Altered Functional Connectivity within and between Brain Modules in Absence Epilepsy: A Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study

Functional connectivity has been correlated with a patient’s level of consciousness and has been found to be altered in several neuropsychiatric disorders. Absence epilepsy patients, who experience a loss of consciousness, are assumed to suffer from alterations in thalamocortical networks; however,...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:BioMed research international 2013-01, Vol.2013 (2013), p.1-12
Main Authors: Zuxiang, Liu, Li, Yong-Jie, Huafu, Chen, Chencan, Qian, Manxiu, Ma, Fang, Tie, Zhang, Shou-Wen, Xu, Cui-Ping, Zhu, Hong-Wei
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Brain - diagnostic imaging
Brain - physiology
Child
Clinical Study
Connectome
Convulsions & seizures
Electroencephalography
Epilepsy
Female
Humans
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Male
Nerve Net - physiology
Patients
Radiography
Science
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Functional connectivity has been correlated with a patient’s level of consciousness and has been found to be altered in several neuropsychiatric disorders. Absence epilepsy patients, who experience a loss of consciousness, are assumed to suffer from alterations in thalamocortical networks; however, previous studies have not explored the changes at a functional module level. We used resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging to examine the alteration in functional connectivity that occurs in absence epilepsy patients. By parcellating the brain into 90 brain regions/nodes, we uncovered an altered functional connectivity within and between functional modules. Some brain regions had a greater number of altered connections and therefore behaved as key nodes in the changed network pattern; these regions included the superior frontal gyrus, the amygdala, and the putamen. In particular, the superior frontal gyrus demonstrated both an increased value of connections with other nodes of the frontal default mode network and a decreased value of connections with the limbic system. This divergence is positively correlated with epilepsy duration. These findings provide a new perspective and shed light on how functional connectivity and the balance of within/between module connections may contribute to both the state of consciousness and the development of absence epilepsy.
ISSN:2314-6133
2314-6141
DOI:10.1155/2013/734893