Farahani Farzad V, Ismaila Lukman E, Sadowsky Cristina L, Sair Haris I, Chen Li Min, Belegu Visar, Pekar James J, Lindquist Martin A, Choe Ann S
Department of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
Neurotrauma Rep. 2024 Nov 6;5(1):1048-1059. doi: 10.1089/neur.2024.0098. eCollection 2024.
Neurological recovery in individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) is multifaceted, involving mechanisms such as remyelination and perilesional spinal neuroplasticity, with cortical reorganization being one contributing factor. Cortical reorganization, in particular, can be evaluated through network (graph) analysis of interregional functional connectivity. This study aimed to investigate cortical reorganization patterns in persons with chronic SCI using a multilayer community detection approach on resting-state functional MRI data. Thirty-eight participants with chronic cervical or thoracic SCI and 32 matched healthy controls were examined. Significant alterations in brain community structures were observed in the SCI cohort, particularly within the sensorimotor network (SMN). Importantly, this revealed a pattern of segregation within the SMN, aligning with borders of representations of the upper and lower body and orofacial regions. The SCI cohort showed reduced recruitment and integration coefficients across multiple brain networks, indicating impaired internetwork communication that may underlie sensory and motor deficits in persons with SCI. These findings highlight the impact of SCI on brain connectivity and suggest potential compensatory mechanisms.
脊髓损伤（SCI）患者的神经功能恢复是多方面的，涉及诸如髓鞘再生和损伤周围脊髓神经可塑性等机制，其中皮质重组是一个促成因素。特别是，皮质重组可以通过对区域间功能连接性进行网络（图）分析来评估。本研究旨在使用多层社区检测方法对静息态功能磁共振成像数据进行分析，以调查慢性脊髓损伤患者的皮质重组模式。研究对38名慢性颈髓或胸髓损伤患者和32名匹配的健康对照者进行了检查。在脊髓损伤队列中观察到脑社区结构有显著改变，特别是在感觉运动网络（SMN）内。重要的是，这揭示了感觉运动网络内一种分离模式，并与上下半身及口面部区域的表征边界一致。脊髓损伤队列在多个脑网络中显示出募集系数和整合系数降低，表明网络间通信受损，这可能是脊髓损伤患者感觉和运动功能障碍的基础。这些发现突出了脊髓损伤对脑连接性的影响，并提示了潜在的代偿机制。
