Dataset Information

The Superoanterior Fasciculus (SAF): A Novel White Matter Pathway in the Human Brain?

ABSTRACT: Fiber tractography (FT) using diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) is widely used for investigating microstructural properties of white matter (WM) fiber-bundles and for mapping structural connections of the human brain. While studying the architectural configuration of the brain's circuitry with FT is not without controversy, recent progress in acquisition, processing, modeling, analysis, and visualization of dMRI data pushes forward the reliability in reconstructing WM pathways. Despite being aware of the well-known pitfalls in analyzing dMRI data and several other limitations of FT discussed in recent literature, we present the superoanterior fasciculus (SAF), a novel bilateral fiber tract in the frontal region of the human brain that-to the best of our knowledge-has not been documented. The SAF has a similar shape to the anterior part of the cingulum bundle, but it is located more frontally. To minimize the possibility that these FT findings are based on acquisition or processing artifacts, different dMRI data sets and processing pipelines have been used to describe the SAF. Furthermore, we evaluated the configuration of the SAF with complementary methods, such as polarized light imaging (PLI) and human brain dissections. The FT results of the SAF demonstrate a long pathway, consistent across individuals, while the human dissections indicate fiber pathways connecting the postero-dorsal with the antero-dorsal cortices of the frontal lobe.

SUBMITTER: David S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6412356 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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The Superoanterior Fasciculus (SAF): A Novel White Matter Pathway in the Human Brain?

David Szabolcs S Heemskerk Anneriet M AM Corrivetti Francesco F Thiebaut de Schotten Michel M Sarubbo Silvio S Corsini Francesco F De Benedictis Alessandro A Petit Laurent L Viergever Max A MA Jones Derek K DK Mandonnet Emmanuel E Axer Hubertus H Evans John J Paus Tomáš T Leemans Alexander A

Frontiers in neuroanatomy 20190305

Fiber tractography (FT) using diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) is widely used for investigating microstructural properties of white matter (WM) fiber-bundles and for mapping structural connections of the human brain. While studying the architectural configuration of the brain's circuitry with FT is not without controversy, recent progress in acquisition, processing, modeling, analysis, and visualization of dMRI data pushes forward the reliability in reconstructing WM pathways. Despite ...[more]

PMID: 30890921

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Project description:BackgroundNeighborhood- or area-level socioeconomic disadvantage is associated with neural alterations across the life span. However, few studies have examined the effects of neighborhood disadvantage on white matter microstructure during adolescence, an important period of development that coincides with increased risk for psychopathology.MethodsIn 200 adolescents (ages 13-20 years; 54.5% female, 4% nonbinary) recruited from 2 studies enriched for early adversity and depression, we examined whether neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage derived from census tract data was related to white matter microstructure in several major white matter tracts. We also examined whether depressive symptoms and sex moderated these associations.ResultsGreater neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage was associated with lower fractional anisotropy (FA) in the left arcuate fasciculus (β = -0.24, false discovery rate [FDR]-corrected p = .035) and right uncinate fasciculus (β = -0.32, FDR-corrected p = .002) above and beyond the effects of family-level socioeconomic status. Depressive symptoms significantly moderated the association between left arcuate fasciculus FA and both neighborhood (β = 0.17, FDR-corrected p = .026) and unemployment (β = 0.22, FDR-corrected p = .004) disadvantage such that these associations were only significant in adolescents who reported less severe depression. Sex did not moderate the association between socioeconomic disadvantage and FA in these tracts.ConclusionsGreater neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage, particularly poverty and educational attainment levels, was associated with lower FA in the arcuate fasciculus and uncinate fasciculus above and beyond the effects of family-level measures of socioeconomic status. These patterns were only observed in adolescents with low levels of depression, suggesting that we must be cautious about generalizing these findings to youths who struggle with mental health difficulties.

Project description:BackgroundWearable devices have been found effective in training ankle control in patients with neurological diseases. However, the neural mechanisms associated with using wearable devices for ankle training remain largely unexplored. This study aimed to investigate the ankle tracking performance and brain white matter changes associated with ankle tracking learning using a wearable-device system and the behavior-brain structure relationships in middle-aged and older adults.MethodsTwenty-six middle-aged and older adults (48-75 years) participated in this study. Participants underwent 5-day ankle tracking learning with their non-dominant foot using a custom-built ankle tracking system equipped with a wearable sensor and a sensor-computer interface for real-time visual feedback and data acquisition. Repeated and random sequences of target tracking trajectories were both used for learning and testing. Ankle tracking performance, calculated as the root-mean-squared-error (RMSE) between the target and actual ankle trajectories, and brain diffusion spectrum MR images were acquired at baseline and retention tests. The general fractional anisotropy (GFA) values of eight brain white matter tracts of interest were calculated to indicate their integrity. Two-way (Sex × Time) mixed repeated measures ANOVA procedures were used to investigate Sex and Time effects on RMSE and GFA. Correlations between changes in RMSE and those in GFA were analyzed, controlling for age and sex.ResultsAfter learning, both male and female participants reduced the RMSE of tracking repeated and random sequences (both p < 0.001). Among the eight fiber tracts, the right superior longitudinal fasciculus II (R SLF II) was the only one which showed both increased GFA (p = 0.039) after learning and predictive power of reductions in RMSE for random sequence tracking with its changes in GFA [β = 0.514, R2 change = 0.259, p = 0.008].ConclusionsOur findings implied that interactive tracking movement learning using wearable sensors may place high demands on the attention, sensory feedback integration, and sensorimotor transformation functions of the brain. Therefore, the SLF II, which is known to perform these brain functions, showed corresponding neural plasticity after such learning, and its plasticity also predicted the behavioral gains. The SLF II appears to be a very important anatomical neural correlate involved in such learning paradigms.

Dataset Information

The Superoanterior Fasciculus (SAF): A Novel White Matter Pathway in the Human Brain?

Publications

The Superoanterior Fasciculus (SAF): A Novel White Matter Pathway in the Human Brain?

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