Sex Differences in the Brain's White Matter Microstructure during Development assessed using Advanced Diffusion MRI Models

Typical sex differences in white matter (WM) microstructure during development are incompletely understood. Here we evaluated sex differences in WM microstructure during typical brain development using a sample of neurotypical individuals across a wide developmental age (N=239, aged 5-22 years). We...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Benavidez, Sebastian M., Abaryan, Zvart, Kim, Gaon S., Laltoo, Emily, McCracken, James T., Thompson, Paul M., Lawrence, Katherine E.
Format: Conference Proceeding
Language:English
Subjects:
Brain modeling
Diffusion tensor imaging
diffusion-weighted MRI
Dispersion
Distribution functions
Engineering in medicine and biology
Microstructure
Neurites
Pediatrics
sex differences
Tensors
White matter
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Summary:Typical sex differences in white matter (WM) microstructure during development are incompletely understood. Here we evaluated sex differences in WM microstructure during typical brain development using a sample of neurotypical individuals across a wide developmental age (N=239, aged 5-22 years). We used the conventional diffusion-weighted MRI (dMRI) model, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), and two advanced dMRI models, the tensor distribution function (TDF) and neurite orientation dispersion density imaging (NODDI) to assess WM microstructure. WM microstructure exhibited significant, regionally consistent sex differences across the brain during typical development. Additionally, the TDF model was most sensitive in detecting sex differences. These findings highlight the importance of considering sex in neurodevelopmental research and underscore the value of the advanced TDF model.
ISSN:2694-0604
DOI:10.1109/EMBC53108.2024.10781992