Open AccessDifferential Impairment of Thalamocortical Structural Connectivity in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
Author(s) -
Zhang JiuQuan,
Ji Bing,
Zhou ChaoYang,
Li LongChuan,
Li ZhiHao,
Hu XiaoPing,
Hu Jun
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
cns neuroscience and therapeutics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.403
H-Index - 69
eISSN - 1755-5949
pISSN - 1755-5930
DOI - 10.1111/cns.12658
Subject(s) - amyotrophic lateral sclerosis , neuroscience , thalamus , diffusion mri , tractography , fractional anisotropy , psychology , medicine , disease , magnetic resonance imaging , pathology , radiology
Summary Aims The thalamus is a major relay station that modulates input from many cortical areas and a filter for sensory input and is involved in the pathophysiology of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis ( ALS ). However, it still remains unclear whether all thalamocortical networks are affected or whether there is selective vulnerability. In this study, we aimed to study the selective vulnerability of different thalamocortical structural connections in ALS and to test the hypothesis of a specific impairment in motor‐related thalamocortical connectivity. Methods Diffusion tensor imaging ( DTI ) tractography was used to identify thalamocortical structural pathways in 38 individuals with ALS and 35 gender/age‐matched control subjects. Thalami of both groups were parcellated into subregions based on local patterns of thalamocortical connectivity. DTI measures of these distinct thalamocortical connections were derived and compared between groups. Results The analysis of probabilistic tractography showed that the structural connectivity between bilateral pre/primary motor cortices and associated thalamic subregions was specifically impaired in patients with ALS , while the other thalamocortical connections remained relatively intact. In addition, fractional anisotropy values of the impaired thalamocortical motor pathway were inversely correlated with the disease duration. Conclusion Our findings provide direct evidence for selective impairment of the thalamocortical structural connectivity in ALS .