Structural and functional brain network alterations in prenatal alcohol exposed neonates.

Journal: Brain imaging and behavior

Volume: 15

Issue: 2

Year of Publication: 2021

Affiliated Institutions:  SU/UCT MRC Unit on Risk and Resilience in Mental Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, Stellenbosch University, PO Box , , Cape Town, South Africa. aroos@sun.ac.za. Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa. Departments of Neurology and of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, USA. Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.

Abstract summary 

Prenatal alcohol exposure leads to alterations in cognition, behavior and underlying brain architecture. However, prior studies have not integrated structural and functional imaging data in children with prenatal alcohol exposure. The aim of this study was to characterize disruptions in both structural and functional brain network organization after prenatal alcohol exposure in very early life. A group of 11 neonates with prenatal alcohol exposure and 14 unexposed controls were investigated using diffusion weighted structural and resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging. Covariance networks were created using graph theoretical analyses for each data set, controlling for age and sex. Group differences in global hub arrangement and regional connectivity were determined using nonparametric permutation tests. Neonates with prenatal alcohol exposure and controls exhibited similar global structural network organization. However, global functional networks of neonates with prenatal alcohol exposure comprised of temporal and limbic hubs, while hubs were more distributed in controls representing an early default mode network. On a regional level, controls showed prominent structural and functional connectivity in parietal and occipital regions. Neonates with prenatal alcohol exposure showed regionally, predominant structural and functional connectivity in several subcortical regions and occipital regions. The findings suggest early functional disruption on a global and regional level after prenatal alcohol exposure and indicate suboptimal organization of functional networks. These differences likely underlie sensory dysregulation and behavioral difficulties in prenatal alcohol exposure.

Authors & Co-authors:  Roos Annerine A Fouche Jean-Paul JP Ipser Jonathan C JC Narr Katherine L KL Woods Roger P RP Zar Heather J HJ Stein Dan J DJ Donald Kirsten A KA

Study Outcome 

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Statistics
Citations :  Alcauter S, Lin W, Smith XJK, Short SJ, Goldman BD, Reznick JS, et al. Development of thalamocortical connectivity during infancy and its cognitive correlations. Journal of Neuroscience. 2014;34(27):9067–9075. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0796-14.2014.
Authors :  8
Identifiers
Doi : 10.1007/s11682-020-00277-8
SSN : 1931-7565
Study Population
Male,Female
Mesh Terms
Brain
Other Terms
functional brain network;graph theoretical analysis;multimodal brain imaging;neonate;prenatal alcohol exposure;structural brain network
Study Design
Cross Sectional Study
Study Approach
Country of Study
Publication Country
United States