Article
Neurosciences
Heather C. Bouchard, Delin Sun, Emily L. Dennis, Mary R. Newsome, Seth G. Disner, Jeremy Elman, Annelise Silva, Carmen Velez, Andrei Irimia, Nicholas D. Davenport, Scott R. Sponheim, Carol E. Franz, William S. Kremen, Michael J. Coleman, M. Wright Williams, Elbert Geuze, Inga K. Koerte, Martha E. Shenton, Maheen M. Adamson, Raul Coimbra, Gerald Grant, Lori Shutter, Mark S. George, Ross D. Zafonte, Thomas W. McAllister, Murray B. Stein, Paul M. Thompson, Elisabeth A. Wilde, David F. Tate, Aristeidis Sotiras, Rajendra A. Morey
Summary: Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) is common in military personnel and is associated with age-related neurodegenerative disorders affecting white matter in the brain. Non-negative matrix factorization (NMF) was used to detect covarying patterns of fractional anisotropy (FA) associated with mTBI in a large dataset of military Veterans. The study showed significant age-dependent differences in WM alterations between Veterans with and without TBI, highlighting the importance of considering age in assessing the effects of mTBI.
HUMAN BRAIN MAPPING
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Sian Wilson, Maximilian Pietsch, Lucilio Cordero-Grande, Anthony N. Price, Jana Hutter, Jiaxin Xiao, Laura McCabe, Mary A. Rutherford, Emer J. Hughes, Serena J. Counsell, Jacques-Donald Tournier, Tomoki Arichi, Joseph V. Hajnal, A. David Edwards, Daan Christiaens, Jonathan O'Muircheartaigh
Summary: A study characterizing the in utero maturation of white matter microstructure in human fetal brains using high-resolution MRI data identified unique maturational trends in different white matter bundles and regions, suggesting potential insights into connectivity abnormalities associated with preterm birth.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Tomasz Pieciak, Guillem Paris, Dani Beck, Ivan I. Maximov, Antonio Tristan-Vega, Rodrigo de Luis-Garcia, Lars T. Westlye, Santiago Aja-Fernandez
Summary: The study examines the evolution of free-water volume fraction (FWVF) in human brain white matter across the adult lifespan. It found a non-linear increase in FWVF after the age of 60. The study also compares FW corrected diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and standard DTI in studying mean diffusivity (MD) and fractional anisotropy (FA), finding a region-dependent flattening of age-related evolution and reduced variability using FW corrected DTI.
Article
Neurosciences
Sendy Caffarra, Sung Jun Joo, David Bloom, John Kruper, Ariel Rokem, Jason D. Yeatman
Summary: The latency of neural responses in the visual cortex varies across the lifespan, with faster M100 responses for high contrast stimuli observed with age, where optic radiation FA values mediate this effect.
HUMAN BRAIN MAPPING
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Lorna Bryant, Emilie T. McKinnon, James A. Taylor, Jens H. Jensen, Leonardo Bonilha, Christophe de Bezenac, Barbara A. K. Kreilkamp, Guleed Adan, Udo C. Wieshmann, Shubhabrata Biswas, Anthony G. Marson, Simon S. Keller
Summary: This study utilized FBI and FBWM to evaluate the diffusion properties of white matter tracts in patients with epilepsy. It was found that patients with chronic epilepsy had a widespread distribution of extra-axonal diffusivity, and those with refractory epilepsy exhibited significantly greater markers of extra-axonal diffusivity compared to nonrefractory epilepsy patients. These findings suggest that extra-axonal diffusivity alterations may serve as biomarkers of neuroinflammatory processes or reduced axonal density in epilepsy.
HUMAN BRAIN MAPPING
(2021)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Andrea Mendez Colmenares, Michelle B. Hefner, Vince D. Calhoun, Elizabeth A. Salerno, Jason Fanning, Neha P. Gothe, Edward McAuley, Arthur F. Kramer, Agnieszka Z. Burzynska
Summary: In the past 20 years, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) has been used to study white matter (WM) microstructure. However, studying individual DTI parameters separately limits our understanding of WM pathology. By applying symmetric fusion to DTI data, a data-driven approach, we were able to simultaneously examine age differences in all four DTI parameters. This method revealed an age-related modality-shared component in WM, which was correlated with cognitive abilities not detected by unimodal analyses.
FRONTIERS IN NEUROLOGY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Amirhossein Rasooli, Hamed Zivari Adab, Peter Van Ruitenbeek, Akila Weerasekera, Sima Chalavi, Koen Cuypers, Oron Levin, Thijs Dhollander, Ronald Peeters, Stefan Sunaert, Dante Mantini, Stephan P. Swinnen
Summary: Aging is associated with changes in the central nervous system and leads to reduced life quality. Magnetic resonance spectroscopy and diffusion MRI were used to investigate the age-related differences in the CNS underlying motor performance deficits. The study found that aging was associated with increased reaction time, reduced fiber density (FD), and N-acetyl aspartate (NAA) concentration in the sensorimotor voxel. Both FD and NAA mediated the association between age and reaction time, and NAA concentration mediated the association between age and FD in the sensorimotor voxel. The decrease in NAA concentration may result in reduced axonal fiber density, which ultimately accounts for the response slowness of older participants.
Article
Neurosciences
Amaryllis A. Tsiknia, Jaclyn Bergstrom, Emilie T. Reas
Summary: The study showed that high omega-3 intake in midlife may help to maintain white matter (WM) integrity into older age, particularly in the latest decades of life and among APOE ε4 carriers.
Article
Neurosciences
Matthew Kiely, Curtis Triebswetter, Luis E. Cortina, Zhaoyuan Gong, Maryam H. Alsameen, Richard G. Spencer, Mustapha Bouhrara
Summary: This study evaluated sex and age-related differences in white matter microstructure using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The results showed that myelin content and axonal density in white matter exhibited nonlinear changes with age, and the posterior white matter regions were more preserved from neurodegeneration compared to anterior regions. Additionally, DTI indices were moderately correlated with myelin content, indicating their sensitivity to other constituents of white matter tissue.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Jasmina Boban, Majda M. Thurnher, Nikola Boban, Meng Law, Neda Jahanshad, Talia M. Nir, Dajana F. Lendak, Dusko Kozic
Summary: This study investigated the correlation between white matter diffusivity measures and age and education level in healthy volunteers. The results showed that different diffusivity parameters had significant correlations with age, with radial diffusivity (RD) showing the strongest correlation. The patterns of degradation in different fiber tracts varied, suggesting that currently available theories cannot fully explain age-related changes in the brain.
FRONTIERS IN NEUROLOGY
(2022)
Article
Neurosciences
Ahmed M. Radwan, Stefan Sunaert, Kurt Schilling, Maxime Descoteaux, Bennett A. Landman, Mathieu Vandenbulcke, Tom Theys, Patrick Dupont, Louise Emsell
Summary: The virtual dissection of white matter using diffusion MRI tractography has poor reproducibility, but this study provides a comprehensive description of white matter anatomy using a reproducible automated subject-specific parcellation-based approach with probabilistic CSD tractography. The study demonstrates high inter-session similarity and provides a WM atlas that can be useful for mapping white matter fasciculi in healthy adults.
Article
Anatomy & Morphology
Ayaka Ando, Peter Parzer, Michael Kaess, Susanne Schell, Romy Henze, Stefan Delorme, Bram Stieltjes, Franz Resch, Romuald Brunner, Julian Koenig
Summary: By longitudinally tracking structural brain development during adolescence, this study found that age best predicted longitudinal changes, while pubertal status had a significant impact on certain brain regions. However, the major limitation of this study was the recruitment of only two cohorts, limiting the investigation of complete trajectories over 6 years of development. Further longitudinal studies in more diverse samples are needed to replicate these findings and explore mechanisms underlying norm-variants in brain development.
BRAIN STRUCTURE & FUNCTION
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Hassna Irzan, Erika Molteni, Michael Hutel, Sebastien Ourselin, Neil Marlow, Andrew Melbourne
Summary: The study found significant alterations in white matter connectivity in extremely preterm young adults at both macro-and microstructural levels, with overall diminished connectivity but comparable spatial configuration of WM fibres with fewer WM fibres per voxel. These alterations are widespread throughout the brain, particularly concentrated along pathways between deep grey matter regions, frontal regions, and the cerebellum, indicating that white matter abnormalities persist into early adulthood in individuals exposed to the extrauterine environment prematurely.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Timothy R. Koscik, Ellen van der Plas, Laurie Gutmann, Sarah A. Cumming, Darren G. Monckton, Vincent Magnotta, Richard K. Shields, Peggy C. Nopoulos
Summary: The study found that white matter integrity in the brain is significantly related to grip strength and fine motor skills in DM1 patients. Fractional anisotropy was the strongest predictor of grip strength, while radial diffusivity predicted fine motor skills. Systemic white matter degradation may mediate the relationship between DM1 progression and genetic burden with motor outcomes.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Derek Sayre Andrews, Joshua K. Lee, Danielle Jenine Harvey, Einat Waizbard-Bartov, Marjorie Solomon, Sally J. Rogers, Christine Wu Nordahl, David G. Amaral
Summary: The study found that autistic children showed slower development of fractional anisotropy in certain white matter regions, and changes in white matter diffusion parameters were associated with longitudinal changes in autism severity. These findings suggest that differences in white matter development are linked to functional differences in the autistic brain and may be indicative of atypical neurodevelopment.
BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY
(2021)
Article
Obstetrics & Gynecology
Carol Bedwell, Valentina Actis Danna, Kutemba Lyangenda, Khuzuet Tuwele, Flora Kuzenza, Debora Kimaro, Happiness Shayo, Chisomo Petross, Isabella Chisuse, Alexander Heazell, Suresh Victor, Bellington Vwalika, Tina Lavender
Summary: This study explored the perspectives of women, partners, families, health workers, and community leaders on investigating the causes of stillbirth in Malawi, Tanzania, and Zambia. The findings revealed that while women wanted to know the cause of stillbirth, they feared the implications of this knowledge and the potential blame they might face. Non-invasive investigations were more acceptable, as they were seen as causing less harm to the baby. Parental decision-making was influenced by the type of investigation, cultural factors, and financial considerations.
BJOG-AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OBSTETRICS AND GYNAECOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Neurosciences
Sunniva Fenn-Moltu, Sean P. Fitzgibbon, Judit Ciarrusta, Michael Eyre, Lucilio Cordero-Grande, Andrew Chew, Shona Falconer, Oliver Gale-Grant, Nicholas Harper, Ralica Dimitrova, Katy Vecchiato, Daphna Fenchel, Ayesha Javed, Megan Earl, Anthony N. Price, Emer Hughes, Eugene P. Duff, Jonathan O'Muircheartaigh, Chiara Nosarti, Tomoki Arichi, Daniel Rueckert, Serena Counsell, Joseph Hajnal, A. David Edwards, Grainne McAlonan, Dafnis Batalle
Summary: The formation of the functional connectome in early life is crucial for future learning and behavior. However, our understanding of how the functional organization of brain regions matures during the early postnatal period, especially in response to adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes like preterm birth, is limited. In this study involving 366 neonates, we found that functional centrality (weighted degree) increased with age in visual regions and decreased in motor and auditory regions in term-born infants. Preterm-born infants scanned at term equivalent age showed higher functional centrality in visual regions and lower measures in motor regions. Functional centrality did not predict neurodevelopmental outcomes at 18 months old.
Article
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
Francesco Padormo, Paul Cawley, Louise Dillon, Emer Hughes, Jennifer Almalbis, Joanna Robinson, Alessandra Maggioni, Miguel De La Fuente Botella, Dan Cromb, Anthony Price, Lori Arlinghaus, John Pitts, Tianrui Luo, Dingtian Zhang, Sean C. L. Deoni, Steve Williams, Shaihan Malik, Jonathan O'Muircheartaigh, Serena J. Counsell, Mary Rutherford, Tomoki Arichi, A. David Edwards, Joseph V. Hajnal
Summary: This study utilizes ultralow-field MRI systems to measure T-1 values in neonates and finds that these values are shorter than those previously measured at standard clinical field strengths, but longer than those of adults at ultralow-field. T-1 values decrease with postmenstrual age, making them a potential biomarker for perinatal brain development.
MAGNETIC RESONANCE IN MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Neurosciences
Abi Fukami-Gartner, Ana A. Baburamani, Ralica Dimitrova, Prachi A. Patkee, Olatz Ojinaga-Alfageme, Alexandra F. Bonthrone, Daniel Cromb, Alena U. Uus, Serena J. Counsell, Joseph Hajnal, Jonathan O'Muircheartaigh, Mary A. Rutherford
Summary: Down syndrome (DS) is a common genetic cause of intellectual disability. In this study, researchers analyzed the brain volumes of neonates with DS using neuroimaging techniques. They found that the DS brain showed significant reductions in overall volume, cerebral white matter, and cerebellar volumes, as well as differences in relative lobar volumes. Furthermore, certain features such as enlarged deep gray matter volume and lateral ventricle enlargement were observed. Assessing phenotypic severity at the neonatal stage may help guide early interventions and improve neurodevelopmental outcomes in children with DS.
Article
Neurosciences
Changbo Zhu, Yaqing Chen, Hans-Georg Muller, Jane-Ling Wang, Jonathan O'Muircheartaigh, Muriel Bruchhage, Sean Deoni
Summary: The study found that brain development in early childhood can be reflected in the changes in proportional cerebrospinal fluid volumes, grey matter, and white matter. By using a statistical methodology called RPACE, which addresses challenges in analyzing longitudinal neuroimaging data, the researchers discovered significant differences in tissue composition changes between children of mothers with higher and lower maternal education levels.
HUMAN BRAIN MAPPING
(2023)
Article
Computer Science, Interdisciplinary Applications
Lucilio Cordero-Grande, Juan Enrique Ortuno-Fisac, Alejandra Aguado del Hoyo, Alena Uus, Maria Deprez, Andres Santos, Joseph V. Hajnal, Maria J. Ledesma-Carbayo
Summary: In this paper, a deep generative prior and a diffeomorphic volume to slice registration method are proposed for robust volumetric reconstructions. Experiments on 72 fetal datasets show that our method outperforms existing techniques in improving image quality and accurately predicting gestational age.
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON MEDICAL IMAGING
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yidong Zhou, Hans-Georg Mueller, Changbo Zhu, Yaqing Chen, Jane-Ling Wang, Jonathan O'Muircheartaigh, Muriel Bruchhage, Sean Deoni
Summary: The maturation of regional brain volumes from birth to preadolescence is crucial for brain structural connectivity and function. Our study aims to explore how evolving connections among brain regions, as reflected at the network level, are related to maternal education, biological sex of the child, and cognitive development. We found that sustained coordinated volume growth across brain regions is associated with lower maternal education and lower cognitive development, suggesting that higher neurocognitive performance in children is linked to increased variability of regional growth patterns as they age.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2023)
Article
Psychology, Developmental
Lucy Vanes, Sunniva Fenn-Moltu, Laila Hadaya, Sean Fitzgibbon, Lucilio Cordero-Grande, Anthony Price, Andrew Chew, Shona Falconer, Tomoki Arichi, Serena J. Counsell, Joseph V. Hajnal, Dafnis Batalle, David Edwards, Chiara Nosarti
Summary: Preterm birth increases the risk of adverse behavioural outcomes in later life. Our study examines the longitudinal development of neonatal brain volume and functional connectivity after preterm birth and their relationship to psychomotor outcomes and psychopathology in toddlerhood. We found that better psychomotor functioning is associated with specific brain volume and connectivity changes in the neonatal period, while increased psychopathology is related to alterations in regional subcortical volume. Additionally, socio-economic deprivation and cognitively stimulating parenting play different roles in predicting psychopathology and psychomotor outcomes. Our findings highlight the importance of longitudinal imaging and environmental influences in understanding behavioural development in preterm infants.
DEVELOPMENTAL COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Biology
Sian Wilson, Maximilian Pietsch, Lucilio Cordero-Grande, Daan Christiaens, Alena Uus, Vyacheslav R. Karolis, Vanessa Kyriakopoulou, Kathleen Colford, Anthony N. Price, Jana Hutter, Mary A. Rutherford, Emer J. Hughes, Serena J. Counsell, Jacques-Donald Tournier, Joseph Hajnal, A. David Edwards, Jonathan O'Muicheartaigh, Tomoki Arichi, Finnegan J. Calabro
Summary: In this study, high-resolution in utero diffusion magnetic resonance imaging was used to examine the development of thalamocortical white matter in 140 fetuses. The researchers delineated the thalamocortical pathways and parcellated the fetal thalamus based on its cortical connectivity. They quantified microstructural tissue components along the tracts in fetal compartments and identified changes in diffusion metrics reflecting critical neurobiological transitions. These findings provide a normative reference for further studies on developmental disruptions and their contributions to pathophysiology.
Article
Automation & Control Systems
Xianqiang Bao, Shuangyi Wang, Lingling Zheng, Richard James Housden, Joseph Hajnal, Kawal Rhode
Summary: This article proposes a novel self-adaptive parallel manipulator (SAPM) for robotic ultrasonography. The SAPM can automatically adjust the ultrasound probe pose, provide approximate constant operating forces/torques, achieve mechanical measurement, and cushion undesired produced forces. Experimental results show that the SAPM can provide 3 DOFs motion, operating force/torque measurement, and automatically adjust the US probe pose to capture high-quality ultrasound images.
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRIAL ELECTRONICS
(2023)
Review
Chemistry, Medicinal
Suresh Victor, Ben Forbes, Anne Greenough, A. David Edwards
Summary: Pioglitazone, an agonist of PPAR gamma, may have the potential to reduce the incidence of bronchopulmonary dysplasia and improve neurodevelopment in extreme preterm babies. However, there is currently no formulation of pioglitazone suitable for administration to preterm babies, and further development is needed before clinical trials can be conducted.
