Dynamic structure-function coupling across three major psychiatric disorders.

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychiatric Disorders
• Brain Network Analysis

Background:

• Atypical brain structure-function relationships are implicated in major psychiatric disorders.
• Understanding commonalities and differences in these patterns across disorders like major depressive disorder (MDD), bipolar disorder (BD), and schizophrenia (SZ) is crucial but largely unknown.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate common and unique dynamic structure-function coupling patterns across MDD, BD, and SZ.
• To explore how these dynamic coupling patterns relate to brain network topology and information processing.

Main Methods:

• Quantified dynamic structure-function coupling in 452 patients (MDD/BD/SZ) and 205 controls across global, meso-, and local brain network levels.
• Correlated dynamic structure-function coupling with functional network topological features to assess information communication.

Main Results:

• Dynamic structure-function coupling was preserved globally across disorders.
• Shared abnormalities in rich-club organization at the meso-level were associated with disease severity.
• Local-level alterations were observed in visual, cognitive control, and default mode networks, showing both shared and unique changes.

Conclusions:

• Findings indicate transdiagnostic and illness-specific alterations in dynamic structure-function relationships within large-scale brain networks.
• These results provide novel insights into the neurodevelopmental basis of psychiatric disorders and suggest potential biomarkers.