Postcentral Regions Research Articles

Causal relationships between cerebral cortical structure and preeclampsia: insights from bidirectional Mendelian randomization and colocalization analysis.

Preeclampsia, a multifaceted condition characterized by high blood pressure during pregnancy, is linked to substantial health risks for both the mother and the fetus. Previous studies suggest potential neurological impacts, but the causal relationships between cortical structural changes and preeclampsia remain unclear. We utilized genome-wide association study data for cortical thickness (TH) and surface area (SA) across multiple brain regions and preeclampsia. Bidirectional Mendelian randomization (MR) analyses were conducted to assess causality, followed by co-localization analyses to confirm shared genetic architecture. Increased cortical TH in the inferior parietal and supramarginal regions, and an enlarged SA in the postcentral region, were significantly associated with higher preeclampsia risk. Conversely, preeclampsia was linked to increased SA in the supramarginal and middle temporal gyri, and decreased SA in the lingual gyrus. Co-localization analyses indicated distinct genetic determinants for cortical structures and preeclampsia. Our findings reveal bidirectional influences between cortical structural features and preeclampsia, suggesting neuroinflammatory and vascular mechanisms as potential pathways. These insights underscore the importance of considering brain structure in preeclampsia risk assessment and highlight the need for further research into neuroprotective strategies.

Osteoarthritis, osteoarthritis treatment and risk of incident dementia: a prospective cohort study based on UK Biobank.

We aimed to investigate the association between OA and treatment with dementia risk and structural brain abnormalities. We recruited a total of 466,460 individuals from the UK Biobank to investigate the impact of OA on the incidence of dementia. Among the total population, there were 63,081 participants diagnosed with OA. We subsequently categorised the OA patients into medication and surgery groups based on treatment routes. Cox regression models explored the associations between OA/OA treatment and dementia risk, with the results represented as hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI). Linear regression models assessed the associations of OA/OA therapy with alterations in cortical structure. During an average of 11.90 (± 1.01) years of follow-up, 5,627 individuals were diagnosed with all-cause dementia (ACD), including 2,438AD (Alzheimer's disease), and 1,312 VaD (vascular dementia) cases. Results revealed that OA was associated with the elevated risk of ACD (HR: 1.116; 95% CI: 1.039-1.199) and AD (HR: 1.127; 95% CI: 1.013-1.254). OA therapy lowered the risk of dementia in both medication group (HR: 0.746; 95% CI: 0.652-0.854) and surgery group (HR: 0.841; 95% CI: 0.736-0.960). OA was negatively associated with cortical area, especially precentral, postcentral and temporal regions. Osteoarthritis increased the likelihood of developing dementia, and had an association with regional brain atrophy. OA treatment lowered the dementia risk. OA is a promising modifiable risk factor for dementia.

Identifying the genetic association between the cerebral cortex and fibromyalgia.

Fibromyalgia (FM) is a central sensitization syndrome that is strongly associated with the cerebral cortex. This study used bidirectional two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis to investigate the bidirectional causality between FM and the cortical surface area and cortical thickness of 34 brain regions. Inverse variance weighted (IVW) was used as the primary method for this study, and sensitivity analyses further supported the results. The forward MR analysis revealed that genetically determined thinner cortical thickness in the parstriangularis (OR = 0.0567mm, PIVW = 0.0463), caudal middle frontal (OR = 0.0346mm, PIVW = 0.0433), and rostral middle frontal (OR = 0.0285mm, PIVW = 0.0463) was associated with FM. Additionally, a reduced genetically determined cortical surface area in the pericalcarine (OR = 0.9988mm2, PIVW = 0.0085) was associated with an increased risk of FM. Conversely, reverse MR indicated that FM was associated with cortical thickness in the caudal middle frontal region (β = -0.0035mm, PIVW = 0.0265), fusiform region (β = 0.0024mm, SE = 0.0012, PIVW = 0.0440), the cortical surface area in the supramarginal (β = -9.3938mm2, PIVW = 0.0132), and postcentral regions (β = -6.3137mm2, PIVW = 0.0360). Reduced cortical thickness in the caudal middle frontal gyrus is shown to have a significant relationship with FM prevalence in a bidirectional causal analysis.

Association Between Cannabis Use and Brain Structures: A Mendelian Randomization Study.

Background Observational studies suggested that cannabis use was associated with alternation of brain structures; however, as subjected to confounding factors, they were difficult to make causal inferences and direction determinations. In this study, a two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis was employed to examine the potential causal association between cannabis use and brain structures. Methods The genome-wide association studies (GWAS) data forlifetime cannabis use (LCU), cannabis use disorder (CUD), and brain cortical and subcortical structureswere utilized in this study. Cortical structures were divided into 34 distinct gyral-defined regionswith surface area (SA) and thickness (TH)measured.Subcortical structures encompassed volumes from seven specified regions. The primary estimator used in our analysis was inverse-variance weighted (IVW), complemented by MR-Egger and weighted median methods to enhance the robustness of theresults. The Cochran's Q test, funnel plots, and MR-Egger intercept tests were used to detect heterogeneity and pleiotropy. Results No causal relationship was detected between LCU and global cortical SA or TH. However, at the regional cortex level, LCU was associated with decreased TH in the fusiform (β = -0.0168 mm, SE = 0.00581, P = 0.0039) and lateral occipital (β = -0.0141 mm, SE = 0.00531, P = 0.0079) regions, while increasing TH in the postcentral region (β = 0.0093 mm, SE = 0.00445, P =0.0374). At the subcortical level, LCU was found to increase the brainstem volume (β = 0.224 mm3, SE = 0.09, P = 0.0128). CUD did not show any causal association with brain structure at either cortical or subcortical levels. Nonetheless, after applying multiple comparison corrections, the P values for the MR analysis of causal relationships between cannabis use and these brain structures did not meet the significance threshold. Conclusion The evidence for cannabis use causally influencing brain structures is insufficient.

Electric field envelope focality in superficial brain areas with linear alignment montage in temporal interference stimulation

Temporal interference stimulation (TIS) uses two pairs of conventional transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) electrodes, each with a different frequency, to generate a time-varying electric field (EF) envelope (EFE). The EFE focality in primary somatosensory and motor cortex areas of a standard human brain was computed using newly defined linear alignment montages. Sixty head volume conductor models constructed from magnetic resonance images were considered to evaluate interindividual variability. Six TIS and two tACS electrode montages were considered, including linear and rectangular alignments. EFEs were computed using the scalar-potential finite-difference method. The computed EFE was projected onto the standard brain space for each montage. Computational results showed that TIS and tACS generated different EFE and EF distributions in postcentral and precentral gyri regions. For TIS, the EFE amplitude in the target areas had lower variability than the EF strength of tACS. However, bipolar tACS montages showed higher focality in the superficial postcentral and precentral gyri regions than in TIS. TIS generated greater EFE penetration than bipolar tACS at depths <5–10 mm below the brain surface. From group-level analysis, tACS with a bipolar montage was preferred for targets <5–10 mm in depth (gyral crowns) and TIS for deeper targets. TIS with a linear alignment montage could be an effective method for deep structures and sulcal walls. These findings provide valuable insights into the choice of TIS and tACS for stimulating specific brain regions.

Brain structure comparison among Parkinson disease, essential tremor, and healthy controls using 7T MRI.

Both Parkinson disease (PD) and Essential tremor (ET) are movement disorders causing tremors in elderly individuals. Although PD and ET are different disease, they often present with similar initial symptoms, making their differentiation challenging with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques. This study aimed to identify structural brain differences among PD, ET, and health controls (HCs) using 7-Tesla (T) MRI. We assessed the whole-brain parcellation in gray matter volume, thickness, subcortical volume, and small regions of basal ganglia in PD (n = 18), ET (n = 15), and HCs (n = 18), who were matched for age and sex. Brain structure analysis was performed automatic segmentation through Freesurfer software. Small regions of basal ganglia were manually segmented by ITK-SNAP. Additionally, we examined the associations between clinical indicators (symptom duration, unified Parkinson diseases rating scale (UPDRS), and clinical rating scale for tremor (CRST)) and brain structure. PD showed a significant reduction in gray matter volume in the postcentral region compared to ET. ET showed a significant reduction in cerebellum volume compared to HCs. There was a negative correlation between CRST scores (B and C) and gray matter thickness in right superior frontal in ET. This study demonstrated potential of 7T MRI in differentiating brain structure differences among PD, ET, and HCs. Specific findings, such as parietal lobe atrophy in PD compared to ET and cerebellum atrophy in ET compared to HCs, the importance of advanced imaging techniques in accurately diagnosing and distinguishing between movement disorders that present with similar initial symptoms.

Early-treatment cerebral blood flow change as a predictive biomarker of antidepressant treatment response: evidence from the EMBARC clinical trial.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is one of the most prevalent and disabling illnesses worldwide. Treatment of MDD typically relies on trial-and-error to find an effective approach. Identifying early response-related biomarkers that predict response to antidepressants would help clinicians to decide, as early as possible, whether a particular treatment might be suitable for a given patient. Data were from the two-stage Establishing Moderators and Biosignatures of Antidepressant Response for Clinical Care (EMBARC) trial. A whole-brain, voxel-wise, mixed-effects model was applied to identify early-treatment cerebral blood flow (CBF) changes as biomarkers of treatment response. We examined changes in CBF measured with arterial spin labeling 1-week after initiating double-masked sertraline/placebo. We tested whether these early 1-week scans could be used to predict response observed after 8-weeks of treatment. Response to 8-week placebo treatment was associated with increased cerebral perfusion in temporal cortex and reduced cerebral perfusion in postcentral region captured at 1-week of treatment. Additionally, CBF response in these brain regions was significantly correlated with improvement in Hamilton Depression Rating Scale score in the placebo group. No significant associations were found for selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor treatment. We conclude that early CBF responses to placebo administration in multiple brain regions represent candidate neural biomarkers of longer-term antidepressant effects.

Alterations in cerebral glucose metabolism measured by FDG PET in subjects performing a meditation practice based on clitoral stimulation

Background The relationship between sexuality, or the libido, and spirituality or religion has long been debated in psychiatry. Recent studies have explored the neurophysiology of both sexual experiences and spiritual practices such as meditation or prayer. In the present study, we report changes in cerebral glucose metabolism in a unique meditation practice augmented by clitoral stimulation called, Orgasmic Meditation, in which a spiritual state is described to be attained by both male and female participants engaged in the practice as a pair. Methods Male (N=20) and female (N=20) subjects had an intravenous catheter connected to a bag of normal saline inserted prior to the practice. During the practice, men stimulated their partner’s clitoris for exactly 15 minutes (he received no sexual stimulation). Midway through the practice, researchers injected 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose so the scan would reflect cerebral metabolism during the practice. Positron emission tomography (PET) imaging was performed approximately 30 minutes later. Results In the female participants, the meditation state showed significant decreases in the left inferior frontal, inferior parietal, insula, middle temporal, and orbitofrontal regions as well as in the right angular gyrus, anterior cingulate and parahippocampus compared to a neutral state (p&lt;0.01). Male subjects had significant decreases in the left middle frontal, paracentral, precentral, and postcentral regions as well as the right middle frontal and paracentral regions during meditation (p&lt;0.01). Men also had significantly increased metabolism in the cerebellum and right postcentral and superior temporal regions (p&lt;0.01). Conclusions These findings represent a distinct pattern of brain activity, for both men and women, that is a hybrid between that of other meditation practices and sexual stimulation. Such findings have potential psychotherapeutic implications and may deepen our understanding of the relationship between spiritual and sexual experience.

The cortical glucose metabolism signatures of cognitive resilience in amyloid positive cognitively unimpaired elderly adults

AbstractBackgroundβ‐amyloid (Aβ) positive (A+) cognitively unimpaired (CU) individuals who maintain normal cognitive function at follow‐up may have good cognitive resilience (CR). A+/CU Individuals with high CR may have hypermetabolism. In this study, we explored the cortical glucose metabolism features of CR in A+/CU elderly adults.MethodWe analyzed 855 ADNI participants with Aβ PET (18F‐florbetapir (FBP) or 18F‐florbetaben (FBB)), CSF p‐Tau181, 18F‐fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET and longitudinal residual hippocampal volume (rHCV) and cognitive assessments. A+/T+/N+ were defined as AD summary cortical standardized uptake value ratio (SUVR) for FBP ≥1.11 or FBB ≥1.08, CSF p‐Tau≥23pg/ml, and rHCV≤‐0.67 respectively. We compared intensity‐ and spatial‐normalized FDG SUVR images between 96 A‐/T‐/N‐/CU individuals (Reference group) and 68 A+/CU individuals who maintained CU at follow‐up regardless of T+ or N+ (CR group). Cortical regions with higher FDG SUVR in the CR group were identified as the CR_metaROI. Baseline CR_metaROI FDG‐SUVRs were compared between different stages of AD. Finally, we determined whether CR_metaROI FDG‐SUVR can modulate the association of Aβ PET and CSF p‐Tau with longitudinal changes of cognition, controlling for age, sex, and education.ResultCR_metaROI was primarily located in the precentral and postcentral regions (Fig. 1). AD dementia patients had lower CR_metaROI FDG SUVRs than the CU (standardized β (βstd) = ‐0.326[95% confidence interval (ci): ‐0.534, ‐0.119], p = 0.002) and MCI (βstd = ‐0.303[95%ci: ‐0.496, ‐0.111], p = 0.002) groups (Fig. 2A), and A+/CU group had higher (βstd = 0.605[95%ci: 0.352, 0.859], p&lt;0.001) CR_metaROI FDG SUVRs than the A‐/CU group (Fig. 2B). A‐/T+ and A+/T‐ individuals had lower (βstd = ‐0.248[95%ci: ‐0.4474, ‐0.022], p = 0.031) and higher (βstd = 0.305[95%ci: 0.093, 0.516], p = 0.005) CR_metaROI FDG SUVRs than the A‐/T‐ group respectively (Fig. 2C). The A+/T‐/N+ group had higher (βstd = 0.466[95%ci: 0.153, 0.779], p = 0.004) CR_metaROI FDG SUVRs than the A‐/T‐/N‐group (Fig. 2D). Moreover, higher baseline metaROI FDG‐SUVRs were associated with slower rates of decline in memory, executive function and preclinical Alzheimer cognitive composite scores upon the same levels of Aβ PET (Fig. 3A‐C) and CSF p‐Tau (Fig. 3D‐F).ConclusionWe identified a metabolism signature of CR in A+/CU elderly adults. These findings may provide novel insights into understanding the hypermetabolism patterns of CR in aging people.

Mendelian Randomization Analyses Accounting for Causal Effect of COVID-19 on Brain Imaging-Derived Phenotypes.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been a major challenge to global health and a financial burden. Little is known regarding the possible causal effects of COVID-19 on the macro- and micro-structures of the human brain. To determine the causal links between susceptibility, hospitalization, and the severity of COVID-19 and brain imaging-derived phenotypes (IDPs). Mendelian randomization (MR) analyses were performed to investigate the causal effect of three COVID-19 exposures (SARS-CoV-2 infection, hospitalized COVID-19, and critical COVID-19) on brain structure employing summary datasets of genome-wide association studies. In terms of cortical phenotypes, hospitalization due to COVID-19 was associated with a global decrease in the surface area (SA) of the cortex structure (β= -624.77, 95% CI: -1227.88 to -21.66, p = 0.042). At the regional level, SARS-CoV-2 infection was found to have a nominally causal effect on the thickness (TH) of the postcentral region (β= -0.004, 95% CI: -0.007 to -0.001, p = 0.01), as well as eight other IDPs. Hospitalized COVID-19 has a nominally causal relationship with TH of postcentral (β= -0.004, 95% CI: -0.007 to -0.001, p = 0.01) and other 6 IDPs. The nominally causal effects of critical COVID-19 on TH of medial orbitofrontal (β=0.004, 95% CI: 0.001to 0.007, p = 0.004) and other 7 IDPs were revealed. Our study provides compelling genetic evidence supporting causal relationships between three COVID-19 traits and brain IDPs. This discovery holds promise for enhancing predictions and interventions in brain imaging.

Cortical, subcortical, and cerebellar contributions to language processing: A meta-analytic review of 403 neuroimaging experiments.

Language is a key human faculty for communication and interaction that provides invaluable insight into the human mind. Previous work has dissected different linguistic operations, but the large-scale brain networks involved in language processing are still not fully uncovered. Particularly, little is known about the subdomain-specific engagement of brain areas during semantic, syntactic, phonological, and prosodic processing and the role of subcortical and cerebellar areas. Here, we present the largest coordinate-based meta-analysis of language processing including 403 experiments. Overall, language processing primarily engaged bilateral fronto-temporal cortices, with the highest activation likelihood in the left posterior inferior frontal gyrus (IFG). Whereas we could not detect any syntax-specific regions, semantics specifically engaged left posterior temporal areas (left fusiform and occipitotemporal cortex) and the left frontal pole. Phonology showed highest subdomain-specificity in bilateral auditory and left postcentral regions, whereas prosody engaged specifically the right amygdala and the right IFG. Across all subdomains and modalities, we found strong bilateral subcortical and cerebellar contributions. Especially the right cerebellum was engaged during various processes, including speech production, visual, and phonological tasks. Collectively, our results emphasize consistent recruitment and high functional modularity for general language processing in bilateral domain-specific (temporo-frontal) and domain-general (medial frontal/anterior cingulate cortex) regions but also a high specialization of different subareas for different linguistic subdomains. Our findings refine current neurobiological models of language by adding novel insight into the general sensitivity of the language network and subdomain-specific functions of different brain areas and highlighting the role of subcortical and cerebellar regions for different language operations. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Longitudinal Patterns of Brain Changes in a Community Sample in Relation to Aging and Cognitive Status.

Aging and Alzheimer's disease (AD) are characterized by widespread cortical and subcortical atrophy. Though atrophy patterns between aging and AD overlap considerably, regional differences between these two conditions may exist. Few studies, however, have investigated these patterns in large community samples. Elaborate longitudinal changes in brain morphometry in relation to aging and cognitive status in a well-characterized community cohort. Clinical and neuroimaging data were compiled from 72 participants from the Cardiovascular Health Study-Cognition Study, a community cohort of healthy aging and probable AD participants. Two time points were identified for each participant with a mean follow-up time of 5.36 years. MRI post-processing, morphometric measurements, and statistical analyses were performed using FreeSurfer, Version 7.1.1. Cortical volume was significantly decreased in the bilateral superior frontal, bilateral inferior parietal, and left superior parietal regions, among others. Cortical thickness was significantly reduced in the bilateral superior frontal and left inferior parietal regions, among others. Overall gray and white matter volumes and hippocampal subfields also demonstrated significant reductions. Cortical volume atrophy trajectories between cognitively stable and cognitively declined participants were significantly different in the right postcentral region. Observed volume reductions were consistent with previous studies investigating morphometric brain changes. Patterns of brain atrophy between AD and aging may be different in magnitude but exhibit widespread spatial overlap. These findings help characterize patterns of brain atrophy that may reflect the general population. Larger studies may more definitively establish population norms of aging and AD-related neuroimaging changes.

Mapping corpus callosum surface reduction in fetal alcohol spectrum disorders with sulci and connectivity-based parcellation.

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) range from fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) to non-syndromic non-specific forms (NS-FASD) that are still underdiagnosed and could benefit from new neuroanatomical markers. The main neuroanatomical manifestation of prenatal alcohol exposure on developmental toxicity is the reduction in brain size, but repeated imaging observations have long driven the attention on the corpus callosum (CC), without being all convergent. Our study proposed a new segmentation of the CC that relies on both a sulci-based cortical segmentation and the "hemispherotopic" organization of the transcallosal fibers. We collected a monocentric series of 37 subjects with FAS, 28 with NS-FASD, and 38 with typical development (6 to 25 years old) using brain MRI (1.5T). Associating T1- and diffusion-weighted imaging, we projected a sulci-based cortical segmentation of the hemispheres on the midsagittal section of the CC, resulting in seven homologous anterior-posterior parcels (frontopolar, anterior and posterior prefrontal, precentral, postcentral, parietal, and occipital). We measured the effect of FASD on the area of callosal and cortical parcels by considering age, sex, and brain size as linear covariates. The surface proportion of the corresponding cortical parcel was introduced as an additional covariate. We performed a normative analysis to identify subjects with an abnormally small parcel. All callosal and cortical parcels were smaller in the FASD group compared with controls. When accounting for age, sex, and brain size, only the postcentral (η2 = 6.5%, pFDR = 0.032) callosal parcel and % of the cortical parcel (η2 = 8.9%, pFDR = 0.007) were still smaller. Adding the surface proportion (%) of the corresponding cortical parcel to the model, only the occipital parcel was persistently reduced in the FASD group (η2 = 5.7%, pFDR = 0.014). In the normative analysis, we found an excess of subjects with FASD with abnormally small precentral and postcentral (peri-isthmic) and posterior-splenial parcels (pFDR < 0.05). The objective sulcal and connectivity-based method of CC parcellation proved to be useful not only in confirming posterior-splenial damage in FASD but also in the narrowing of the peri-isthmic region strongly associated with a specific size reduction in the corresponding postcentral cortical region (postcentral gyrus). The normative analysis showed that this type of callosal segmentation could provide a clinically relevant neuroanatomical endophenotype, even in NS-FASD.

Cortical mean diffusivity is reliable in measuring brain abnormalities in drug-naïve essential tremor patients

ObjectiveEssential tremor (ET) is a common movement disorder, but the pathogenesis is poorly understood. Several associated brain areas were reported with inconsistent results due to heterogeneous populations. It is necessary to analyze a more homogeneous patient group. MethodsWe recruited 25 drug-naïve ET patients and 36 age- and sex-matched controls. All participants were right-handed. ET. ET was defined according to diagnostic criteria of the Consensus Statement of the Movement Disorder Society on Tremor. ET patients were divided into sporadic (SET) and familial ET (FET). We assessed tremor severity in ET. The cortical microstructural changes were compared between ET patients and controls using mean diffusivity (MD) of diffusion tensor imaging, and cortical thickness. The correlation of tremor severity with the cortical MD and thickness were respectively analyzed. ResultsMD values were increased in the insular, precuneus, medial orbitofrontal, posterior, and isthmus cingulate and temporo-occipital areas in ET. In comparison between SET and FET, MD values were higher in the superior and caudal middle frontal, postcentral, and temporo-occipital regions in FET. The cortical thickness of ET patients was more increased in the left lingual gyrus and lower in the right bankssts gyrus. We could not find any correlation of tremor severity with the MD values in ET patients. Still, there was a positive correlation with the cortical thickness of the frontal and parietal areas. ConclusionsOur results support the idea that ET is a disorder that disrupts widespread brain regions and indicates that cortical MD may be more sensitive to measure brain abnormalities than cortical thickness.

Association of APOE-ε4, Osteoarthritis, β-Amyloid, and Tau Accumulation in Primary Motor and Somatosensory Regions in Alzheimer Disease.

One of the most prevalent chronic diseases, osteoarthritis (OA), may work in conjunction with APOE-ε4 to accelerate Alzheimer disease (AD) alterations, particularly in the primary motor (precentral) and somatosensory (postcentral) cortices. To understand the reasoning behind this, we investigated how OA and APOE-ε4 influence the accumulation of β-amyloid (Aβ) and tau accumulation in primary motor and somatosensory regions in Aβ-positive (Aβ+) older individuals. We selected Aβ+ Alzheimer Disease Neuroimaging Initiative participants, defined by baseline 18F-florbetapir (FBP) Aβ PET standardized uptake value ratio (SUVR) of AD summary cortical regions, who had longitudinal Aβ PET, the records of OA medical history, and APOE-ε4 genotyping. We examined how OA and APOE-ε4 relate to baseline and longitudinal Aβ accumulation and tau deposition measured at follow-up in precentral and postcentral cortical areas and how they modulate Aβ-associated future higher tau levels, adjusting for age, sex, and diagnosis and using multiple comparison corrections. A total of 374 individuals (mean age 75 years, 49.2% female, 62.8% APOE-ε4 carriers) who underwent longitudinal FBP PET with a median follow-up of 3.3 years (interquartile range [IQR] 3.4, range 1.6-9.4) were analyzed, and 96 people had 18F-flortaucipir (FTP) tau PET measured at a median of 5.4 (IQR 1.9, range 4.0-9.3) years postbaseline FBP PET. Neither OA nor APOE-ε4 was related to baseline FBP SUVR in precentral and postcentral regions. At follow-up, OA rather than APOE-ε4 was associated with faster Aβ accumulation in postcentral region (β = 0.005, 95% CI 0.001-0.008) over time. In addition, OA but not the APOE-ε4 allele was strongly linked to higher follow-up FTP tau levels in precentral (β = 0.098, 95% CI 0.034-0.162) and postcentral (β = 0.105, 95% CI 0.040-0.169) cortices. OA and APOE-ε4 were also interactively associated with higher follow-up FTP tau deposition in precentral (β = 0.128, 95% CI 0.030-0.226) and postcentral (β = 0.124, 95% CI 0.027-0.223) regions. This study suggests that OA was associated with faster Aβ accumulation and higher Aβ-dependent future tau deposition in primary motor and somatosensory regions, providing novel insights into how OA increases the risk of AD.

Adolescent brain development in girls with Turner syndrome.

Turner syndrome (TS) is a common sex chromosome aneuploidy in females associated with various physical, cognitive, and socio-emotional phenotypes. However, few studies have examined TS-associated alterations in the development of cortical gray matter volume and the two components that comprise this measure-surface area and thickness. Moreover, the longitudinal direct (i.e., genetic) and indirect (i.e., hormonal) effects of X-monosomy on the brain are unclear. Brain structure was assessed in 61 girls with TS (11.3 ± 2.8 years) and 55 typically developing girls (10.8 ± 2.3 years) for up to 4 timepoints. Surface-based analyses of cortical gray matter volume, thickness, and surface area were conducted to examine the direct effects of X-monosomy present before pubertal onset and indirect hormonal effects of estrogen deficiency/X-monosomy emerging after pubertal onset. Longitudinal analyses revealed that, whereas typically developing girls exhibited normative declines in gray matter structure during adolescence, this pattern was reduced or inverted in TS. Further, girls with TS demonstrated smaller total surface area and larger average cortical thickness overall. Regionally, the TS group exhibited decreased volume and surface area in the pericalcarine, postcentral, and parietal regions relative to typically developing girls, as well as larger volume in the caudate, amygdala, and temporal lobe regions and increased thickness in parietal and temporal regions. Surface area alterations were predominant by age 8, while maturational differences in thickness emerged by age 10 or later. Taken together, these results suggest the involvement of both direct and indirect effects of X-chromosome haploinsufficiency on brain development in TS.

Links between psychopathological symptoms and cortical thickness in men with severe alcohol use disorder: A Magnetic Resonance Imaging study.

Anxiety and depression are psychopathological states frequently co-occurring with severe alcohol use disorder (SAUD). These symptoms generally disappear with abstinence but may persist in some patients, increasing the relapse risk. The cerebral cortex thickness of 94 male patients with SAUD was correlated with symptoms of depression and anxiety, both measured at the end (2-3 weeks) of the detoxification treatment. Cortical measures were obtained using surface-based morphometry implemented with Freesurfer. Depressive symptoms were associated with reduced cortical thickness in the superior temporal gyrus of the right hemisphere. Anxiety level was correlated with lower cortical thickness in the rostral middle frontal region, inferior temporal region, and supramarginal, postcentral, superior temporal, and transverse temporal regions of the left hemisphere, as well as with a large cluster in the middle temporal region of the right hemisphere. At the end of the detoxification stage, the intensity of depressive and anxiety symptoms is inversely associated with the cortical thickness of regions involved in emotions-related processes, and the persistence of the symptoms could be explained by these brain deficits.

Abnormal structural and functional network topological properties associated with left prefrontal, parietal, and occipital cortices significantly predict childhood TBI-related attention deficits: A semi-supervised deep learning study.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a major public health concern in children. Children with TBI have elevated risk in developing attention deficits. Existing studies have found that structural and functional alterations in multiple brain regions were linked to TBI-related attention deficits in children. Most of these existing studies have utilized conventional parametric models for group comparisons, which have limited capacity in dealing with large-scale and high dimensional neuroimaging measures that have unknown nonlinear relationships. Nevertheless, none of these existing findings have been successfully implemented to clinical practice for guiding diagnoses and interventions of TBI-related attention problems. Machine learning techniques, especially deep learning techniques, are able to handle the multi-dimensional and nonlinear information to generate more robust predictions. Therefore, the current research proposed to construct a deep learning model, semi-supervised autoencoder, to investigate the topological alterations in both structural and functional brain networks in children with TBI and their predictive power for post-TBI attention deficits. Functional magnetic resonance imaging data during sustained attention processing task and diffusion tensor imaging data from 110 subjects (55 children with TBI and 55 group-matched controls) were used to construct the functional and structural brain networks, respectively. A total of 60 topological properties were selected as brain features for building the model. The model was able to differentiate children with TBI and controls with an average accuracy of 82.86%. Functional and structural nodal topological properties associated with left frontal, inferior temporal, postcentral, and medial occipitotemporal regions served as the most important brain features for accurate classification of the two subject groups. Post hoc regression-based machine learning analyses in the whole study sample showed that among these most important neuroimaging features, those associated with left postcentral area, superior frontal region, and medial occipitotemporal regions had significant value for predicting the elevated inattentive and hyperactive/impulsive symptoms. Findings of this study suggested that deep learning techniques may have the potential to help identifying robust neurobiological markers for post-TBI attention deficits; and the left superior frontal, postcentral, and medial occipitotemporal regions may serve as reliable targets for diagnosis and interventions of TBI-related attention problems in children.

Overactivation of posterior insular, postcentral and temporal regions during preserved experience of envy in autism.

Social emotions are critical to successfully navigate in a complex social world because they promote self-regulation of behaviour. Difficulties in social behaviour are at the core of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, social emotions and their neural correlates have been scarcely investigated in this population. In particular, the experience of envy has not been addressed in ASD despite involving neurocognitive processes crucially compromised in this condition. Here, we used an fMRI adapted version of a well-validated task to investigate the subjective experience of envy and its neural correlates in adults with ASD (n = 30) in comparison with neurotypical controls (n = 28). Results revealed that both groups reported similarly intense experience of envy in association with canonical activation in the anterior cingulate cortex and the anterior insula, among other regions. However, in participants with ASD, the experience of envy was accompanied by overactivation of the posterior insula, the postcentral gyrus and the posterior superior temporal gyrus, regions subserving the processing of painful experiences and mentalizing. This pattern of results suggests that individuals with ASD may use compensatory strategies based on the embodied amplification of pain and additional mentalizing efforts to shape their subjective experience of envy. Results have relevant implications to better understand the heterogeneity of this condition and to develop new intervention targets.

Maternal smoking during pregnancy negatively affects brain volumes proportional to intracranial volume in adolescents born very preterm.

Maternal smoking during pregnancy has been shown to associate with smaller frontal lobe and cerebellar volumes in brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at term age in very preterm infants. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of maternal smoking during pregnancy on volumetric brain MRI findings at 13 years. We hypothesized that adverse effects of smoking during pregnancy on brain volumes are still seen during adolescence. Included adolescents were born very preterm (gestational age < 32 weeks and/or birth weight ≤ 1,500 g) between April 2004 and December 2006 at the Turku University Hospital, Finland. Information on maternal smoking status (yes or no) during pregnancy was collected from medical records and maternal questionnaires before discharge. Adolescents underwent volumetric brain MRI at 13 years of age. Image post-processing was performed with FreeSurfer. Regional volumes, cortical thickness, surface area, and curvature were computed from 33 cortical regions of interest (ROIs). Additionally, volumes were calculated for 18 subcortical regions, as well as for white matter, gray matter, and intracranial volume. We normalized quantified absolute volumes for head size by dividing volumes with corresponding intracranial volumes. false discovery rate (FDR) correction for multiple comparisons across regions was used. A total of 9/44 (21%) adolescents had been exposed to maternal smoking during pregnancy. No statistically significant differences in absolute volumes were observed between the groups (p > 0.05). Regarding volumes proportional to intracranial volume, the adolescents in the exposed group exhibited smaller gray matter volumes in the inferotemporal (FDR corrected p = 0.022) and parahippocampal (p = 0.018) regions compared to the unexposed group. The surface area in the exposed group was also smaller in the parahippocampal (p = 0.046) and postcentral (p = 0.046) regions compared to the unexposed group. No statistically significant differences after correction for multiple comparisons were found for either curvature or cortical thickness between the groups. Maternal smoking exposure during pregnancy may have long-term effects on brain volumes up to 13 years in adolescents born very preterm. Our findings emphasize the importance of smoking-free pregnancy.