Popp Johanna L, Thiele Jonas A, Faskowitz Joshua, Seguin Caio, Sporns Olaf, Hilger Kirsten
Department of Psychology I, Würzburg University, Würzburg, Germany.
Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA.
Commun Biol. 2025 Jun 4;8(1):855. doi: 10.1038/s42003-025-08231-4.
Intelligence is a broad mental capability influencing human performance across tasks. Individual differences in intelligence have been linked to characteristics of structural and functional brain networks. Here, we consider their alignment, the structural-functional brain network coupling (SC-FC coupling) during resting state and during active cognition, to predict general intelligence. Using diffusion-weighted and functional magnetic resonance imaging data from 764 participants of the Human Connectome Project (replication: N = 126, N = 180), we model SC-FC coupling with similarity and communication measures that capture functional interactions unfolding on top of structural brain networks. By accounting for variations in brain region-specific neural signaling strategies, we show that individual differences in SC-FC coupling patterns predict individual intelligence scores. Most robust predictions result from cognitively demanding tasks and task combinations. Our study suggests the existence of an intrinsic SC-FC coupling organization enabling fine-drawn intelligence-relevant adaptations that support efficient information processing by facilitating brain region-specific adjustment to external task demands.
智力是一种广泛的心理能力，会影响人类在各项任务中的表现。智力的个体差异与大脑结构和功能网络的特征有关。在此，我们考虑它们的一致性，即静息状态和主动认知过程中的结构-功能脑网络耦合（SC-FC耦合），以预测一般智力。利用来自人类连接组计划的764名参与者的扩散加权和功能磁共振成像数据（重复实验：N = 126，N = 180），我们用相似性和通信度量对SC-FC耦合进行建模，这些度量捕捉了在大脑结构网络之上展开的功能相互作用。通过考虑大脑区域特异性神经信号传导策略的差异，我们表明SC-FC耦合模式的个体差异可预测个体智力得分。最可靠的预测来自认知要求较高的任务和任务组合。我们的研究表明存在一种内在的SC-FC耦合组织，它能够实现与智力相关的精细适应，通过促进大脑区域对外部任务需求的特异性调整来支持高效的信息处理。
