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Kozak A, Ninghetto M, Wieteska M, Fiedorowicz M, Wełniak-Kamińska M, Kossowski B, Eysel UT, Arckens L, Burnat K. Visual training after central retinal loss limits structural white matter degradation: an MRI study. BEHAVIORAL AND BRAIN FUNCTIONS : BBF 2024; 20:13. [PMID: 38789988 PMCID: PMC11127408 DOI: 10.1186/s12993-024-00239-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2023] [Accepted: 05/13/2024] [Indexed: 05/26/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Macular degeneration of the eye is a common cause of blindness and affects 8% of the worldwide human population. In adult cats with bilateral lesions of the central retina, we explored the possibility that motion perception training can limit the associated degradation of the visual system. We evaluated how visual training affects behavioral performance and white matter structure. Recently, we proposed (Kozak et al. in Transl Vis Sci Technol 10:9, 2021) a new motion-acuity test for low vision patients, enabling full visual field functional assessment through simultaneous perception of shape and motion. Here, we integrated this test as the last step of a 10-week motion-perception training. RESULTS Cats were divided into three groups: retinal-lesioned only and two trained groups, retinal-lesioned trained and control trained. The behavioral data revealed that trained cats with retinal lesions were superior in motion tasks, even when the difficulty relied only on acuity. 7 T-MRI scanning was done before and after lesioning at 5 different timepoints, followed by Fixel-Based and Fractional Anisotropy Analysis. In cats with retinal lesions, training resulted in a more localized and reduced percentage decrease in Fixel-Based Analysis metrics in the dLGN, caudate nucleus and hippocampus compared to untrained cats. In motion-sensitive area V5/PMLS, the significant decreases in fiber density were equally strong in retinal-lesioned untrained and trained cats, up to 40% in both groups. The only cortical area with Fractional Anisotropy values not affected by central retinal loss was area V5/PMLS. In other visual ROIs, the Fractional Anisotropy values increased over time in the untrained retinal lesioned group, whereas they decreased in the retinal lesioned trained group and remained at a similar level as in trained controls. CONCLUSIONS Overall, our MRI results showed a stabilizing effect of motion training applied soon after central retinal loss induction on white matter structure. We propose that introducing early motion-acuity training for low vision patients, aimed at the intact and active retinal peripheries, may facilitate brain plasticity processes toward better vision.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Kozak
- Laboratory of Brain Imaging, Institute of Experimental Biology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Marco Ninghetto
- Laboratory of Brain Imaging, Institute of Experimental Biology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Michał Wieteska
- Faculty of Electronics and Information Technology, Warsaw University of Technology, Warsaw, Poland
- Small Animal Magnetic Resonance Imaging Laboratory, Mossakowski Medical Research Institute, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Michał Fiedorowicz
- Small Animal Magnetic Resonance Imaging Laboratory, Mossakowski Medical Research Institute, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Marlena Wełniak-Kamińska
- Small Animal Magnetic Resonance Imaging Laboratory, Mossakowski Medical Research Institute, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Bartosz Kossowski
- Laboratory of Brain Imaging, Institute of Experimental Biology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Ulf T Eysel
- Department of Neurophysiology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany
| | - Lutgarde Arckens
- Laboratory of Neuroplasticity and Neuroproteomics, Department of Biology, KU Leuven, Louvain, Belgium
- KU Leuven Brain Institute, KU Leuven, Louvain, Belgium
| | - Kalina Burnat
- Laboratory of Brain Imaging, Institute of Experimental Biology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland.
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Pervin Z, Pinner J, Flynn L, Cerros CM, Williams ME, Hill DE, Stephen JM. School-aged children diagnosed with an FASD exhibit visuo-cortical network disturbance: A magnetoencephalography (MEG) study. Alcohol 2022; 99:59-69. [PMID: 34915151 PMCID: PMC9113084 DOI: 10.1016/j.alcohol.2021.12.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2021] [Revised: 08/30/2021] [Accepted: 12/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
Children with prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) often suffer from cognitive and neurobehavioral dysfunction throughout their lives, which may rise to a level of concern such that children receive a diagnosis under the fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) umbrella. Magnetoencephalography (MEG) contributes direct insight into neural processing and functional connectivity measures with temporal precision to understand cortical processing disorders that manifest during development. The impairment of perception may become more consequential among school-aged children with an FASD in the process of intellectual functioning and behavioral maturation. Fifty participants with the age range of 8-13 years participated in our study following parental informed consent and child assent. For each participant, visual responses were recorded using magnetoencephalography (MEG) while performing a prosaccade task with central stimuli (fovea centralis) and peripheral stimuli (left and right of central) presented on a screen, requiring participants to shift their gaze to the stimuli. After source analysis using minimum norm estimation (MNE), we investigated visual responses from each participant by measuring the latency and amplitude of visual evoked fields. Delayed peak latency of the visual response was identified in the primary visual area (calcarine fissure) and visual association areas (v2, v3) in young children with an FASD for both stimulus types (central and peripheral). But the difference in visual response latency was only statistically significant (p ≤ 0.01) for the peripheral (right) stimulus. We also observed reduced amplitude (p ≤ 0.006) of visual evoked response in children with an FASD for the central stimulus type in both primary and visual association areas. Multiple visual areas show impairment in children with an FASD, with visual delay and conduction disturbance more prominent in response to peripheral stimuli. Children with an FASD also exhibit significantly reduced amplitude of neural activation to central stimuli. These sensory deficits may lead to slow cognitive processing speed through continued intra-cortical network disturbance in children with an FASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zinia Pervin
- The Mind Research Network, a Division of Lovelace Biomedical Research Institute, Albuquerque, NM 87106, USA.,Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA
| | - John Pinner
- The Mind Research Network, a Division of Lovelace Biomedical Research Institute, Albuquerque, NM 87106, USA
| | - Lucinda Flynn
- The Mind Research Network, a Division of Lovelace Biomedical Research Institute, Albuquerque, NM 87106, USA
| | - Cassandra M. Cerros
- Health Sciences Center, School of Medicine, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA
| | - Mareth E. Williams
- Health Sciences Center, School of Medicine, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA
| | - Dina E. Hill
- Health Sciences Center, School of Medicine, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA
| | - Julia M. Stephen
- The Mind Research Network, a Division of Lovelace Biomedical Research Institute, Albuquerque, NM 87106, USA.,Corresponding author Julia M. Stephen, Ph.D., MEG Core Director, Prof. of Translational Neuroscience, The Mind Research Network, Pete & Nancy Domenici hall, 1101 Yale Blvd. NE, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87106, Tel: (505)-504-1053.
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3
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Tinnitus Perception in Light of Parietal Operculo–Insular Involvement: A Review. Brain Sci 2022; 12:brainsci12030334. [PMID: 35326290 PMCID: PMC8946618 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci12030334] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2022] [Revised: 02/21/2022] [Accepted: 02/24/2022] [Indexed: 12/07/2022] Open
Abstract
In tinnitus literature, researchers have increasingly been advocating for a clearer distinction between tinnitus perception and tinnitus-related distress. In non-bothersome tinnitus, the perception itself can be more specifically investigated: this has provided a body of evidence, based on resting-state and activation fMRI protocols, highlighting the involvement of regions outside the conventional auditory areas, such as the right parietal operculum. Here, we aim to conduct a review of available investigations of the human parietal operculo–insular subregions conducted at the microscopic, mesoscopic, and macroscopic scales arguing in favor of an auditory–somatosensory cross-talk. Both the previous literature and new results on functional connectivity derived from cortico–cortical evoked potentials show that these subregions present a dense tissue of interconnections and a strong connectivity with auditory and somatosensory areas in the healthy brain. Disrupted integration processes between these modalities may thus result in erroneous perceptions, such as tinnitus. More precisely, we highlight the role of a subregion of the right parietal operculum, known as OP3 according to the Jülich atlas, in the integration of auditory and somatosensory representation of the orofacial muscles in the healthy population. We further discuss how a dysfunction of these muscles could induce hyperactivity in the OP3. The evidence of direct electrical stimulation of this area eliciting auditory hallucinations further suggests its involvement in tinnitus perception. Finally, a small number of neuroimaging studies of therapeutic interventions for tinnitus provide additional evidence of right parietal operculum involvement.
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Daich Varela M, Esener B, Hashem SA, Cabral de Guimaraes TA, Georgiou M, Michaelides M. Structural evaluation in inherited retinal diseases. Br J Ophthalmol 2021; 105:1623-1631. [PMID: 33980508 PMCID: PMC8639906 DOI: 10.1136/bjophthalmol-2021-319228] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2021] [Revised: 04/07/2021] [Accepted: 04/21/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Ophthalmic genetics is a field that has been rapidly evolving over the last decade, mainly due to the flourishing of translational medicine for inherited retinal diseases (IRD). In this review, we will address the different methods by which retinal structure can be objectively and accurately assessed in IRD. We review standard-of-care imaging for these patients: colour fundus photography, fundus autofluorescence imaging and optical coherence tomography (OCT), as well as higher-resolution and/or newer technologies including OCT angiography, adaptive optics imaging, fundus imaging using a range of wavelengths, magnetic resonance imaging, laser speckle flowgraphy and retinal oximetry, illustrating their utility using paradigm genotypes with on-going therapeutic efforts/trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Malena Daich Varela
- Moorfields Eye Hospital City Road Campus, London, UK
- UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Burak Esener
- Department of Ophthalmology, Inonu University School of Medicine, Malatya, Turkey
| | - Shaima A Hashem
- Moorfields Eye Hospital City Road Campus, London, UK
- UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, University College London, London, UK
| | | | - Michalis Georgiou
- Moorfields Eye Hospital City Road Campus, London, UK
- UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Michel Michaelides
- Moorfields Eye Hospital City Road Campus, London, UK
- UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, University College London, London, UK
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Baig A, Buckley D, Codina C. Behavioural Adaptation to Hereditary Macular Dystrophy: A Systematic Review on the Effect of Early Onset Central Field Loss on Peripheral Visual Abilities. Br Ir Orthopt J 2021; 17:104-118. [PMID: 34278226 PMCID: PMC8269784 DOI: 10.22599/bioj.177] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2021] [Accepted: 05/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose: Hereditary macular dystrophies (HMD) result in early onset central field loss. Evidence for cortical plasticity has been found in HMD, which may enhance peripheral visual abilities to meet the increased demands and reliance on the peripheral field, as has been found in congenitally deaf adults and habitual action video-game players. This is a qualitative synthesis of the literature on the effect of early onset central field loss on peripheral visual abilities. The knowledge gained may help in developing rehabilitative strategies that enable optimisation of remaining peripheral vision. Methods: A systematic search performed on the Web of Science and PubMED databases yielded 728 records published between 1809 to 2020, of which seven case-control studies were eligible for qualitative synthesis. Results: The search highlighted an overall paucity of literature, which lacked validity due to small heterogeneous samples and deficiencies in reporting of methods and population characteristics. A range of peripheral visual abilities at different eccentricities were studied. Superior performance of HMD observers in the peripheral field or similarities between the preferred retinal loci (PRL) and normal fovea were observed in four of seven studies. Findings were often based on studies including a single observer. Further larger rigorous studies are required in this area. Conclusions: Spontaneous perceptual learning through reliance on and repeated use of the peripheral field and PRL may result in some specific superior peripheral visual abilities. However, worse performance in some tasks could reflect unexpected rod disease, lack of intensive training, or persistent limitations due to the need for cones for specific tasks. Perceptual learning through training regimes could enable patients to optimise use of the PRL and remaining peripheral vision. However, further studies are needed to design optimal training regimes.
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Lee ATC, Richards M, Chan WC, Chiu HFK, Lee RSY, Lam LCW. Higher Dementia Incidence in Older Adults with Poor Visual Acuity. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 2021; 75:2162-2168. [PMID: 32043518 PMCID: PMC7566398 DOI: 10.1093/gerona/glaa036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Longitudinal evidence of poor visual acuity associating with higher risk of incident dementia is mixed. This study aimed to examine if poor visual acuity was associated with higher dementia incidence in a large community cohort of older adults, independent of the possible biases relating to misclassification error, reverse causality, and confounding effects due to health problems and behaviors. Methods A total of 15,576 community-living older adults without dementia at baseline were followed for 6 years to the outcome of incident dementia, which was diagnosed according to the ICD-10 or a Clinical Dementia Rating of 1 to 3. Visual acuity was assessed using the Snellen’s chart at baseline and follow-up. Important variables including demographics (age, sex, education, and socioeconomic status), physical and psychiatric comorbidities (cardiovascular risks, ophthalmological conditions, hearing impairment, poor mobility, and depression), and lifestyle behaviors (smoking, diet, physical, intellectual, and social activities) were also assessed. Results Over 68,904 person-years of follow-up, 1,349 participants developed dementia. Poorer visual acuity at baseline was associated with higher dementia incidence in 6 years, even after adjusting for demographics, health problems, and lifestyle behaviors, and excluding those who developed dementia within 3 years after baseline. Compared with normal vision, the hazard ratio of dementia was 1.19 (p = .31), 2.09 (p < .001), and 8.66 (p < .001) for mild, moderate, and severe visual impairment, respectively. Conclusions Moderate-to-severe visual impairment could be a potential predictor and possibly a risk factor for dementia. From a clinical perspective, older adults with poor visual acuity might warrant further risk assessment for dementia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Allen T C Lee
- Department of Psychiatry, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | | | - Wai C Chan
- Department of Psychiatry, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Helen F K Chiu
- Department of Psychiatry, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Ruby S Y Lee
- Elderly Health Service, Department of Health, The Government of Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Linda C W Lam
- Department of Psychiatry, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
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Baroncelli L, Lunghi C. Neuroplasticity of the visual cortex: in sickness and in health. Exp Neurol 2020; 335:113515. [PMID: 33132181 DOI: 10.1016/j.expneurol.2020.113515] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2020] [Revised: 10/14/2020] [Accepted: 10/21/2020] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
Brain plasticity refers to the ability of synaptic connections to adapt their function and structure in response to experience, including environmental changes, sensory deprivation and injuries. Plasticity is a distinctive, but not exclusive, property of the developing nervous system. This review introduces the concept of neuroplasticity and describes classic paradigms to illustrate cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying synapse modifiability. Then, we summarize a growing number of studies showing that the adult cerebral cortex retains a significant degree of plasticity highlighting how the identification of strategies to enhance the plastic potential of the adult brain could pave the way for the development of novel therapeutic approaches aimed at treating amblyopia and other neurodevelopmental disorders. Finally, we analyze how the visual system adjusts to neurodegenerative conditions leading to blindness and we discuss the crucial role of spared plasticity in the visual system for sight recovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Baroncelli
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council (CNR), I-56124 Pisa, Italy; Department of Developmental Neuroscience, IRCCS Stella Maris Foundation, I-56128 Pisa, Italy.
| | - Claudia Lunghi
- Laboratoire des systèmes perceptifs, Département d'études cognitives, École normale supérieure, PSL University, CNRS, 75005 Paris, France
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Lunghi C, Galli-Resta L, Binda P, Cicchini GM, Placidi G, Falsini B, Morrone MC. Visual Cortical Plasticity in Retinitis Pigmentosa. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 2019; 60:2753-2763. [PMID: 31247082 PMCID: PMC6746622 DOI: 10.1167/iovs.18-25750] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose Retinitis pigmentosa is a family of genetic diseases inducing progressive photoreceptor degeneration. There is no cure for retinitis pigmentosa, but prospective therapeutic strategies are aimed at restoring or substituting retinal input. Yet, it is unclear whether the visual cortex of retinitis pigmentosa patients retains plasticity to react to the restored visual input. Methods To investigate short-term visual cortical plasticity in retinitis pigmentosa, we tested the effect of short-term (2 hours) monocular deprivation on sensory ocular dominance (measured with binocular rivalry) in a group of 14 patients diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa with a central visual field sparing greater than 20° in diameter. Results After deprivation most patients showed a perceptual shift in ocular dominance in favor of the deprived eye (P < 0.001), as did control subjects, indicating a level of visual cortical plasticity in the normal range. The deprivation effect correlated negatively with visual acuity (r = −0.63, P = 0.015), and with the amplitude of the central 18° focal electroretinogram (r = −0.68, P = 0.015) of the deprived eye, revealing that in retinitis pigmentosa stronger visual impairment is associated with higher plasticity. Conclusions Our results provide a new tool to assess the ability of retinitis pigmentosa patients to adapt to altered visual inputs, and suggest that in retinitis pigmentosa the adult brain has sufficient short-term plasticity to benefit from prospective therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Lunghi
- Laboratoire des systèmes perceptifs, Département d'études Cognitives, École Normale Supérieure, PSL University, CNRS, Paris, France.,Department of Translational Research and New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | | | - Paola Binda
- Department of Translational Research and New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.,Institute of Neuroscience CNR, Pisa, Italy
| | | | - Giorgio Placidi
- Department of Ophthalmology, Policlinico Gemelli, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Rome, Italy
| | - Benedetto Falsini
- Department of Ophthalmology, Policlinico Gemelli, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Rome, Italy
| | - Maria Concetta Morrone
- Department of Translational Research and New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.,IRCCS Stella Maris, Calambrone (Pisa), Italy
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Dan H, Shen Y, Huang X, Zhou F, Xing Y. Arterial Spin Labeling Perfusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging Reveals Resting Cerebral Blood Flow Alterations Specific to Retinitis Pigmentosa Patients. Curr Eye Res 2019; 44:1353-1359. [PMID: 31352839 DOI: 10.1080/02713683.2019.1649702] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Purpose: This study aimed to assess resting cerebral blood flow (CBF) changes in retinitis pigmentosa (RP) patients using a pseudo-continuous arterial spin labeling (pCASL) perfusion method.Methods: Forty-nine RP patients and 51 healthy controls (HCs) underwent T1-weighted structural and pCASL sequence magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans at rest. Two-sample t-tests were performed to compare CBF differences between groups. Pearson correlation was used to analyze relationships between CBF values and clinical variables in the RP group.Results: Compared with HCs, RP patients had significantly lower CBF values in the bilateral cuneus/lingual gyrus/precuneus/posterior cingulate/middle occipital gyrus. In the RP group, CBF values in the left middle occipital and inferior occipital gyrus were positively correlated with mean retinal nerve fiber layer thickness; furthermore, CBF values in several regions were correlated with duration of disease and age of onset.Conclusions: Our results highlighted that RP patients exhibited decreased CBF values in the visual cortices and vision-related cortices. The results suggest that altered CBF might contribute to trans-synaptic retrograde degeneration of the visual pathway in RP patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Handong Dan
- Eye Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Yin Shen
- Eye Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Xin Huang
- Eye Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Fuqing Zhou
- Eye Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei, China.,Department of Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Jiangxi Province Medical Imaging Research Institute, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
| | - Yiqiao Xing
- Eye Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei, China
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10
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Abnormal intrinsic functional network hubs and connectivity following peripheral visual loss because of inherited retinal degeneration. Neuroreport 2019; 30:295-304. [DOI: 10.1097/wnr.0000000000001200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
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