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Nguyen TT, Qian X, Ng EKK, Ong MQW, Ngoh ZM, Yeo SSP, Lau JM, Tan AP, Broekman BFP, Law EC, Gluckman PD, Chong YS, Cortese S, Meaney MJ, Zhou JH. Variations in Cortical Functional Gradients Relate to Dimensions of Psychopathology in Preschool Children. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 2024; 63:80-89. [PMID: 37394176 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaac.2023.05.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2022] [Revised: 05/26/2023] [Accepted: 06/23/2023] [Indexed: 07/04/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE It is unclear how the functional brain hierarchy is organized in preschool-aged children, and whether alterations in the brain organization are linked to mental health in this age group. Here, we assessed whether preschool-aged children exhibit a brain organizational structure similar to that of older children, how this structure might change over time, and whether it might reflect mental health. METHOD This study derived functional gradients using diffusion embedding from resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging data of 4.5-year-old children (N = 100, 42 male participants) and 6.0-year-old children (N = 133, 62 male participants) from the longitudinal Growing Up in Singapore Towards healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) cohort. We then conducted partial least-squares correlation analyses to identify the association between the impairment ratings of different mental disorders and network gradient values. RESULTS The main organizing axis of functional connectivity (ie, principal gradient) separated the visual and somatomotor regions (ie, unimodal) in preschool-aged children, whereas the second axis delineated the unimodal-transmodal gradient. This pattern of organization was stable from 4.5 to 6 years of age. The second gradient separating the high- and low-order networks exhibited a diverging pattern across mental health severity, differentiating dimensions related to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and phobic disorders. CONCLUSION This study characterized, for the first time, the functional brain hierarchy in preschool-aged children. A divergence in functional gradient pattern across different disease dimensions was found, highlighting how perturbations in functional brain organization can relate to the severity of different mental health disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thuan Tinh Nguyen
- Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore; Integrative Sciences and Engineering Programme (ISEP), NUS Graduate School, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Xing Qian
- Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Eric Kwun Kei Ng
- Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Marcus Qin Wen Ong
- Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Zhen Ming Ngoh
- Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences (SICS), A∗STAR Research Entities (ARES), Singapore
| | - Shayne S P Yeo
- Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences (SICS), A∗STAR Research Entities (ARES), Singapore
| | - Jia Ming Lau
- Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Ai Peng Tan
- Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences (SICS), A∗STAR Research Entities (ARES), Singapore; National University Hospital, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Birit F P Broekman
- OLVG, Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and Amsterdam University Medical Centre, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Evelyn C Law
- Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences (SICS), A∗STAR Research Entities (ARES), Singapore; National University Health System, Singapore
| | - Peter D Gluckman
- Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences (SICS), A∗STAR Research Entities (ARES), Singapore; Liggins Institute, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Yap-Seng Chong
- Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore; Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences (SICS), A∗STAR Research Entities (ARES), Singapore; National University Health System, Singapore
| | - Samuele Cortese
- Liggins Institute, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand; School of Psychology, Faculty of Environmental and Life Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom; Clinical and Experimental Sciences (CNS and Psychiatry), University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom; Solent NHS Trust, Southampton, United Kingdom; Hassenfeld Children's Hospital at NYU Langone, New York University Child Study Center, New York City, New York; University of Nottingham, Nottingham, United Kingdom
| | - Michael J Meaney
- Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore; Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences (SICS), A∗STAR Research Entities (ARES), Singapore; Douglas Mental Health University Institute, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and the Strategic Research Program, A∗STAR Research Entities (ARES), Singapore
| | - Juan Helen Zhou
- Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore; Integrative Sciences and Engineering Programme (ISEP), NUS Graduate School, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.
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