Trajectories of human brain functional connectome maturation across the birth transition

Lanxin Ji; Iris Menu; Amyn Majbri; Tanya Bhatia; Christopher J. Trentacosta; Moriah E. Thomason

doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.3002909

journal article Open Access Nov 19, 2024

Trajectories of human brain functional connectome maturation across the birth transition

Lanxin Ji

Iris Menu

Amyn Majbri Tanya Bhatia Christopher J. Trentacosta Moriah E. Thomason

PLOS Biology Vol. 22 No. 11 pp. e3002909 · Public Library of Science (PLoS)

View at Publisher Save 10.1371/journal.pbio.3002909

Abstract

Understanding the sequence and timing of brain functional network development at the beginning of human life is critically important from both normative and clinical perspectives. Yet, we presently lack rigorous examination of the longitudinal emergence of human brain functional networks over the birth transition. Leveraging a large, longitudinal perinatal functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data set, this study models developmental trajectories of brain functional networks spanning 25 to 55 weeks of post-conceptual gestational age (GA). The final sample includes 126 fetal scans (GA = 31.36 ± 3.83 weeks) and 58 infant scans (GA = 48.17 ± 3.73 weeks) from 140 unique subjects. In this study, we document the developmental changes of resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) over the birth transition, evident at both network and graph levels. We observe that growth patterns are regionally specific, with some areas showing minimal RSFC changes, while others exhibit a dramatic increase at birth. Examples with birth-triggered dramatic change include RSFC within the subcortical network, within the superior frontal network, within the occipital-cerebellum joint network, as well as the cross-hemisphere RSFC between the bilateral sensorimotor networks and between the bilateral temporal network. Our graph analysis further emphasized the subcortical network as the only region of the brain exhibiting a significant increase in local efficiency around birth, while a concomitant gradual increase was found in global efficiency in sensorimotor and parietal-frontal regions throughout the fetal to neonatal period. This work unveils fundamental aspects of early brain development and lays the foundation for future work on the influence of environmental factors on this process.

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Details

Published: Nov 19, 2024
Vol/Issue: 22(11)
Pages: e3002909
License: View

Authors

Christopher J. Trentacosta

M

Moriah E. Thomason

Funding

National Institutes of Health Award: MH122447

National Institute of Mental Health Award: MH110793

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Award: K99HD113873

Cite This Article

Lanxin Ji, Iris Menu, Amyn Majbri, et al. (2024). Trajectories of human brain functional connectome maturation across the birth transition. PLOS Biology, 22(11), e3002909. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3002909

Trajectories of human brain functional connectome maturation across the birth transition

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