Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Aug 5:16:937245.
doi: 10.3389/fnins.2022.937245. eCollection 2022.

Brain alterations of regional homogeneity, degree centrality, and functional connectivity in vulnerable carotid plaque patients with neither clinical symptoms nor routine MRI lesions: A resting-state fMRI study

Qian Wang  1   2 , Wu Xing  1   2 , Lirong Ouyang  1   2 , Lang Li  1   2 , Hong Jin  1   2 , Shuai Yang  1   2
Affiliations

Brain alterations of regional homogeneity, degree centrality, and functional connectivity in vulnerable carotid plaque patients with neither clinical symptoms nor routine MRI lesions: A resting-state fMRI study

Qian Wang et al. Front Neurosci. .

Abstract

Aims: Based on resting-state functional MRI (fMRI), we preliminarily explored brain alterations in asymptomatic patients with vulnerable carotid plaques, but carotid stenosis was < 50%.

Methods: A total of 58 asymptomatic patients with vulnerable carotid plaques (stenosis <50%) and 38 healthy controls were recruited. Between-group differences in regional homogeneity (ReHo), degree centrality (DC), and functional connectivity (FC) were analyzed. Correlation analysis was performed between the ReHo or DC values in altered brain regions as well as voxel-wise abnormal FC and scores on neuropsychiatric scales, serum interleukin-6 (IL-6), and C-reactive protein (CRP).

Results: Both ReHo and DC values on the left superior occipital gyrus (SOG.L) of the asymptomatic vulnerable carotid plaque group reduced, regardless of plaque location (left, right, or bilateral). Functional connections weakened between the SOG.L and right lingual gyrus (LING.R)/right inferior occipital gyrus (IOG.R), right middle frontal gyrus (MFG.R)/orbital part of superior frontal gyrus (ORBsup.R)/orbital part of middle frontal gyrus (ORBmid.R), left precentral gyrus (PreCG.L)/postcentral gyrus (PoCG.L), left supplementary motor area (SMA.L), right paracentral lobule (PCL.R), left precuneus (PCUN.L), and right postcentral gyrus (PoCG.R)/PCL.R. In ReHo-altered brain regions, ReHo values were positively correlated with Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAMD) scores, and the setting region of abnormal ReHo as seed points, voxel-wise FC between the SOG.L and PreCG.L was negatively correlated with CRP.

Conclusions: Cerebral alterations of neuronal synchronization, activity, and connectivity properties in the asymptomatic vulnerable carotid plaque group were independent of the laterality of vulnerable carotid plaques. Significant relation between ReHo values on the SOG.L and HAMD indicated that even when there were neither clinical symptoms nor lesions on routine MRI, brain function might have changed already at an early stage of carotid atherosclerosis. Inflammation might play a role in linking vulnerable carotid plaques and changes of resting-state functional connectivity.

Keywords: carotid plaque; degree centrality; regional homogeneity; resting-state fMRI; vulnerable plaque.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
(A,B) Compared with the normal control group, brain regions with abnormal resting-state ReHo in the asymptomatic vulnerable plaque group, mainly located in the SOG.L (cluster size 72, p < 0.05, FWE correction). (C) Brain regions with abnormal ReHo values were extracted for multiple comparisons among the normal control group, left asymptomatic vulnerable plaque group, right asymptomatic vulnerable plaque group, and bilateral asymptomatic vulnerable plaque group. Compared with the normal control group, the left, right, and bilateral vulnerable plaque groups showed significant differences; however, the ReHo in this area did not significantly differ among the left, right, and bilateral groups.
Figure 2
Figure 2
(A,B) Compared with the normal control group, the asymptomatic vulnerable plaque group showed decreased DC in the SOG.L (cluster size 70, p < 0.05, FWE correction). (C) Brain regions with abnormal DC values were extracted for multiple comparisons among the normal control group, left asymptomatic vulnerable plaque group, right asymptomatic vulnerable plaque group, and bilateral asymptomatic vulnerable plaque group. Compared with the normal control group, the left, right, and bilateral vulnerable plaque groups showed significant differences; however, the DC in this area did not significantly differ among the left, right, and bilateral groups.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Abnormal voxel-wise functional connectivity with regions of abnormal ReHo (A) and DC (B) as seed points.
Figure 4
Figure 4
(A) ReHo was positively correlated with HAMD scores (r = 0.37, P = 0.022). (B) Setting the region of abnormal ReHo as seed points; only FC between the SOG.L and PreCG.L was negatively correlated with CRP (r = −0.268, p = 0.044).
Figure 5
Figure 5
(A,B) No obvious relationship between ReHo in abnormal brain regions and serum IL-6 or CRP. (C,D) No obvious relationship between DC in abnormal brain regions and serum IL-6 or CRP.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Ahmadi A., Argulian E., Leipsic J., Newby D. E., Narula J. (2019). From subclinical atherosclerosis to plaque progression and acute coronary events: JACC state-of-the-art review. J. Am. Coll. Cardiol. 74, 1608–1617. 10.1016/j.jacc.2019.08.012 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Appelman A. P. A., Graaf Y. V.D, Vincken K. L., Tiehuis A. M., Witkamp T. D., et al. . (2008). Total cerebral blood flow, white matter lesions and brain atrophy: the SMART-MR study. J. Cereb. Blood Flow Metab. 28, 633–639. 10.1038/sj.jcbfm.9600563 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Bathini P., Brai E., Auber L. A. (2019). Olfactory dysfunction in the pathophysiological continuum of dementia. Ageing Res. Rev. 55, 100956. 10.1016/j.arr.2019.100956 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Buckner R. L., Sepulcre J., Talukdar T., Krienen F. M., Liu H., Hedden T., et al. . (2009). Cortical hubs revealed by intrinsic functional connectivity: mapping, assessment of stability, and relation to Alzheimer's disease. J. Neurosci. 29, 1860–1873. 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.5062-08.2009 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Cheng H.-L., Lin C.-J., Soong B.-W., Wang P.-N., Chang F.-C., Wu Y.-T., et al. . (2012). Impairments in cognitive function and brain connectivity in severe asymptomatic carotid stenosis. Stroke 43, 2567–2573. 10.1161/STROKEAHA.111.645614 - DOI - PubMed