Disrupted small-world brain network topology in pure conduct disorder.

Feng-Mei Lu,Zhen Yuan,Xiao-Ping Wang,Jiang Zhang,Jian-Song Zhou

doi:10.18632/oncotarget.19098

Abstract

ObjectivesConduct disorder (CD) is characterized by the violation of the rights of others or basic social rules and a repetitive, persistent pattern of antisocial and aggressive behaviors. A large number of functional and structural neuroimaging studies have identified widely abnormalities in specific brain regions in CD, but the alterations in the topological organization of functional networks among them remain largely unknown.MethodsResting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging was applied to investigate the intrinsic functional connectivity in 18 pure CD patients and eighteen typically developing healthy controls. We first constructed the functional networks and then examined the CD-related alteration in topology properties using graph theoretical analysis.ResultsBoth the CD group and healthy controls exhibited small-world topology. However, the CD group showed decreased global and local efficiency. Changes in the nodal characteristics in CD group were found predominantly in the default-mode network, visual, and striatum regions. In addition, altered fronto-limbic-striatum network topology was found to have a relationship with clinical scores.ConclusionsOur findings indicate the altered nodal topology of brain functional connectivity networks in CD.SignificanceThe results provide unequivocal evidence of a topological disruption in the brain networks that suggest some possible pathophysiological mechanisms underlying CD.

Highlights

Conduct disorder (CD) is one of the most commonly diagnosed psychosocial disorders in childhood
The sigma over the threshold ranged from 0.11 to 0.44 in both the CD and typically developing (TD) groups was greater than 1.1. This demonstrates that both groups had small-world topology in the brain functional networks (Figure 1)
Our findings showed a positive relationship between the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) and the Barratt Impulsivity Scale (BIS)-11 score, suggesting that the disruption of the information integration ability of the default-mode network (DMN) is closely associated with impulsivity in CD patients, which may serve as a neural mechanism underlying CD

Summary

Introduction

Conduct disorder (CD) is one of the most commonly diagnosed psychosocial disorders in childhood. The disorder is defined as a repetitive and persistent pattern of antisocial and aggressive behaviors in which the rights of others or basic social rules are violated (DSM-5, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders). CD presents a high risk for developing other mental health conditions (46% among male CD adolescents and 39% among females), such as substance abuse, major depression, attention-deficit/hyperactive disorder, antisocial personality disorder and suicide [2]. Previous community studies indicated a prevalence of 2-6% [3], and a meta-analysis of epidemiological studies showed a high prevalence of 3.2% for CD across countries in the www.impactjournals.com/oncotarget age range of 6 to 18 years [4]. CD is more prevalent in males compared with females [5]. Given the serious impact of CD and its prevalence, it is important to understand its underlying neural mechanisms

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion