Kangiser Megan M, Thomas Alicia M, Kaiver Christine M, Lisdahl Krista M
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Department of Psychology, Milwaukee, WI, USA.
Arch Clin Neuropsychol. 2019 Jan 24;35(1):10-21. doi: 10.1093/arclin/acy101.
Nicotine use is widely prevalent among youth, and is associated with white matter microstructural changes as measured by diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). In adults, nicotine use is generally associated with lower fractional anisotropy (FA), but in adolescents/young adults (≤30 years), microstructure appears healthier, indicated by higher FA. This cross-sectional study examined associations between nicotine use and white matter microstructure using fractional anisotropy (FA), mean diffusivity (MD), axial diffusivity (AD), and radial diffusivity (RD) in young adults.
Fifty-three participants (18 nicotine users [10 female]/35 controls [17 female]) ages 18-25 underwent MRI scan, neuropsychological battery, toxicology screening, and drug use interview. Nicotine group associations with FA and MD were examined in various white matter tracts. In significant tracts, AD and RD were measured. Exploratory correlations were conducted between significant tracts and verbal memory and sustained attention/working memory performance.
Nicotine users exhibited significantly lower FA than controls in the left anterior thalamic radiation, left inferior longitudinal fasciculus, left superior longitudinal fasciculus-temporal, and left uncinate fasciculus. In these tracts, AD and RD did not differ, nor did MD differ in any tract. White matter quality was positively correlated with sustained attention/working memory performance.
Cigarette smoking may disrupt white matter microstructure. These results are consistent with adult studies, but inconsistent with adolescent/young adult studies, likely due to methodological and sample age differences. Further studies should examine longitudinal effects of nicotine use on white matter microstructure in a larger sample.
尼古丁使用在青少年中广泛流行，并且与通过扩散张量成像（DTI）测量的白质微观结构变化相关。在成年人中，尼古丁使用通常与较低的各向异性分数（FA）相关，但在青少年/青年成年人（≤30岁）中，微观结构似乎更健康，表现为FA较高。这项横断面研究使用FA、平均扩散率（MD）、轴向扩散率（AD）和径向扩散率（RD），研究了青年成年人中尼古丁使用与白质微观结构之间的关联。
53名年龄在18 - 25岁的参与者（18名尼古丁使用者[10名女性]/35名对照组[17名女性]）接受了MRI扫描、神经心理测试、毒理学筛查和药物使用访谈。在各种白质束中检查尼古丁组与FA和MD的关联。在有显著差异的白质束中测量AD和RD。对有显著差异的白质束与言语记忆以及持续注意力/工作记忆表现进行探索性相关性分析。
尼古丁使用者在左侧丘脑前辐射、左侧下纵束、左侧颞上纵束和左侧钩束中的FA显著低于对照组。在这些白质束中，AD和RD没有差异，MD在任何白质束中也没有差异。白质质量与持续注意力/工作记忆表现呈正相关。
吸烟可能会破坏白质微观结构。这些结果与成人研究一致，但与青少年/青年成年人研究不一致，可能是由于方法学和样本年龄差异。进一步的研究应该在更大的样本中检查尼古丁使用对白质微观结构的纵向影响。
