Aberrant brain structural-functional connectivity coupling associated with cognitive dysfunction in different...

Area of Science:

• Neuroimaging
• Neurology
• Brain Connectivity

Background:

• Cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD) affects brain structural connectivity (SC) and functional connectivity (FC) networks.
• The relationship between SC-FC coupling and neurocognitive outcomes in CSVD patients with varying disease burdens is not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate aberrant SC-FC coupling and functional network topology in CSVD patients.
• To explore the correlation between SC-FC coupling, network topology, and cognitive dysfunction in CSVD.

Main Methods:

• Multimodal MRI was used to reconstruct whole-brain SC and FC networks in patients with severe CSVD (CSVD-s), mild CSVD (CSVD-m), and healthy controls.
• Analysis focused on SC-FC coupling, functional network topology, and their associations with cognitive test scores.

Main Results:

• Severe CSVD (CSVD-s) patients showed decreased whole-brain, auditory/motor, and limbic SC-FC coupling compared to controls.
• CSVD-s patients exhibited reduced nodal efficiency in the amygdala and heschl gyrus.
• SC-FC coupling and network efficiency positively correlated with cognitive function scores (MoCA, SDMT, AVLT) in CSVD-s patients, while some couplings negatively correlated with SCWT scores. Mild CSVD (CSVD-m) showed positive correlations between SC-FC coupling and cognitive scores (SCWT, TMT, AVLT, SDMT).

Conclusions:

• Decreased SC-FC coupling and reduced functional efficiency are associated with higher CSVD burden and cognitive impairment.
• SC-FC coupling shows potential as a sensitive neuroimaging biomarker for CSVD.
• Findings offer insights into the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying CSVD progression and clinical manifestations.