Resting-state functional connectivity in Huntington’s disease: The IMAGE-HD study

Abstract

Event Abstract Back to Event Resting-state functional connectivity in Huntington’s disease: The IMAGE-HD study Govinda R. Poudel1, 2, 3*, Gary F. Egan1, 2, Andrew Churchyard4, Phyllis Chua1, Julie C. Stout1 and Nellie Georgiou-Karistianis1 1 Monash University, School of Psychology and Psychiatry, Australia 2 Monash University, Monash Biomedical Imaging, Australia 3 Monash University, Monash e-Research Centre, Australia 4 Monash Medical Centre, Department of Neurology, Australia Functional and structural neural impairments have been documented in both symptomatic Huntington’s disease (symp-HD) and premanifest gene carrier (pre-HD) individuals. The aim of this study was to characterize resting state connectivity in both pre-HD and symp-HD individuals. fMRI data was acquired via a 3 T MRI from 25 pre-HD, 23 symp-HD, and 18 healthy controls individuals. The fMRI data were pre-processed and analyzed using a data-driven method to identify several resting state networks. Voxel-wise synchronization of networks of interest were compared between groups using dual-regression and statistically tested using a permutation based non-parametric method. Nine well-established resting state networks were identified. Of the nine networks, four were significantly altered in both the pre-HD and symp-HD groups. Compared with controls, pre-HD individuals showed decreased synchrony in the sensorimotor (primary motor cortex) and dorsal attention (visual cortex) networks. Compared with controls, the symp-HD individuals showed widespread reduction in synchrony in the dorsal attention network. There was also a functional disconnection of the posterior putamen and superior parietal cortex from the frontal executive network in the symp-HD, compared with control and pre-HD individuals. Furthermore, the left fronto-parietal network showed areas of increased synchrony in symp-HD, compared with pre-HD individuals. We speculate that reduced synchrony in both the sensorimotor and dorsal attention networks may serve as an early signature of neural change in pre-HD. The widespread reduction in dorsal attention and cortico-striatal networks may contribute to the development of clinical symptoms in HD. Acknowledgements We would like to acknowledge the contribution of all the participants who took part in this study. We are also grateful to the Cure Huntington’s Disease Initiative (CHDI), Inc. (USA), for their support in funding this research. Keywords: Huntington's disease, fMRI, resting state fMRI, resting state functional connectivity, functional connectivity Conference: ACNS-2012 Australasian Cognitive Neuroscience Conference, Brisbane, Australia, 29 Nov - 2 Dec, 2012. Presentation Type: Oral Presentation Topic: Other Citation: Poudel GR, Egan GF, Churchyard A, Chua P, Stout JC and Georgiou-Karistianis N (2012). Resting-state functional connectivity in Huntington’s disease: The IMAGE-HD study. Conference Abstract: ACNS-2012 Australasian Cognitive Neuroscience Conference. doi: 10.3389/conf.fnhum.2012.208.00100 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 26 Oct 2012; Published Online: 07 Nov 2012. * Correspondence: Dr. Govinda R Poudel, Monash University, School of Psychology and Psychiatry, Clayton, VIC, 3800, Australia, govinda.poudel@monash.edu Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Govinda R Poudel Gary F Egan Andrew Churchyard Phyllis Chua Julie C Stout Nellie Georgiou-Karistianis Google Govinda R Poudel Gary F Egan Andrew Churchyard Phyllis Chua Julie C Stout Nellie Georgiou-Karistianis Google Scholar Govinda R Poudel Gary F Egan Andrew Churchyard Phyllis Chua Julie C Stout Nellie Georgiou-Karistianis PubMed Govinda R Poudel Gary F Egan Andrew Churchyard Phyllis Chua Julie C Stout Nellie Georgiou-Karistianis Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.