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Postnatal cerebral maturation in Down's syndrome children: a developmental EEG coherence study
1Department of Psychology, Montebello Hospital, Baltimore, Maryland 21218.
Insights
Electroencephalography (EEG) coherence differs significantly between children with Down syndrome and neurotypical children. Down syndrome individuals show atypical EEG development, lacking typical growth spurts observed in normal development.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Neuroscience
- Genetics
Background:
- Down syndrome is a genetic disorder associated with cognitive impairments.
- Understanding neurodevelopmental differences in Down syndrome is crucial for targeted interventions.
- Electroencephalography (EEG) provides insights into brain activity and functional connectivity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate differences in electroencephalography (EEG) coherence between individuals with Down syndrome and age-matched neurotypical controls.
- To characterize the developmental trajectories of EEG coherence in Down syndrome.
- To identify specific brain regions and hemispheres showing the most significant differences.
Main Methods:
- Eyes-closed EEG was recorded from 19 scalp locations in 30 individuals with Down syndrome (9 months to 26 years) and age-matched controls.
- EEG coherence was computed across five electrode pairing categories: anterior-posterior, posterior-anterior, posterior temporal, anterior temporal, and interhemispheric.
- Developmental trajectories of EEG coherence were analyzed for both groups.
Main Results:
- EEG coherence significantly differentiated individuals with Down syndrome from controls.
- Down syndrome group exhibited weak, often negative, linear developmental trajectories in EEG coherence.
- Neurotypical children showed strong positive linear and nonlinear developmental trajectories with distinct growth spurts.
- Greatest differences were observed in the left hemisphere and posterior cortical regions.
Conclusions:
- EEG coherence is a sensitive biomarker for neurodevelopmental differences in Down syndrome.
- Individuals with Down syndrome display atypical patterns of brain functional connectivity development.
- A failure to exhibit robust EEG coherence growth spurts suggests delayed or altered cortical maturation in Down syndrome.
Abstract:
Eyes-closed EEG was recorded from 19 scalp locations in thirty Down's Syndrome children and young adults, aged 9 months to 26 years. These subjects were age-matched to normal children and normal young adults. EEG coherence was computed for five groups of electrode pairings: 1--anterior-to-posterior, 2--posterior-to-anterior, 3--posterior temporal, 4--anterior temporal and 5--interhemispheric. The results showed that EEG coherence strongly and consistently discriminated between the two groups. Developmental trajectories in the Down's group were weakly linear and often with negative slopes. In contrast, normal children showed strong linear and nonlinear developmental trajectories with only positive slopes. The greatest differences between groups was in the left hemisphere and in posterior cortical regions as compared to frontal regions. The normal children exhibited growth spurts in EEG coherence at particular postnatal ages, whereas the Down's Syndrome children failed to exhibit strong growth spurts in EEG development.