Premature birth changes wiring constraints in neonatal structural brain networks

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Developmental Neuroscience
• Network Science

Background:

• Infant brain structural organization impacts future cognitive and behavioral development.
• Early emergence of topological organization is not well understood due to limitations in fetal MRI data and technology.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the emergence of topological organization in infant brain networks.
• To compare network organization between term-born and preterm infants using generative network modeling.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the developing Human Connectome Project's infant dataset.
• Employed generative network modeling to simulate brain network organization.
• Compared network properties (connectivity, connection length, efficiency) between term and preterm infants.

Main Results:

• Preterm infants exhibited reduced connectivity, shorter connection lengths, and lower network efficiency compared to term infants.
• Generative models successfully replicated observed differences between term and preterm networks.
• Preterm networks were best simulated under tighter wiring constraints, preserving long-range connections.

Conclusions:

• Preterm birth is associated with distinct brain network organization compared to term birth.
• Tighter wiring constraints in preterm infants may represent a renegotiated cost-value trade-off in brain development.
• These findings offer insights into the early emergence of neural network topology and the impact of preterm birth.