The brain’s structural connectivity and pre-reading abilities in young children with prenatal alcohol exposure

• Published in: Developmental cognitive neuroscience 2024-12, Vol.70, p.101467, Article 101467
• Main Authors: Ghasoub, Mohammad, Perdue, Meaghan, Long, Xiangyu, Donnici, Claire, Kar, Preeti, Gibbard, Ben, Tortorelli, Chris, McMorris, Carly, Dewey, Deborah, Lebel, Catherine
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Brain - diagnostic imaging; Child; Child, Preschool; Connectome; Development; Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging - methods; DTI; Dyslexia - diagnostic imaging; Female; Humans; Male; PAE; Pre-reading; Pregnancy; Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; Reading; Structural connectivity
• ISSN: 1878-9293; 1878-9307; 1878-9307
• DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2024.101467

Children with prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) may develop a range of neurological and behavioral deficits, including reading and language disorders. Studying the brain’s structural connectivity and its relationship to pre-reading/reading skills in young children with PAE can help understand the roots of reading deficits associated with PAE. 363 diffusion MRI scans from 135 children (114 scans from 53 children with PAE) were collected between ages 3–7 years. Children completed NEPSY-II Phonological Processing and Speeded Naming to assess pre-reading skills at each scan. Structural brain network properties were assessed in 16 regions from both hemispheres using graph theory. Linear mixed models were used to account for repeated measures within participants. Children with PAE had significantly lower pre-reading scores than unexposed children, and significantly lower graph theory metrics across bilateral reading networks. Moreover, PAE significantly moderated the associations between Phonological Processing and global efficiency and nodal degree in the bilateral and left hemisphere reading networks, such that children with PAE had stronger associations than unexposed controls. No significant associations were found for Speeded Naming. Our results suggest that brain alterations may underlie early pre-reading difficulties in children with PAE. •Examined structural brain connectivity and pre-reading skills in 135 children (53 with PAE) aged 2–7 years.•Children with PAE have reduced structural connectivity in the reading network and lower pre-reading scores.•PAE significantly moderated the structural connectivity correlates of pre-reading skills.•Brain connectivity appears to underlie emerging reading deficits in children with PAE.