Regional frontal gray matter volume associated with executive function capacity as a risk factor for vehicle crashes in normal aging adults.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Sakai H
PROVIDER: S-EPMC3446941 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:Individual differences in executive functioning and brain morphology are considerable. In this study, we investigated their interrelation in a large sample of healthy older individuals. Digit span, trail-making, and Stroop tasks were used to assess different executive subfunctions in 367 nondemented community-dwelling individuals (50-81 years). Task performance was analyzed relative to brain structure using voxel-based morphometry, corrected for age and sex. Improved task performance was associated with increased local gray matter volume in task-specific patterns that showed partial, but not complete overlap with known task-specific functional imaging patterns. While all three tasks showed associations with prefrontal gray matter volume as expected for executive functioning, the strongest overlap between the three tasks was found in insular cortex, suggesting that it has a previously underestimated role for executive functions. The association between the insular cortex and executive functioning was corroborated using stereological region-of-interest measurement of insular volume in a subgroup of 93 subjects. Quantitatively, the volume of the single most strongly related region explained 2.4 ± 1.1% of the variance in executive performance over and above the variance explained by age, which amounted to 7.4 ± 4.1%. The age-independent peak associations between executive performance and gray matter described here occurred in regions that were also strongly affected by age-related gray matter atrophy, consistent with the hypothesis that age-related regional brain volume loss and age-related cognitive changes are linked.
| S-EPMC6869861 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundDespite decades of research, there is continued uncertainty regarding whether autism is associated with a specific profile of gray matter (GM) structure. This inconsistency may stem from the widespread use of voxel-based morphometry (VBM) methods that combine indices of GM density and GM volume. If GM density or volume, but not both, prove different in autism, the traditional VBM approach of combining the two indices may obscure the difference. The present study measures GM density and volume separately to examine whether autism is associated with alterations in GM volume, density, or both.MethodsDifferences in MRI-based GM density and volume were examined in 6-25 year-olds with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (n = 213, 80.8% male, IQ 47-154) and a typically developing (TD) sample (n = 190, 71.6% male, IQ 67-155). High-resolution T1-weighted anatomical images were collected on a single MRI scanner. Regional density and volume were estimated via whole-brain parcellation comprised of 1625 parcels. Parcel-wise analyses were conducted using generalized additive models while controlling the false discovery rate (FDR, q < 0.05). Volume differences in the 68-region Desikan-Killiany atlas derived from Freesurfer were also examined, to establish the generalizability of findings across methods.ResultsNo density differences were observed between the autistic and TD groups, either in individual parcels or whole brain mean density. Increased volume was observed in autism compared to the TD group when controlling for Age, Sex, and IQ, both at the level of the whole brain (total volume) and in 45 parcels (2.8% of total parcels). Parcels with greater volume included inferior, middle, and superior temporal gyrus, inferior and superior frontal gyrus, precuneus, and fusiform gyrus. Converging evidence from a standard Freesurfer pipeline also identified greater volume in a number of overlapping regions.LimitationsThe method for determining "density" is not a direct measure of neuronal density, and this study cannot reveal underlying cellular differences. While this study represents possibly the largest single-site sample of its kind, it is underpowered to detect very small differences.ConclusionsThese results provide compelling evidence that autism is associated with regional GM volumetric differences, which are more prominent than density differences. This underscores the importance of examining volume and density separately, and suggests that direct measures of volume (e.g. region-of-interest or tensor-based morphometry approaches) may be more sensitive to autism-relevant differences in neuroanatomy than concentration/density-based approaches.
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Project description:The cerebellum is an important region responsible for adolescent cognitive function and sleep, and their correlation is expected to show different patterns depending on age and gender. We examined the regional cerebellar gray matter volume (GMV), executive function (EF) and insomnia symptoms to identify their correlation and gender differences in adolescents. Data for a total of 55 subjects' (M?=?31, F?=?24, 14.80?±?1.39 years old) were analyzed. The correlations between cerebellar regional GMV and Wisconsin card sorting test (WCST) subcategories showed that EF was better with larger GMV both in males and females. Far more overall correlations with cerebellar regions were observed in boys, with corresponding correlation strength being higher, and differences in localization were also observed in contrast to girls. Larger cerebellar GMV corresponded to better EF in adolescents. Insomnia did not influence the correlations between cerebellar regional GMV and EF, but more severe insomnia in boys correlated to smaller GMV in the right flocculonodular lobe. These results might implicate that the adolescent cerebellum is involved differently in EF dependent on gender.
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Project description:Neurodegenerative change in the central nervous system has been suggested as one of the pathophysiological mechanisms of autonomic nervous system dysfunction in Parkinson's disease (PD). We analyzed gray matter (GM) volume changes and clinical parameters in patients with PD to investigate any involvement in the brain structures responsible for autonomic control in patients with PD having orthostatic hypotension (OH). Voxel-based morphometry was applied to compare regional GM volumes between PD patients with and without OH. Multivariate logistic regression analysis using a hierarchical model was carried out to identify clinical factors independently contributing to the regional GM volume changes in PD patients with OH. The Sobel test was used to analyze mediation effects between the independent contributing factors to the GM volume changes. PD patients with OH had more severe autonomic dysfunction and reduction in volume in the right inferior temporal cortex than those without OH. The right inferior temporal volume was positively correlated with the Qualitative Scoring MMSE Pentagon Test (QSPT) score, reflecting visuospatial/visuoperceptual function, and negatively correlated with the Composite Autonomic Severity Score (CASS). The CASS and QSPT scores were found to be factors independently contributing to regional volume changes in the right inferior temporal cortex. The QSPT score was identified as a mediator in which regional GM volume predicts the CASS. Our findings suggest that a decrease in the visuospatial/visuoperceptual process may be involved in the presentation of autonomic nervous system dysfunction in PD patients.
| S-EPMC7996881 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Functional neuroimaging studies have long implicated the mid-cingulate cortex (MCC) in conflict monitoring, but it is not clear whether its structural integrity (i.e., the gray matter volume) influences its conflict monitoring function. In this multimodal study, we used T1-weighted MRI scans as well as event-related potentials (ERPs) to test whether the MCC gray matter volume is associated with the electrocortical marker (i.e., No-go N200 ERP component) of conflict monitoring in healthy individuals. The specificity of such a relationship in health was determined in two ways: by (A) acquiring the same data from individuals with cocaine use disorder (CUD), known to have deficits in executive function including behavioral monitoring; and (B) acquiring the P300 ERP component that is linked with attention allocation and not specifically with conflict monitoring. Twenty-five (39.1 ± 8.4 years; 8 females) healthy individuals and 25 (42.7 ± 5.9 years; 6 females) individuals with CUD underwent a rewarded Go/No-go task during which the ERP data was collected, and they also underwent a structural MRI scan. The whole brain regression analysis showed a significant correlation between MCC structural integrity and the well-known ERP measure of conflict monitoring (N200, but not the P300) in healthy individuals, which was absent in CUD who were characterized by reduced MCC gray matter volume, N200 abnormalities as well as reduced task accuracy. In individuals with CUD instead, the N200 amplitude was associated with drug addiction symptomatology. These results show that the integrity of MCC volume is directly associated with the electrocortical correlates of conflict monitoring in healthy individuals, and such an association breaks down in psychopathologies that impact these brain processes. Taken together, this MCC-N200 association may serve as a biomarker of improved behavioral monitoring processes in diseased populations.
| S-EPMC4050316 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The accumulation of amyloid plaques is one of the earliest pathological changes in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and may occur 20 years before the onset of symptoms. Examining associations between amyloid pathology and other early brain changes is critical for understanding the pathophysiological underpinnings of AD. Alterations in gray matter networks might already start at early preclinical stages of AD. In this study, we examined the regional relationship between amyloid aggregation measured with positron emission tomography (PET) and gray matter network measures in elderly subjects with subjective memory complaints. Single-subject gray matter networks were extracted from T1-weigthed structural MRI in cognitively normal subjects (n = 318, mean age 76.1 ± 3.5, 64% female, 28% amyloid positive). Degree, clustering, path length and small world properties were computed. Global and regional amyloid load was determined using [18F]-Florbetapir PET. Associations between standardized uptake value ratio (SUVr) values and network measures were examined using linear regression models. We found that higher global SUVr was associated with lower clustering (? = -0.12, p < 0.05), and small world values (? = -0.16, p < 0.01). Associations were most prominent in orbito- and dorsolateral frontal and parieto-occipital regions. Local SUVr values showed less anatomical variability and did not convey additional information beyond global amyloid burden. In conclusion, we found that in cognitively normal elderly subjects, increased global amyloid pathology is associated with alterations in gray matter networks that are indicative of incipient network breakdown towards AD dementia.
| S-EPMC5863592 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Empathizing is defined as the drive to identify the mental states of others for predicting their behavior and responding with an appropriate emotion. Systemizing is defined as the drive to analyze a system in terms of the rules that govern the system in order to predict its behavior. Using voxel-based morphometry and questionnaires in a large sample of normal, right-handed young adults, we investigated the regional gray matter volume (rGMV) correlates of empathizing and systemizing and additionally those of the D score, which is the difference between systemizing and empathizing, to reveal the comprehensive picture of those correlates. Negative rGMV correlates of empathizing and positive rGMV correlates of the D score (formed by the negative correlation between rGMV and empathizing), were found primarily in nodes in the default mode network, mirror neuron system, dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, and the lateral part of the prefrontal cortex together with other areas. Positive rGMV correlates of systemizing and of the D score (formed by the positive correlation between rGMV and systemizing) were found primarily in nodes in the external attention system, middle cingulate cortex, and other regions. Negative rGMV correlates of systemizing were found in an area close to the left posterior insula and putamen. These findings reconcile some previously inconsistent findings, provide other new findings and suggest that these areas contribute to empathizing-systemizing. Furthermore, the negative/positive rGMV correlates of empathizing and positive/negative rGMV correlates of systemizing overlapped substantially. This may be in line with the notion that empathizing and systemizing compete neurally in the brain.
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Project description:ObjectivesWe examined the extent to which measures of neurodegeneration and cerebrovascular disease explain the rest-activity rhythm (RAR)-cognition link.MethodsSeventy participants (mean age at MRI?=?86, standard deviation (SD)?=?2.6; 53% female) had cognitive, MRI, and accelerometer data. The slope of cognitive decline was defined applying a mixed model to 10 repeated Modified Mini Mental Status Test (3MS) measures over 14 years. Regional gray matter volume (GMV), white matter hyperintensities, and RARs were measured around year 12.ResultsPast 3MS decline was related to RAR fragmentation (per SD ? = -0.43, 95% confidence interval: -0.73, -0.14) and lower posterior parietal GMV (per standard deviation ??=?0.47, 95% confidence interval: 0.14, 0.79). Higher RAR fragmentation was related to lower posterior parietal GMV (Pearson r = -0.39, n?=?70, p?=?0.0007), which attenuated the association of RAR fragmentation and past cognitive decline by 17%.ConclusionsLongitudinal studies are warranted to understand the temporal relations and mechanisms linking RAR fragmentation and neurodegeneration.
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Project description:Visual deprivation can induce alterations of regional spontaneous brain activity (RSBA). However, the effects of onset age of blindness on the RSBA and the association between the alterations of RSBA and brain structure are still unclear in the blind. In this study, we performed resting-state functional and structural magnetic resonance imaging on 50 sighted controls and 91 blind subjects (20 congenitally blind, 27 early blind, and 44 late blind individuals). Compared with the sighted control, we identified increased RSBA in the blind in primary and high-level visual areas and decreased RSBA in brain regions which are ascribed to sensorimotor and salience networks. In contrast, blind subjects exhibited significantly decreased gray matter volume (GMV) in the visual areas, while they exhibited significantly increased GMV in the sensorimotor areas. Moreover, the onset age of blindness was negatively correlated with the GMV of visual areas in blind subjects, whereas it exerted complex influences on the RSBA. Finally, significant negative correlations were shown between RSBA and GMV values. Our results demonstrated system-dependent, inverse alterations in RSBA and GMV after visual deprivation. Furthermore, the onset age of blindness has different effects on the reorganizations in RSBA and GMV.
| S-EPMC4629052 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Although regular physical exercise has multiple positive benefits for the general population, excessive exercise may lead to exercise dependence (EXD), which is harmful to one's physical and mental health. Increasing evidence suggests that stress is a potential risk factor for the onset and development of EXD. However, little is known about the neural substrates of EXD and the underlying neuropsychological mechanism by which stress affects EXD. Herein, we investigate these issues in 86 individuals who exercise regularly by estimating their cortical gray matter volume (GMV) utilizing a voxel-based morphometry method based on structural magnetic resonance imaging. Whole-brain correlation analyses and prediction analyses showed negative relationships between EXD and GMV of the right orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), left subgenual cingulate gyrus (sgCG), and left inferior parietal lobe (IPL). Furthermore, mediation analyses found that the GMV of the right OFC was an important mediator between stress and EXD. Importantly, these results remained significant even when adjusting for sex, age, body mass index, family socioeconomic status, general intelligence and total intracranial volume, as well as depression and anxiety. Collectively, the results of the present study provide crucial evidence of the neuroanatomical basis of EXD and reveal a potential neuropsychological pathway in predicting EXD in which GMV mediates the relationship between stress and EXD.
| S-EPMC8449116 | biostudies-literature