Functional structure of local connections and differentiation of cerebral cortex areas in the neonate
Pujol, Jesus (Hospital del Mar (Barcelona, Catalunya))
Blanco Hinojo, Laura (Hospital del Mar (Barcelona, Catalunya))
Persavento, C. (Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Epidemiología y Salud Pública)
Martínez-Vilavella, Gerard (Hospital del Mar (Barcelona, Catalunya))
Falcón, Carles (Institut Hospital del Mar d'Investigacions Mèdiques)
Gascon, Mireia (Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Epidemiología y Salud Pública)
Rivas Lara, Ioar (Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Epidemiología y Salud Pública)
Vilanova, M. (Fundació Pasqual Maragall)
Deus Yela, Juan (Hospital del Mar (Barcelona, Catalunya))
Domingo Gispert, Juan (Institut Hospital del Mar d'Investigacions Mèdiques)
Gómez-Roig, Maria Dolors (Hospital Clínic i Provincial de Barcelona)
Llurba, E (Institut de Recerca Sant Pau)
Dadvand, P. (Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Epidemiología y Salud Pública)
Sunyer Deu, Jordi (Institut Hospital del Mar d'Investigacions Mèdiques)
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona

Date:	2024
Abstract:	Neuroimaging research on functional connectivity can provide valuable information on the developmental differentiation of the infant cerebral cortex into its functional areas. We examined healthy neonates to comprehensively map brain functional connectivity using a combination of local measures that uniquely capture the rich spatial structure of cerebral cortex functional connections. Optimal functional MRI scans were obtained in 61 neonates. Local functional connectivity maps were based on Iso-Distance Average Correlation (IDAC) measures. Single distance maps and maps combining three distinct IDAC measures were used to assess different levels of cortical area functional differentiation. A set of brain areas showed higher connectivity than the rest of the brain parenchyma in each local distance map. These areas were consistent with those supporting basic aspects of the neonatal repertoire of adaptive behaviors and included the sensorimotor, auditory and visual cortices, the frontal operculum/anterior insula (relevant for sucking, swallowing and the sense of taste), paracentral lobule (processing anal and urethral sphincter activity), default mode network (relevant for self-awareness), and limbic-emotional structures such as the anterior cingulate cortex, amygdala and hippocampus. However, the results also indicate that brain areas presumed to be actively developing may not necessarily be mature. In fact, combined distance, second-level maps confirmed that the functional differentiation of the cerebral cortex into functional areas in neonates is far from complete. Our results provide a more comprehensive understanding of the developing brain systems, while also highlighting the substantial developmental journey that the neonatal brain must undergo to reach adulthood.
Grants:	Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad RD16/0022/0015 Agència de Gestió d'Ajuts Universitaris i de Recerca 2017/SGR-826 Agència de Gestió d'Ajuts Universitaris i de Recerca 2021/SGR-00717
Rights:	Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, la comunicació pública de l'obra i la creació d'obres derivades, fins i tot amb finalitats comercials, sempre i quan es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original.
Language:	Anglès
Document:	Article ; recerca ; Versió publicada
Subject:	Development ; Functional connectivity ; MRI ; Neonates ; Cortical areas
Published in:	NeuroImage, Vol. 298 (september 2024) , p. 120780, ISSN 1095-9572

DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2024.120780
PMID: 39122060

9 p, 10.8 MB

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Research literature > UAB research groups literature > Research Centres and Groups (research output) > Health sciences and biosciences > Institut de Recerca Sant Pau
Articles > Research articles
Articles > Published articles