Aging Reduces the Functional Brain Networks Strength—a Resting State fMRI Study of Healthy Mouse Brain
Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rsfMRI) is increasingly used to unravel the functional neuronal networks in health and disease. In particular, this technique of simultaneously probing the whole brain has found high interest in monitoring brain wide effects of cerebral disease an...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2019-10-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnagi.2019.00277/full |
| _version_ | 1818150745721012224 |
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| author | Ander Egimendia Ander Egimendia Anuka Minassian Michael Diedenhofen Dirk Wiedermann Pedro Ramos-Cabrer Pedro Ramos-Cabrer Mathias Hoehn |
| author_facet | Ander Egimendia Ander Egimendia Anuka Minassian Michael Diedenhofen Dirk Wiedermann Pedro Ramos-Cabrer Pedro Ramos-Cabrer Mathias Hoehn |
| author_sort | Ander Egimendia |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rsfMRI) is increasingly used to unravel the functional neuronal networks in health and disease. In particular, this technique of simultaneously probing the whole brain has found high interest in monitoring brain wide effects of cerebral disease and in evaluating therapeutic strategies. Such studies, applied in preclinical experimental mouse models, often require long-term observations. In particular during regeneration studies, easily several months of continuous monitoring are required to detect functional improvements. These long periods of following the functional deficits during disease evolution as well as the functional recoveries during therapeutic interventions represent a substantial fraction of the life span of the experimental animals. We have therefore aimed to decipher the role of healthy aging alone for changes in functional neuronal networks in mice, from developmental adolescence via adulthood to progressing aging. For this purpose, four different groups of C57Bl6 mice of varying age between 2 and 13 months were studied twice with 4 weeks separation using resting state fMRI at 9.4T. Dedicated data analysis including both Independent Component Analysis (ICA) followed by seed-based connectivity matrix compilation resulted in an inverse U-shape curve of functional connectivity (FC) strength in both the sensorimotor and default mode network (DMN). This inverse U-shape pattern presented a distinct maximum of FC strength at 8–9 months of age, followed by a continuous decrease during later aging phases. At progressed aging at 12–13 months, the reduction of connectivity strength varied between 25% and 70% with most connectivities showing a reduction in strength by approximately 50%. We recommend that these substantial age-dependent changes in FC strength must be considered in future longitudinal studies to discriminate focused disease-based functional deficits and therapy-related functional improvements from underlying independent age effects. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-11T13:27:49Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-2ba9687a4a1e4277a35d7215f032b1ee |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1663-4365 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-11T13:27:49Z |
| publishDate | 2019-10-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience |
| spelling | doaj.art-2ba9687a4a1e4277a35d7215f032b1ee2022-12-22T01:05:25ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience1663-43652019-10-011110.3389/fnagi.2019.00277480316Aging Reduces the Functional Brain Networks Strength—a Resting State fMRI Study of Healthy Mouse BrainAnder Egimendia0Ander Egimendia1Anuka Minassian2Michael Diedenhofen3Dirk Wiedermann4Pedro Ramos-Cabrer5Pedro Ramos-Cabrer6Mathias Hoehn7Magnetic Resonance Imaging Laboratory, CIC biomaGUNE, Donostia-San Sebastián, SpainMultiple Sclerosis Unit, Biodonostia Health Institute, Donostia-San Sebastián, SpainIn-vivo-NMR Laboratory, Max Planck Institute for Metabolism Research, Cologne, GermanyIn-vivo-NMR Laboratory, Max Planck Institute for Metabolism Research, Cologne, GermanyIn-vivo-NMR Laboratory, Max Planck Institute for Metabolism Research, Cologne, GermanyMagnetic Resonance Imaging Laboratory, CIC biomaGUNE, Donostia-San Sebastián, SpainIkerbasque—Basque Foundation for Science, Bilbao, SpainIn-vivo-NMR Laboratory, Max Planck Institute for Metabolism Research, Cologne, GermanyResting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rsfMRI) is increasingly used to unravel the functional neuronal networks in health and disease. In particular, this technique of simultaneously probing the whole brain has found high interest in monitoring brain wide effects of cerebral disease and in evaluating therapeutic strategies. Such studies, applied in preclinical experimental mouse models, often require long-term observations. In particular during regeneration studies, easily several months of continuous monitoring are required to detect functional improvements. These long periods of following the functional deficits during disease evolution as well as the functional recoveries during therapeutic interventions represent a substantial fraction of the life span of the experimental animals. We have therefore aimed to decipher the role of healthy aging alone for changes in functional neuronal networks in mice, from developmental adolescence via adulthood to progressing aging. For this purpose, four different groups of C57Bl6 mice of varying age between 2 and 13 months were studied twice with 4 weeks separation using resting state fMRI at 9.4T. Dedicated data analysis including both Independent Component Analysis (ICA) followed by seed-based connectivity matrix compilation resulted in an inverse U-shape curve of functional connectivity (FC) strength in both the sensorimotor and default mode network (DMN). This inverse U-shape pattern presented a distinct maximum of FC strength at 8–9 months of age, followed by a continuous decrease during later aging phases. At progressed aging at 12–13 months, the reduction of connectivity strength varied between 25% and 70% with most connectivities showing a reduction in strength by approximately 50%. We recommend that these substantial age-dependent changes in FC strength must be considered in future longitudinal studies to discriminate focused disease-based functional deficits and therapy-related functional improvements from underlying independent age effects.https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnagi.2019.00277/fullfunctional neuronal networksagingdependence on agingmiceresting state fMRIseed correlation analysis |
| spellingShingle | Ander Egimendia Ander Egimendia Anuka Minassian Michael Diedenhofen Dirk Wiedermann Pedro Ramos-Cabrer Pedro Ramos-Cabrer Mathias Hoehn Aging Reduces the Functional Brain Networks Strength—a Resting State fMRI Study of Healthy Mouse Brain Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience functional neuronal networks aging dependence on aging mice resting state fMRI seed correlation analysis |
| title | Aging Reduces the Functional Brain Networks Strength—a Resting State fMRI Study of Healthy Mouse Brain |
| title_full | Aging Reduces the Functional Brain Networks Strength—a Resting State fMRI Study of Healthy Mouse Brain |
| title_fullStr | Aging Reduces the Functional Brain Networks Strength—a Resting State fMRI Study of Healthy Mouse Brain |
| title_full_unstemmed | Aging Reduces the Functional Brain Networks Strength—a Resting State fMRI Study of Healthy Mouse Brain |
| title_short | Aging Reduces the Functional Brain Networks Strength—a Resting State fMRI Study of Healthy Mouse Brain |
| title_sort | aging reduces the functional brain networks strength a resting state fmri study of healthy mouse brain |
| topic | functional neuronal networks aging dependence on aging mice resting state fMRI seed correlation analysis |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnagi.2019.00277/full |
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