Dataset Information

In vivo functional connectome of human brainstem nuclei of the ascending arousal, autonomic, and motor systems by high spatial resolution 7-Tesla fMRI.

ABSTRACT: Our aim was to map the in vivo human functional connectivity of several brainstem nuclei with the rest of the brain by using seed-based correlation of ultra-high magnetic field functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data.We used the recently developed template of 11 brainstem nuclei derived from multi-contrast structural MRI at 7 Tesla as seed regions to determine their connectivity to the rest of the brain. To achieve this, we used the increased contrast-to-noise ratio of 7-Tesla fMRI compared with 3 Tesla and time-efficient simultaneous multi-slice imaging to cover the brain with high spatial resolution (1.1-mm isotropic nominal resolution) while maintaining a short repetition time (2.5 s).The delineated Pearson's correlation-based functional connectivity diagrams (connectomes) of 11 brainstem nuclei of the ascending arousal, motor, and autonomic systems from 12 controls are presented and discussed in the context of existing histology and animal work.Considering that the investigated brainstem nuclei play a crucial role in several vital functions, the delineated preliminary connectomes might prove useful for future in vivo research and clinical studies of human brainstem function and pathology, including disorders of consciousness, sleep disorders, autonomic disorders, Parkinson's disease, and other motor disorders.

SUBMITTER: Bianciardi M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4892960 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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In vivo functional connectome of human brainstem nuclei of the ascending arousal, autonomic, and motor systems by high spatial resolution 7-Tesla fMRI.

Bianciardi Marta M Toschi Nicola N Eichner Cornelius C Polimeni Jonathan R JR Setsompop Kawin K Brown Emery N EN Hämäläinen Matti S MS Rosen Bruce R BR Wald Lawrence L LL

Magma (New York, N.Y.) 20160428 3

<h4>Objective</h4>Our aim was to map the in vivo human functional connectivity of several brainstem nuclei with the rest of the brain by using seed-based correlation of ultra-high magnetic field functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data.<h4>Materials and methods</h4>We used the recently developed template of 11 brainstem nuclei derived from multi-contrast structural MRI at 7 Tesla as seed regions to determine their connectivity to the rest of the brain. To achieve this, we used the incre ...[more]

PMID: 27126248

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Project description:Despite remarkable advances in mapping the functional connectivity of the cortex, the functional connectivity of subcortical regions is understudied in living humans. This is the case for brainstem nuclei that control vital processes, such as autonomic, limbic, nociceptive and sensory functions. This is because of the lack of precise brainstem nuclei localization, of adequate sensitivity and resolution in the deepest brain regions, as well as of optimized processing for the brainstem. To close the gap between the cortex and the brainstem, on 20 healthy subjects, we computed a correlation-based functional connectome of 15 brainstem nuclei involved in autonomic, limbic, nociceptive, and sensory function (superior and inferior colliculi, ventral tegmental area-parabrachial pigmented nucleus complex, microcellular tegmental nucleus-prabigeminal nucleus complex, lateral and medial parabrachial nuclei, vestibular and superior olivary complex, superior and inferior medullary reticular formation, viscerosensory motor nucleus, raphe magnus, pallidus, and obscurus, and parvicellular reticular nucleus - alpha part) with the rest of the brain. Specifically, we exploited 1.1mm isotropic resolution 7 Tesla resting-state fMRI, ad-hoc coregistration and physiological noise correction strategies, and a recently developed probabilistic template of brainstem nuclei. Further, we used 2.5mm isotropic resolution resting-state fMRI data acquired on a 3 Tesla scanner to assess the translatability of our results to conventional datasets. We report highly consistent correlation coefficients across subjects, confirming available literature on autonomic, limbic, nociceptive and sensory pathways, as well as high interconnectivity within the central autonomic network and the vestibular network. Interestingly, our results showed evidence of vestibulo-autonomic interactions in line with previous work. Comparison of 7 Tesla and 3 Tesla findings showed high translatability of results to conventional settings for brainstem-cortical connectivity and good yet weaker translatability for brainstem-brainstem connectivity. The brainstem functional connectome might bring new insight in the understanding of autonomic, limbic, nociceptive and sensory function in health and disease.

Project description:Autonomic, pain, limbic, and sensory processes are mainly governed by the central nervous system, with brainstem nuclei as relay centers for these crucial functions. Yet, the structural connectivity of brainstem nuclei in living humans remains understudied. These tiny structures are difficult to locate using conventional in vivo MRI, and ex vivo brainstem nuclei atlases lack precise and automatic transformability to in vivo images. To fill this gap, we mapped our recently developed probabilistic brainstem nuclei atlas developed in living humans to high-spatial resolution (1.7 mm isotropic) and diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) at 7 Tesla in 20 healthy participants. To demonstrate clinical translatability, we also acquired 3 Tesla DWI with conventional resolution (2.5 mm isotropic) in the same participants. Results showed the structural connectome of 15 autonomic, pain, limbic, and sensory (including vestibular) brainstem nuclei/nuclei complex (superior/inferior colliculi, ventral tegmental area-parabrachial pigmented, microcellular tegmental-parabigeminal, lateral/medial parabrachial, vestibular, superior olivary, superior/inferior medullary reticular formation, viscerosensory motor, raphe magnus/pallidus/obscurus, parvicellular reticular nucleus-alpha part), derived from probabilistic tractography computation. Through graph measure analysis, we identified network hubs and demonstrated high intercommunity communication in these nuclei. We found good (r = .5) translational capability of the 7 Tesla connectome to clinical (i.e., 3 Tesla) datasets. Furthermore, we validated the structural connectome by building diagrams of autonomic/pain/limbic connectivity, vestibular connectivity, and their interactions, and by inspecting the presence of specific links based on human and animal literature. These findings offer a baseline for studies of these brainstem nuclei and their functions in health and disease, including autonomic dysfunction, chronic pain, psychiatric, and vestibular disorders.

Dataset Information

In vivo functional connectome of human brainstem nuclei of the ascending arousal, autonomic, and motor systems by high spatial resolution 7-Tesla fMRI.

Publications

In vivo functional connectome of human brainstem nuclei of the ascending arousal, autonomic, and motor systems by high spatial resolution 7-Tesla fMRI.

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