scholarly journals Cortical thickness and sulcal depth: insights on development and psychopathology in paediatric epilepsy

BJPsych Open ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 129-135 ◽  
Author(s):  
Duygu Tosun ◽  
Prabha Siddarth ◽  
Jennifer Levitt ◽  
Rochelle Caplan
Keyword(s):  
Cortical Thickness ◽  
Focal Epilepsy ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Psychiatric Diagnoses ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Related Information ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Tesla Scanner ◽  
Sulcal Depth

BackgroundThe relationship between cortical thickness (CThick) and sulcal depth (SDepth) changes across brain regions during development. Epilepsy youth have CThick and SDepth abnormalities and prevalent psychiatric disorders.AimsThis study compared the CThick–SDepth relationship in children with focal epilepsy with typically developing children (TDC) and the role played by seizure and psychopathology variables.MethodA surface-based, computational high-resolution three-dimesional (3D) magnetic resonance image analytic technique compared regional CThick–SDepth relationships in 42 participants with focal epilepsy and 46 TDC (6–16 years) imaged in a 1.5 Tesla scanner. Psychiatric interviews administered to each participant yielded psychiatric diagnoses. Parents provided seizure-related information.ResultsThe TDC group alone demonstrated a significant negative medial fronto-orbital CThick–SDepth correlation. Focal epilepsy participants with but not without psychiatric diagnoses showed significant positive pre-central and post-central CThick–SDepth associations not found in TDC. Although the history of prolonged seizures was significantly associated with the postcentral CThick–SDepth correlation, it was unrelated to the presence/absence of psychiatric diagnoses.ConclusionsAbnormal CThick–SDepth pre-central and post-central associations might be a psychopathology biomarker in paediatric focal epilepsy.

scholarly journals Long-term consequences of childhood maltreatment: Altered amygdala functional connectivity

2015 ◽  
Vol 27 (4pt2) ◽  
pp. 1577-1589 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kelly Jedd ◽  
Ruskin H. Hunt ◽  
Dante Cicchetti ◽  
Emily Hunt ◽  
Raquel A. Cowell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Childhood Maltreatment ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Healthy Development ◽  
Early Stress ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

AbstractChildhood maltreatment is a serious individual, familial, and societal threat that compromises healthy development and is associated with lasting alterations to emotion perception, processing, and regulation (Cicchetti & Curtis, 2005; Pollak, Cicchetti, Hornung, & Reed, 2000; Pollak & Tolley-Schell, 2003). Individuals with a history of maltreatment show altered structural and functional brain development in both frontal and limbic structures (Hart & Rubia, 2012). In particular, previous research has identified hyperactive amygdala responsivity associated with childhood maltreatment (e.g., Dannlowski et al., 2012). However, less is known about the impact of maltreatment on the relationship between the amygdala and other brain regions. The present study employed an emotion processing functional magnetic resonance imaging task to examine task-based activation and functional connectivity in adults who experienced maltreatment as children. The sample included adults with a history of substantiated childhood maltreatment (n = 33) and comparison adults (n = 38) who were well matched on demographic variables, all of whom have been studied prospectively since childhood. The maltreated group exhibited greater activation than comparison participants in the prefrontal cortex and basal ganglia. In addition, maltreated adults showed increased amygdala connectivity with the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex. The results suggest that the intense early stress of childhood maltreatment is associated with lasting alterations to frontolimbic circuitry.

scholarly journals PTPN11 Gain-of-Function Mutations Affect the Developing Human Brain, Memory, and Attention

2018 ◽  
Vol 29 (7) ◽  
pp. 2915-2923 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily M Johnson ◽  
Alexandra D Ishak ◽  
Paige E Naylor ◽  
David A Stevenson ◽  
Allan L Reiss ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Human Brain ◽  
Cortical Thickness ◽  
Neural Development ◽  
Mapk Pathway ◽  
Gray Matter Volume ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Cellular Mechanisms ◽  
Memory And Attention ◽  
Behavioral Mechanisms

Abstract The Ras-MAPK pathway has an established role in neural development and synaptic signaling. Mutations in this pathway are associated with a collection of neurodevelopmental syndromes, Rasopathies; among these, Noonan syndrome (NS) is the most common (1:2000). Prior research has focused on identifying genetic mutations and cellular mechanisms of the disorder, however, effects of NS on the human brain remain unknown. Here, imaging and cognitive data were collected from 12 children with PTPN11-related NS, ages 4.0–11.0 years (8.98 ± 2.33) and 12 age- and sex-matched typically developing controls (8.79 ± 2.17). We observe reduced gray matter volume in bilateral corpus striatum (Cohen’s d = −1.0:−1.3), reduced surface area in temporal regions (d = −1.8:−2.2), increased cortical thickness in frontal regions (d = 1.2–1.3), and reduced cortical thickness in limbic regions (d = −1.6), including limbic structures integral to the circuitry of the hippocampus. Further, we find high levels of inattention, hyperactivity, and memory deficits in children with NS. Taken together, these results identify effects of NS on specific brain regions associated with ADHD and learning in children. While our research lays the groundwork for elucidating the neural and behavioral mechanisms of NS, it also adds an essential tier to understanding the Ras-MAPK pathway’s role in human brain development.

scholarly journals Volumetric MRI analysis of brain structures in patients with history of first and repeated suicide attempts: a cross sectional study

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Milda Sarkinaite ◽  
Rymante Gleizniene ◽  
Virginija Adomaitiene ◽  
Kristina Dambrauskiene ◽  
Nijole Raskauskiene ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Suicide Attempt ◽  
Left Hemisphere ◽  
Cortical Thickness ◽  
Suicide Attempts ◽  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Brain Structures ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Suicide Attempters ◽  
History Of

Abstract Background Structural brain changes are found in suicide attempters, as well as in patients with mental disorders. It remains unclear whether the suicidal behavior is related to atrophy of brain regions and how the morphology of specific brain areas is changing with each suicide attempt. This cross-sectional study examined volumetric differences in brain regions among patients with history of first and repeated suicide attempts in comparison to healthy controls (HC). Methods The sample consisted of 56 adults, non-psychotic patients without cognitive impairment and any organic brain disorders hospitalized after first suicide attempt (first SA) (n=29) and more than one suicide attempt (SA>1) during the lifetime (n=27); and 54 adult volunteers without history of mental disorder and suicide attempts, designated as HC. The MRI data were collected using 1.5 T Siemens Avanto scanner. Brain cortical thickness, grey and white matter volumes were measured using FreeSurfer 6.0 automatic segmentation technique. Results In comparison to HC, patients with first SA had 3.5, 3.58 and 4.19% significantly lower mean cortical thickness of the superior and rostral middle frontal areas of the left hemisphere and superior frontal area of the right hemisphere, respectively; 4.09, 4.02 and 4.49% lower mean cortical thickness of the inferior, middle and superior temporal areas of the left hemisphere, respectively. In comparison to HC, patients after SA>1 had a significantly lower mean cortical thickness (from 4.02 to 8.33%) in ten areas of frontal cortex of the left hemisphere and seven areas of the right hemisphere; from 3.90 to 6.04% difference in six areas of temporal cortex in both hemispheres. The comparison of hippocampus volume showed a significantly lower mean volume (7.86 to 9.89%) of left and right parts in patients with SA>1, but not in patients with first SA. Conclusions Hospitalized suicide attempters had lower frontal and temporal cortical thickness and smaller parts of hippocampus than HC; these differences were significantly higher in repeated suicide attempters than in patients with first SA. Our findings suggest that repeated suicidal behavior is associated with intensifying atrophy of specific brain structures, independently of diagnosis of depressive disorders.

Abstract 54: Bilateral Developmental Alterations in Cortical Morphology in Children With Perinatal Stroke

Stroke ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 52 (Suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Karan Shinde ◽  
Brandon T Craig ◽  
Jordan Hassett ◽  
Adam Kirton ◽  
Helen L Carlson
Keyword(s):  
Cortical Thickness ◽  
Developmental Plasticity ◽  
Grey Matter Volume ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Arterial Ischemic Stroke ◽  
Perinatal Stroke ◽  
Anatomical Imaging ◽  
Sensory Cortices ◽  
Cortical Morphology ◽  
Sulcal Depth

Perinatal stroke (PS) causes hemiparetic cerebral palsy (CP) and lifelong disability. Compensatory changes in the nonlesioned hemisphere may mediate residual function and represent targets for neuromodulation. Region-based approaches may reveal relationships between cortical thickness of nonlesioned primary motor/sensory cortices and motor function. This study uses surface-based morphometry to explore cortical alterations in the nonlesioned hemisphere in children after perinatal stroke. Children aged 6-19 with MRI-confirmed unilateral perinatal stroke and CP underwent T1-weighted anatomical imaging. Participants were classified as arterial ischemic stroke (AIS; n=36), periventricular venous infarction (PVI; n=38), or typically developing controls (TDC; n=53). Group differences in cortical thickness (distance between grey/white matter boundary and pial surface), grey matter volume, gyrification and sulcal depth and relationships between these morphology metrics and validated measures of motor/executive function were explored. Group comparisons revealed less cortical thickness, greater gyrification, and greater surface area in the nonlesioned hemisphere in both AIS and PVI as compared to TDC. Greater volume and sulcal depth were observed in the nonlesioned hemisphere for AIS. The PVI group showed greater volume in the cingulate cortex and less volume in the precuneus relative to TDC. The AIS group showed more widespread differences than the PVI group in volume and other cortical surface parameters when compared with TDC. Only modest correlations were observed between morphometric changes and clinical function. We suggest that broad differences in structural developmental plasticity occur in the nonlesioned hemisphere after perinatal stroke, particularly the larger lesions seen with AIS, and may represent novel targets for therapeutic neuromodulation.

scholarly journals The Dynamic Associations Between Cortical Thickness and General Intelligence are Genetically Mediated

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (11) ◽  
pp. 4743-4752 ◽  
Author(s):  
J Eric Schmitt ◽  
Armin Raznahan ◽  
Liv S Clasen ◽  
Greg L Wallace ◽  
Joshua N Pritikin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cortical Thickness ◽  
Neural Substrates ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Association Cortex ◽  
Childhood And Adolescence ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Genetic Studies ◽  
Developmental Neuroscience ◽  
High Resolution Mri ◽  
Genetic Contributions

Abstract The neural substrates of intelligence represent a fundamental but largely uncharted topic in human developmental neuroscience. Prior neuroimaging studies have identified modest but highly dynamic associations between intelligence and cortical thickness (CT) in childhood and adolescence. In a separate thread of research, quantitative genetic studies have repeatedly demonstrated that most measures of intelligence are highly heritable, as are many brain regions associated with intelligence. In the current study, we integrate these 2 streams of prior work by examining the genetic contributions to CT–intelligence relationships using a genetically informative longitudinal sample of 813 typically developing youth, imaged with high-resolution MRI and assessed with Wechsler Intelligence Scales (IQ). In addition to replicating the phenotypic association between multimodal association cortex and language centers with IQ, we find that CT–IQ covariance is nearly entirely genetically mediated. Moreover, shared genetic factors drive the rapidly evolving landscape of CT–IQ relationships in the developing brain.

scholarly journals Volumetric MRI Analysis of Brain Structures in Patients With History of First and Repeated Suicide Attempts: A Cross Sectional Study

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Milda Sarkinaite ◽  
Rymante Gleizniene ◽  
Virginija Adomaitiene ◽  
Kristina Dambrauskiene ◽  
Nijole Raskauskiene ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Suicide Attempt ◽  
Left Hemisphere ◽  
Cortical Thickness ◽  
Suicide Attempts ◽  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Brain Structures ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Suicide Attempters ◽  
History Of

Abstract Background: Structural brain changes are found in suicide attempters, as well as in patients with mental disorders. It remains unclear whether the suicidal behavior is related to atrophy of brain regions and how the morphology of specific brain areas is changing with each suicide attempt. This cross-sectional study examined volumetric differences in brain regions among patients with history of first and repeated suicide attempts in comparison to healthy controls (HC).Methods: The sample consisted of 56 adults, non-psychotic patients without cognitive impairment and any organic brain disorders hospitalized after first suicide attempt (first SA) (n=29) and more than one suicide attempt (SA>1) during the lifetime (n=27); and 54 adult volunteers without history of mental disorder and suicide attempts, designated as HC. The MRI data were collected using 1.5 T Siemens Avanto scanner. Brain cortical thickness, grey and white matter volumes were measured using FreeSurfer 6.0 automatic segmentation technique.Results: In comparison to HC, patients with first SA had 3.5, 3.58 and 4.19% significantly lower mean cortical thickness of the superior and rostral middle frontal areas of the left hemisphere and superior frontal area of the right hemisphere, respectively; 4.09, 4.02 and 4.49 % lower mean cortical thickness of the inferior, middle and superior temporal areas of the left hemisphere, respectively. In comparison to HC, patients after SA>1 had a significantly lower mean cortical thickness (from 4.02 to 8.33%) in ten areas of frontal cortex of the left hemisphere and seven areas of the right hemisphere; from 3.90 to 6.04% difference in six areas of temporal cortex in both hemispheres. The comparison of hippocampus volume showed a significantly lower mean volume (7.86 to 9.89%) of left and right parts in patients with SA>1, but not in patients with first SA. Conclusions: Hospitalized suicide attempters had lower frontal and temporal cortical thickness and smaller parts of hippocampus than HC; these differences were significantly higher in repeated suicide attempters than in patients with first SA. Our findings suggest that repeated suicidal behavior is associated with intensifying atrophy of specific brain structures, independently of diagnosis of depressive disorders.

scholarly journals Altered cortical morphology in major depression disorder patients with suicidality

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-22
Author(s):  
Huiru Li ◽  
Huawei Zhang ◽  
Li Yin ◽  
Feifei Zhang ◽  
Ziqi Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fractal Dimension ◽  
Cortical Thickness ◽  
Emotional Processing ◽  
Rating Scale ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Depressed Patients ◽  
Cortical Morphology ◽  
Surface Based Morphometry ◽  
Sulcal Depth

Abstract Background Major depressive disorder (MDD) is associated with high risk of suicide, but the biological underpinnings of suicidality in MDD patients are far from conclusive. Previous neuroimaging studies using voxel-based morphometry (VBM) demonstrated that depressed individuals with suicidal thoughts or behaviors exhibit specific cortical structure alterations. To complement VBM findings, surface-based morphometry (SBM) can provide more details into gray matter structure, including the cortical complexity, cortical thickness and sulcal depth for brain images. Objective This study aims to use SBM to investigate cortical morphology alterations to obtain evidence for neuroanatomical alterations in depressed patients with suicidality. Methods Here, 3D T1-weighted MR images of brain from 39 healthy controls, 40 depressed patients without suicidality (patient controls), and 39 with suicidality (suicidal groups) were analyzed based on SBM to estimate the fractal dimension, gyrification index, sulcal depth, and cortical thickness using the Computational Anatomy Toolbox. Correlation analyses were performed between clinical data and cortical surface measurements from patients. Results Surface-based morphometry showed decreased sulcal depth in the parietal, frontal, limbic, occipital and temporal regions and decreased fractal dimension in the frontal regions in depressed patients with suicidality compared to both healthy and patient controls. Additionally, in patients with depression, the sulcal depth of the left caudal anterior cingulate cortex was negatively correlated with Hamilton Depression Rating Scale scores. Conclusions Depressed patients with suicidality had abnormal cortical morphology in some brain regions within the default mode network, frontolimbic circuitry and temporal regions. These structural deficits may be associated with the dysfunction of emotional processing and impulsivity control. This study provides insights into the underlying neurobiology of the suicidal brain.

Fluency of School-Aged Children With a History of Specific Expressive Language Impairment

2002 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Boscolo ◽  
Nan Bernstein Ratner ◽  
Leslie Rescorla
Keyword(s):  
Language Impairment ◽  
Specific Language Impairment ◽  
Expressive Language ◽  
Clinical Intervention ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
School Aged Children ◽  
Different Types ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Relationship

A large volume of literature now links language demand and fluency behaviors in children. Although it might be reasonable to assume that children with relatively weak language skills might demonstrate higher levels of disfluency, the sparse literature on this topic is characterized by conflicting findings on the relationship between language impairment and disfluency. However, in studies finding elevated disfluency in children with specific language impairment, a higher frequency of disfluencies more characteristic of stuttering has been noted. This study asks whether children with long-standing histories of language delay and impairment are more disfluent, and display different types of disfluencies than their typically developing, age-matched peers. Elicited narratives from 22 pairs of 9-year-old children were analyzed for fluency characteristics. Half of the children had histories of specific expressive language impairment (HSLI-E), whereas the others had typical developmental histories. The children with HSLI-E were significantly more disfluent than their peers and produced more stutter-like disfluencies, although these behaviors were relatively infrequent in both groups. Implications for clinical intervention and future research are discussed.

scholarly journals The association between body mass index and brain morphology in children: a population-based study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cathelijne Steegers ◽  
Elisabet Blok ◽  
Sander Lamballais ◽  
Vincent Jaddoe ◽  
Fabio Bernardoni ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Mass Index ◽  
Body Mass ◽  
Cortical Thickness ◽  
Standard Deviation Score ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Brain Morphology ◽  
Lifestyle Modifications ◽  
Population Based Study ◽  
The Relationship

AbstractBrain morphology is altered in both anorexia nervosa and obesity. However, it is yet unclear if the relationship between Body Mass Index-Standard Deviation Score (BMI-SDS) and brain morphology exists across the BMI-SDS spectrum, or is present only in the extremes. The study involved 3160 9-to-11 year-old children (50.3% female) who participate in Generation R, a population-based study. Structural MRI scans were obtained from all children and FreeSurfer was used to quantify both global and surface-based measures of gyrification and cortical thickness. Body length and weight were measured to calculate BMI. Dutch growth curves were used to calculate BMI-SDS. BMI-SDS was analyzed continuously and in two categories (median split). The relationship between BMI-SDS (range − 3.82 to 3.31) and gyrification showed an inverted-U shape curve in children with both lower and higher BMI-SDS values having lower gyrification in widespread areas of the brain. BMI-SDS had a positive linear association with cortical thickness in multiple brain regions. This study provides evidence for an association between BMI-SDS and brain morphology in a large sample of children from the general population and suggests that a normal BMI during childhood is important for brain development. Future studies could determine whether lifestyle modifications optimize BMI-SDS result in return to more typical patterns of brain morphology.

The relationship of the scleractinian corals to the rugose corals

Paleobiology ◽  
1980 ◽  
Vol 6 (02) ◽  
pp. 146-160 ◽  
Author(s):  
William A. Oliver
Keyword(s):  
Critical Points ◽  
Scleractinian Corals ◽  
Convincing Evidence ◽  
Early Triassic ◽  
Rugose Corals ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Biologic Factors

The Mesozoic-Cenozoic coral Order Scleractinia has been suggested to have originated or evolved (1) by direct descent from the Paleozoic Order Rugosa or (2) by the development of a skeleton in members of one of the anemone groups that probably have existed throughout Phanerozoic time. In spite of much work on the subject, advocates of the direct descent hypothesis have failed to find convincing evidence of this relationship. Critical points are:(1) Rugosan septal insertion is serial; Scleractinian insertion is cyclic; no intermediate stages have been demonstrated. Apparent intermediates are Scleractinia having bilateral cyclic insertion or teratological Rugosa.(2) There is convincing evidence that the skeletons of many Rugosa were calcitic and none are known to be or to have been aragonitic. In contrast, the skeletons of all living Scleractinia are aragonitic and there is evidence that fossil Scleractinia were aragonitic also. The mineralogic difference is almost certainly due to intrinsic biologic factors.(3) No early Triassic corals of either group are known. This fact is not compelling (by itself) but is important in connection with points 1 and 2, because, given direct descent, both changes took place during this only stage in the history of the two groups in which there are no known corals.

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