMRI experiments most neuroscientist would prefer (I) a recoverable anesthesia that would (II) allow strong BOLD responses which are (III) reproducibly obtained for the same animal in repetitive experiments. Strong BOLD responses are particularly needed if weak physiological stimuli like whisker deflection are used. A-chloralose, in contrast to isoflurane, fulfils the need for strong activation but has been traditionally considered as a terminal drug due to its negative physiological side effects. Here it is demonstrated, that new commercial α-chloralose in a careful application scheme allows for repeated fMRI studies on the same animal with similar responses after whisker stimulation. Only minor effects on the normal behavior were observed between drugs. These include a longer time to return to baseline values of food ingestion and slower tail reaction for the α-chloralose experiments.

Sensory inputs from whisking movements modify cortical whisker maps visualized with functional magnetic resonance imaging.

Rodents vary the frequency of whisking movements during exploratory and discriminatory behaviors. The effect of whisking frequency on whisker cortical maps was investigated by simulating whisking at physiological frequencies and imaging the whisker representations with blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) functional magnetic resonance imaging. Repetitive deflection of many right-sided whiskers at 10 Hz evoked a positive BOLD response that extended across contralateral primary somatosensory cortex (SI) and secondary somatosensory cortex (SII). In contrast, synchronous deflection of 2 adjacent whiskers (right C1 and C2) at 10 Hz evoked separate positive BOLD responses in contralateral SI and SII that were predominantly located in upper cortical layers. The positive BOLD responses were separated and partially surrounded by a negative BOLD response that was mainly in lower cortical layers. Two-whisker representations varied with the frequency of simulated whisking. Positive BOLD responses were largest with 7-Hz deflection. Negative BOLD responses were robust at 10 Hz but were weaker or absent with 7-Hz or 3-Hz deflection. Our findings suggest that sensory inputs attributable to the frequency of whisking movements modify whisker cortical representations.

In vivo imaging of intragastric gelation and its effect on satiety in humans.

Previous studies indicated that physical characteristics of food influence satiety, but the relative importance of the oral, gastric, and intestinal behaviors of the food is unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the satiating effects of 2 types of alginates, which gel weakly or strongly on exposure to acid, compared with guar gum whose viscosity is unaffected by acid. Subjects (n = 12; 3 men, 9 women) ingested a 325-mL sweetened, milk-based meal replacer beverage on 4 separate occasions, either alone as a control or including 1% by weight alginate or guar gum. Intragastric gelling, gastric emptying, and meal dilution were assessed by serial MRI while satiety was recorded for 4 h. MR images showed that all of the meals became heterogeneous in the stomach except for guar, which remained homogeneous. The alginate meals formed lumps in the stomach, with the strong-gelling alginate producing the largest volume. Although gastric emptying was similar for all 4 meals, the sense of fullness at the same gastric volume was significantly greater for all 3 viscous meals than for the control. Compared with the control meal, the strong-gelling alginate (P = 0.031) and guar (P = 0.041) meals increased fullness at 115 min, and the strong-gelling alginate decreased hunger by the 115-min (P = 0.041) and 240-min (P = 0.041) time points. Agents that gel on contact with acid may be useful additions to weight-reducing diets. We hypothesize that this effect is due to distension in the gastric antrum and/or altered transport of nutrients to the small intestine in the lumps.