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Robayo LE, Govind V, Salan T, Cherup NP, Sheriff S, Maudsley AA, Widerström-Noga E. Neurometabolite alterations in traumatic brain injury and associations with chronic pain. Front Neurosci 2023; 17:1125128. [PMID: 36908781 PMCID: PMC9997848 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2023.1125128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2022] [Accepted: 02/07/2023] [Indexed: 02/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) can lead to a variety of comorbidities, including chronic pain. Although brain tissue metabolite alterations have been extensively examined in several chronic pain populations, it has received less attention in people with TBI. Thus, the primary aim of this study was to compare brain tissue metabolite levels in people with TBI and chronic pain (n = 16), TBI without chronic pain (n = 17), and pain-free healthy controls (n = 31). The metabolite data were obtained from participants using whole-brain proton magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging (1H-MRSI) at 3 Tesla. The metabolite data included N-acetylaspartate, myo-inositol, total choline, glutamate plus glutamine, and total creatine. Associations between N-acetylaspartate levels and pain severity, neuropathic pain symptom severity, and psychological variables, including anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and post-concussive symptoms, were also explored. Our results demonstrate N-acetylaspartate, myo-inositol, total choline, and total creatine alterations in pain-related brain regions such as the frontal region, cingulum, postcentral gyrus, and thalamus in individuals with TBI with and without chronic pain. Additionally, NAA levels in the left and right frontal lobe regions were positively correlated with post-concussive symptoms; and NAA levels within the left frontal region were also positively correlated with neuropathic pain symptom severity, depression, and PTSD symptoms in the TBI with chronic pain group. These results suggest that neuronal integrity or density in the prefrontal cortex, a critical region for nociception and pain modulation, is associated with the severity of neuropathic pain symptoms and psychological comorbidities following TBI. Our data suggest that a combination of neuronal loss or dysfunction and maladaptive neuroplasticity may contribute to the development of persistent pain following TBI, although no causal relationship can be determined based on these data.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linda E Robayo
- The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, University of Miami, Miami, FL, United States.,Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Miami, Miami, FL, United States
| | - Varan Govind
- Department of Radiology, University of Miami, Miami, FL, United States
| | - Teddy Salan
- Department of Radiology, University of Miami, Miami, FL, United States
| | - Nicholas P Cherup
- The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, University of Miami, Miami, FL, United States
| | - Sulaiman Sheriff
- Department of Radiology, University of Miami, Miami, FL, United States
| | - Andrew A Maudsley
- Department of Radiology, University of Miami, Miami, FL, United States
| | - Eva Widerström-Noga
- The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, University of Miami, Miami, FL, United States.,Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Miami, Miami, FL, United States.,Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Miami, Miami, FL, United States
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Ferris JK, Neva JL, Vavasour IM, Attard KJ, Greeley B, Hayward KS, Wadden KP, MacKay AL, Boyd LA. Cortical N-acetylaspartate concentrations are impacted in chronic stroke but do not relate to motor impairment: A magnetic resonance spectroscopy study. Hum Brain Mapp 2021; 42:3119-3130. [PMID: 33939206 PMCID: PMC8193507 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.25421] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2020] [Revised: 02/24/2021] [Accepted: 03/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) measures cerebral metabolite concentrations, which can inform our understanding of the neurobiological processes associated with stroke recovery. Here, we investigated whether metabolite concentrations in primary motor and somatosensory cortices (sensorimotor cortex) are impacted by stroke and relate to upper‐extremity motor impairment in 45 individuals with chronic stroke. Cerebral metabolite estimates were adjusted for cerebrospinal fluid and brain tissue composition in the MRS voxel. Upper‐extremity motor impairment was indexed with the Fugl‐Meyer (FM) scale. N‐acetylaspartate (NAA) concentration was reduced bilaterally in stroke participants with right hemisphere lesions (n = 23), relative to right‐handed healthy older adults (n = 15; p = .006). Within the entire stroke sample (n = 45) NAA and glutamate/glutamine (GLX) were lower in the ipsilesional sensorimotor cortex, relative to the contralesional cortex (NAA: p < .001; GLX: p = .003). Lower ipsilesional NAA was related to greater extent of corticospinal tract (CST) injury, quantified by a weighted CST lesion load (p = .006). Cortical NAA and GLX concentrations did not relate to the severity of chronic upper‐extremity impairment (p > .05), including after a sensitivity analysis imputing missing metabolite data for individuals with large cortical lesions (n = 5). Our results suggest that NAA, a marker of neuronal integrity, is sensitive to stroke‐related cortical damage and may provide mechanistic insights into cellular processes of cortical adaptation to stroke. However, cortical MRS metabolites may have limited clinical utility as prospective biomarkers of upper‐extremity outcomes in chronic stroke.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer K Ferris
- Department of Physical Therapy, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Jason L Neva
- École de Kinésiologie et des Sciences de l'activité Physique, Université of Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.,Centre de Recherche de l'Institut Universitaire de Gériatrie de Montréal, CIUSSS Centre-sud-de-I'île de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Irene M Vavasour
- Faculty of Medicine, UBC MRI Research Center, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Kaitlin J Attard
- Department of Physical Therapy, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Brian Greeley
- Department of Physical Therapy, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Kathryn S Hayward
- School of Health Sciences, Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, NHMRC CRE in Stroke Rehabilitation and Brain Recovery, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Katie P Wadden
- Faculty of Medicine, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada
| | - Alex L MacKay
- Faculty of Medicine, UBC MRI Research Center, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Lara A Boyd
- Department of Physical Therapy, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
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