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Altered brain white matter connectome in children and adolescents with prenatal alcohol exposure
Xiangyu Long1,2,3, Graham Little4, Sarah Treit4
1Department of Radiology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
Insights
Prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) in children is linked to altered brain connectivity. This study reveals widespread structural network changes in the brains of children with PAE, impacting cognitive function.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Neuroscience
- Neuroimaging
Background:
- Prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) is a leading cause of preventable birth defects.
- Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) shows white matter alterations in PAE, but network-level effects are unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate alterations in the DTI-based structural connectome in children and adolescents with PAE.
- To compare whole-brain network properties between PAE and typically developing control groups.
Main Methods:
- Used DTI data from 121 children/adolescents with PAE and 119 controls (aged 5-18).
- Applied graph-theory analysis to whole-brain connectivity matrices derived from deterministic tractography.
- Examined network efficiency, centrality, path length, and inter-network connectivity.
Main Results:
- The PAE group exhibited decreased global efficiency, degree centrality, and participation coefficients.
- Increased shortest path length and betweenness centrality were observed in the PAE group.
- PAE was associated with reduced connectivity between attention, somatomotor, and default mode networks.
Conclusions:
- Children and adolescents with PAE show widespread decreases in structural white matter connectivity.
- Altered brain network organization in PAE may contribute to cognitive and behavioral challenges.
- This research highlights the impact of PAE on brain network integrity.
Abstract:
Diffuson tensor imaging (DTI) has demonstrated widespread alterations of brain white matter structure in children with prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE), yet it remains unclear how these alterations affect the structural brain network as a whole. The present study aimed to examine changes in the DTI-based structural connectome in children and adolescents with PAE compared to unexposed controls. Participants were 121 children and adolescents with PAE (51 females) and 119 typically-developing controls (49 females) aged 5-18 years with DTI data collected at one of four research centers across Canada. Graph-theory based analysis was performed on the connectivity matrix constructed from whole-brain white matter fibers via deterministic tractography. The PAE group had significantly decreased whole-brain global efficiency, degree centrality, and participation coefficients, as well as increased shortest path length and betweenness centrality compared to unexposed controls. Individuals with PAE had decreased connectivity between the attention, somatomotor, and default mode networks compared to controls. This study demonstrates decreased structural white matter connectivity in children and adolescents with PAE at a whole-brain level, suggesting widespread alterations in how networks are connected with each other. This decreased connectivity may underlie cognitive and behavioural difficulties in children with PAE.
