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Updated: Feb 13, 2026
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Soft Pneumatic Robot Modulates Graph Theory Metrics of Brain Network for Hand Rehabilitation After Stroke
Published on: October 10, 2025
505
Social Disconnection in the Brain: Loneliness and Age across Networks using Graph Theory.
Yen-Wen Chen1, Turhan Canli1,2
1Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY.
Biorxiv : the Preprint Server for Biology
|February 12, 2026
Summary
Loneliness impacts brain networks differently with age. While not directly affecting brain network measures, loneliness interacted with age to alter specific brain region connectivity, highlighting complex neural correlates.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Gerontology
- Psychology
Background:
- Loneliness, defined by unmet social needs, is linked to negative health outcomes.
- Understanding the neural basis of loneliness is crucial for lifespan health.
- Prior neuroimaging studies have limitations in exploring loneliness and aging.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between loneliness, age, and brain network organization.
- To address limitations in previous neuroimaging research on loneliness.
- To utilize graph theory and the Lifespan Human Connectome Project Aging dataset.
Main Methods:
- Applied graph theory to resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data.
- Analyzed the Lifespan Human Connectome Project Aging dataset.
- Examined associations between loneliness, age, and brain network properties, controlling for socio-demographics.
Main Results:
- Higher loneliness correlated with younger age, male sex, being unmarried, and living alone.
- No main effect of loneliness on overall brain network measures was found.
- A significant interaction between loneliness and age was observed in the local interconnectivity of the Default Mode Network and Frontoparietal Network.
- Older age was associated with decreased functional connectivity, global efficiency, and modularity.
Conclusions:
- The neural correlates of loneliness are complex and may vary significantly across the lifespan.
- Brain aging is characterized by heterogeneous changes in network organization.
- The subjective nature of loneliness suggests its neural manifestations are age-dependent and not universally present.
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