Modular Level Alterations Of Structural-Functional Connectivity Coupling in Mild Cognitive Impairment Patients and Interactions with Age Effect

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Piao, Sirong^{a; 1} | Chen, Keliang^{c; 1} | Wang, Na^{a; b; 1} | Bao, Yifang^{a; b} | Liu, Xueling^{a; b} | Hu, Bin^{a; b} | Lu, Yucheng^{a; b} | Yang, Liqin^{a; b} | Geng, Daoying^{a; *} | Li, Yuxin^{a; *}

Affiliations: [a] Department of Radiology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China | [b] Institute of Functional and Molecular Medical Imaging, Fudan University, Shanghai, China | [c] Department of Neurology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China

Correspondence: [*] Correspondence to: Yuxin Li, MD, PhD, and Daoying Geng, MD, PhD, Department of Radiology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, No. 12 Middle Wulumuqi Road, Jingan District, Shanghai, 200040, China. Tel.: 86 021 52887466; Fax: 86 021 62495490; E-mails: liyuxin@fudan.edu.cn (Yuxin Li) and gengdy@163.com (Daoying Geng).

Note: [1] These authors contributed equally to this work.

Abstract: Background:Structural-functional connectivity (SC– FC) coupling is related to various cognitive functions and more sensitive for the detection of subtle brain alterations. Objective:To investigate whether decoupling of SC-FC was detected in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) patients on a modular level, the interaction effect of aging and disease, and its relationship with network efficiency. Methods:73 patients with MCI and 65 healthy controls were enrolled who underwent diffusion tensor imaging and resting-state functional MRI to generate structural and functional networks. Five modules were defined based on automated anatomical labeling 90 atlas, including default mode network (DMN), frontoparietal attention network (FPN), sensorimotor network (SMN), subcortical network (SCN), and visual network (VIS). Intra-module and inter-module SC-FC coupling were compared between two groups. The interaction effect of aging and group on modular SC-FC coupling was further analyzed by two-way ANCOVA. The correlation between the coupling and network efficiency was finally calculated. Results:In MCI patients, aberrant intra-module coupling was noted in SMN, and altered inter-module coupling was found in the other four modules. Intra-module coupling exhibited significant age-by-group effects in DMN and SMN, and inter-module coupling showed significant age-by-group effects in DMN and FPN. In MCI patients, both positive or negative correlations between coupling and network efficiency were found in DMN, FPN, SCN, and VIS. Conclusion:SC-FC coupling could reflect the association of SC and FC, especially in modular levels. In MCI, SC-FC coupling could be affected by the interaction effect of aging and disease, which may shed light on advancing the pathophysiological mechanisms of MCI.

Keywords: Connectome, functional connectivity, mild cognitive impairment, structural connectivity, structural-functional coupling

DOI: 10.3233/JAD-220837

Journal: Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, vol. 92, no. 4, pp. 1439-1450, 2023