Inkelis Sarah M, Moore Eileen M, Bischoff-Grethe Amanda, Riley Edward P
Center for Behavioral Teratology, San Diego State University, 6330 Alvarado Court, Suite 100, San Diego, CA 92120, USA.
University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA.
Brain Res. 2020 Apr 1;1732:146654. doi: 10.1016/j.brainres.2020.146654. Epub 2020 Jan 10.
The neurodevelopmental trajectory in individuals with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) has not been well characterized. We examined age-related differences in the volume of the corpus callosum, basal ganglia, and cerebellum across adolescence and young adulthood, due to the sensitivity of these regions to prenatal alcohol exposure. T1-weighted anatomical magnetic resonance images (MRI) were acquired from a cross-sectional sample of subjects 13-30 years old who had received an alcohol-related diagnosis (FASD, n = 107) and typically developing controls (CON, n = 56). FreeSurfer v5.3 was used to obtain volumetric data for the corpus callosum, caudate, putamen, pallidum, and cerebellum. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to examine the effects of group (FASD, CON), sex, and age on region volume. Data were analyzed with and without correction for intracranial volume (ICV). All subregions were significantly smaller in the FASD group compared to controls, and these findings persisted even after ICV correction. Furthermore, the FASD and control groups differed in their relationship between age and total volume of the corpus callosum, caudate, and cerebellum. Specifically, older FASD individuals had smaller total volume in these regions; this relationship was not seen in the control group. Control males demonstrated larger volumes than control females in all regions prior to ICV correction; however, sex differences were attenuated in the FASD group in both the pallidum and cerebellum. Sex differences remained after ICV correction in the pallidum and cerebellum. These cross-sectional findings suggest that at least some brain regions may become smaller at an earlier than expected age in individuals with FASD, and that sex is an important factor to consider when examining neural structures in FASD. Further evaluation is necessary using longitudinal methods and including older ages.
胎儿酒精谱系障碍（FASD）患者的神经发育轨迹尚未得到充分描述。由于胼胝体、基底神经节和小脑这些区域对产前酒精暴露敏感，我们研究了青少年和青年期这些区域体积与年龄相关的差异。从13至30岁的受试者横断面样本中获取了T1加权解剖磁共振成像（MRI），这些受试者包括接受过酒精相关诊断的（FASD组，n = 107）和发育正常的对照组（CON组，n = 56）。使用FreeSurfer v5.3获取胼胝体、尾状核、壳核、苍白球和小脑的体积数据。采用方差分析（ANOVA）来检验组（FASD组、CON组）、性别和年龄对区域体积的影响。对数据进行了有无校正颅内体积（ICV）的分析。与对照组相比，FASD组的所有亚区域均明显较小，即使在校正ICV后这些发现仍然存在。此外，FASD组和对照组在胼胝体、尾状核和小脑总体积与年龄的关系上存在差异。具体而言，年龄较大的FASD个体在这些区域的总体积较小；对照组未观察到这种关系。在校正ICV之前，对照组男性在所有区域中的体积均大于对照组女性；然而，FASD组在苍白球和小脑的性别差异减弱。在校正ICV后，苍白球和小脑仍存在性别差异。这些横断面研究结果表明，FASD患者至少一些脑区可能在比预期更早的年龄变小，并且在检查FASD患者的神经结构时，性别是一个需要考虑的重要因素。需要使用纵向方法并纳入更年长的人群进行进一步评估。
