Department of Neuropsychiatry, University of Fukui, Eiheiji, Japan.
Cognitive Science Research Group, Korea Brain Research Institute, Daegu, Republic of Korea.
PLoS One. 2023 Apr 10;18(4):e0284250. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0284250. eCollection 2023.
The caudate nucleus has been thought to be involved in the control of motor commands by the cerebrum, and recent studies suggest that it may play a role in the control of attachment behavior, cognition, emotion, and mental functions. Implied by the basal ganglia's involvement in the execution, planning and control of movement, the caudate nucleus functions in a situation-dependent manner where processing of external stimuli is important on the basis of learning and memory. Sensory processing, which determines the response to external stimuli, has been shown to be related to various brain regions but it remains unknown how sensory processing is associated with the structure of the caudate nucleus and white matter microstructures of the caudate. Using four diffusion parameters derived from diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) (i.e., fractional anisotropy (FA), mean diffusivity (MD), axonal diffusivity (AD), and radial diffusivity (RD)) and the Adolescent/Adult Sensory Profile (AASP) questionnaire of 99 healthy subjects [42 males and 57 females; mean age:26.9 years, standard deviation 6.9], we investigated the relationship between white matter structure in the caudate nucleus and sensory processing. In consistent with what had been suggested by the results of previous studies, we found significant correlations between AD, MD and tactile sensation. Furthermore, we found a significant correlation between AD, MD and tactile sensory avoidance, the AASP sub-scores regarding the tactile senses. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to show that DTI diffusion parameters correlate with AASP scores in specific brain regions.
尾状核被认为参与大脑对运动指令的控制，最近的研究表明，它可能在控制依恋行为、认知、情感和心理功能方面发挥作用。基底神经节参与运动的执行、计划和控制，暗示尾状核以依赖情境的方式发挥作用，在学习和记忆的基础上，外部刺激的处理对其功能很重要。已经表明，感官处理决定了对外部刺激的反应，与各种大脑区域有关，但尚不清楚感官处理如何与尾状核的结构以及尾状核的白质微观结构相关联。使用从弥散张量成像（DTI）得出的四个扩散参数（即分数各向异性（FA）、平均弥散度（MD）、轴突弥散度（AD）和径向弥散度（RD））和 99 名健康受试者的青少年/成人感觉概况（AASP）问卷（42 名男性和 57 名女性；平均年龄：26.9 岁，标准差 6.9），我们研究了尾状核白质结构与感官处理之间的关系。与先前研究结果一致，我们发现 AD 和 MD 与触觉之间存在显著相关性。此外，我们还发现 AD 和 MD 与触觉感觉回避，即 AASP 触觉子量表得分之间存在显著相关性。据我们所知，这是第一项表明 DTI 扩散参数与特定脑区的 AASP 评分相关的研究。
