Sex differences in microstructural white matter alterations of mathematics anxiety based on diffusion MRI...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychiatry
• Brain Imaging

Background:

• Mathematics anxiety (MA) involves stress and fear related to math tasks.
• Understanding the neural underpinnings of MA is crucial for developing interventions.
• Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging (DMRI) connectometry offers a method to investigate white matter (WM) fiber integrity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the correlation between the severity of Mathematics Anxiety (MA) and white matter (WM) microstructural connectivity.
• To utilize Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging (DMRI) connectometry to identify specific WM tracts associated with MA.

Main Methods:

• Inclusion of 77 healthy adults from the LEMON database.
• Assessment of MA using the Abbreviated Math Anxiety Scale (AMAS).
• Analysis of DMRI data using connectometry and multiple regression models to correlate WM connectivity with AMAS scores.

Main Results:

• In males, increased microstructural connectivity in the left arcuate fasciculus (AF), corpus callosum (CC) body, right cingulum, and left inferior longitudinal fasciculus (ILF) correlated with higher AMAS scores.
• In females, higher AMAS scores correlated with increased connectivity in the genu of the CC, right ILF, and bilateral fornices.
• A negative correlation was observed between AMAS scores and bilateral cingulum connectivity in females.

Conclusions:

• WM structures functionally related to language processing (e.g., AF) and the limbic system (cingulum, CC, fornix, ILF) are significantly involved in Mathematics Anxiety.
• Findings suggest distinct neural correlates of MA in males and females.
• DMRI connectometry is a valuable tool for exploring the neuroanatomy of psychological conditions like MA.