The dynamic FCT highlights the structure-function association within white matter
Poster No:
1944
Submission Type:
Abstract Submission
Authors:
Yue Wang1, Yue Zhang1, Tianyu Fang1, Xi Sun1, Qiuyun Fan1, Yuanyuan Chen1
Institutions:
1Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Medical School of Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
First Author:
Yue Wang
Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Medical School of Tianjin University
Tianjin, China
Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Medical School of Tianjin University
Tianjin, China
Co-Author(s):
Yue Zhang
Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Medical School of Tianjin University
Tianjin, China
Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Medical School of Tianjin University
Tianjin, China
Tianyu Fang
Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Medical School of Tianjin University
Tianjin, China
Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Medical School of Tianjin University
Tianjin, China
Xi Sun
Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Medical School of Tianjin University
Tianjin, China
Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Medical School of Tianjin University
Tianjin, China
Qiuyun Fan
Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Medical School of Tianjin University
Tianjin, China
Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Medical School of Tianjin University
Tianjin, China
Yuanyuan Chen
Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Medical School of Tianjin University
Tianjin, China
Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Medical School of Tianjin University
Tianjin, China
Introduction:
Plenty of literatures have indicated convergent findings about the brain structure-function coupling between diffusional connectivity and functional connectivity for grey matter. However, less is known for the white matter with the novel aspect of functional activities within white matter. Therefore, the current study aims to examine the association between dynamic functional anisotropy and microstructure within white matter tissue, as well as its potential clinical applications.
Methods:
The discovering data included 100 unrelated subjects from Human Connectome Project, with multi-modality MRI data. The two sessions of resting-state fMRI together with emotion and motor task fMRI were used. Then the validation data included 97 hepatopathy patients (40 healthy controls) and 91 nephropathy patients (84 healthy controls), which was collected locally. All subjects were scanned on a 3T MR system. Data processing for HCP went through the minimal preprocessing pipelines, with an additional regression of head movement parameters and CSF signal, temporal band-pass filtering (0.1-0.15Hz), and a 6-mm FWHM spatial smoothing for fMRI; DWI data were non-linearly registered to MNI-152-2mm space and scalar maps of FA were computed. Both datasets shared the standard preprocessing pipelines and registered to MNI space. Classic functional connectivity tensor (FCT) is calculated based on Pearson correlation over whole time which is also a static examination. We extended it to dynamics with a co-fluctuation way between two voxels. This approach allows us to obtain functional correlation tensor at a timescale of single frame. We calculated the dFCT-FA at each time point and got the temporally averaged dFCT-FA value. Pearson correlation coefficients between the mean dFCT-FA and DTI-FA for each tract in JHU-ICBM atlas were calculated as structure-function association index. To determine the values of clinical applications in the association of dFCT-FA and DTI-FA, further group comparisons have done for hepatopathy/nephropathy patients with two-sample t-test. The significance level was established at p<0.05 after FDR correction across all white matter tracts.
Results:
The dFCT-FA surpassed classic FCT-FA with clear contrast between grey matter and white matter, and both showed high level of repeatability. The mean map of dFCT-FA were illustrated with symmetry across all the tracts, with higher level in the anterior and lower level in the posterior. The association between dFCT-FA and DTI-FA within the white matter tracts showed distinct difference among the varied brain states but not for that of static. The reproducibility of structure-function association with dynamic way showed higher level between sessions than that with static way. Clinical applications further indicated significant lower associations in white matter for patients compared with the healthy. Significant alterations were located at cingulate gyrus for hepatopathy patients and external capsule for nephropathy patients.
Conclusions:
The dFCT-FA is more capable of characterize the functional activities in white matter than the static FCT, and more sensitive to the DTI-FA of microstructural property across different brain states. The proposed method to measure the association of structure-function within white matter exhibited high reliability and clinical value. The reduced association here in patients group probably unveiled the undergoing dysfunctions within that white matter tracts.
Disorders of the Nervous System:
Neurodegenerative/ Late Life (eg. Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s) 2
Modeling and Analysis Methods:
Methods Development 1
Keywords:
Emotions
Motor
MRI
White Matter
Other - dynamic; functional connectivity tensor; functional anisotropy; microstructure; structure-function association index; clinical applications
1|2Indicates the priority used for review
Provide references using author date format
Zamani Esfahlani, F.(2020). High-amplitude cofluctuations in cortical activity drive functional connectivity. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117(45), 28393-28401.
Zhao, J.(2023). Structure-function coupling in white matter uncovers the abnormal brain connectivity in Schizophrenia. Translational Psychiatry, 13(1), 21.