When Sex Matters: Differences in the Central Nervous System as Imaged by OCT through the Retina
Background: Retinal texture has gained momentum as a source of biomarkers of neurodegeneration, as it is sensitive to subtle differences in the central nervous system from texture analysis of the neuroretina. Sex differences in the retina structure, as detected by layer thickness measurements from o...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-12-01
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| Series: | Journal of Imaging |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2313-433X/10/1/6 |
| _version_ | 1797343364148887552 |
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| author | Ana Nunes Pedro Serranho Pedro Guimarães João Ferreira Miguel Castelo-Branco Rui Bernardes |
| author_facet | Ana Nunes Pedro Serranho Pedro Guimarães João Ferreira Miguel Castelo-Branco Rui Bernardes |
| author_sort | Ana Nunes |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background: Retinal texture has gained momentum as a source of biomarkers of neurodegeneration, as it is sensitive to subtle differences in the central nervous system from texture analysis of the neuroretina. Sex differences in the retina structure, as detected by layer thickness measurements from optical coherence tomography (OCT) data, have been discussed in the literature. However, the effect of sex on retinal interocular differences in healthy adults has been overlooked and remains largely unreported. Methods: We computed mean value fundus images for the neuroretina layers as imaged by OCT of healthy individuals. Texture metrics were obtained from these images to assess whether women and men have the same retina texture characteristics in both eyes. Texture features were tested for group mean differences between the right and left eye. Results: Corrected texture differences exist only in the female group. Conclusions: This work illustrates that the differences between the right and left eyes manifest differently in females and males. This further supports the need for tight control and minute analysis in studies where interocular asymmetry may be used as a disease biomarker, and the potential of texture analysis applied to OCT imaging to spot differences in the retina. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T10:46:33Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-bbfe001d71a94b5babb421d2abfe3963 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2313-433X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T10:46:33Z |
| publishDate | 2023-12-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Imaging |
| spelling | doaj.art-bbfe001d71a94b5babb421d2abfe39632024-01-26T17:11:00ZengMDPI AGJournal of Imaging2313-433X2023-12-01101610.3390/jimaging10010006When Sex Matters: Differences in the Central Nervous System as Imaged by OCT through the RetinaAna Nunes0Pedro Serranho1Pedro Guimarães2João Ferreira3Miguel Castelo-Branco4Rui Bernardes5Coimbra Institute for Biomedical Imaging and Translational Research (CIBIT), Institute of Nuclear Sciences Applied to Health (ICNAS), University of Coimbra, 3000-548 Coimbra, PortugalCoimbra Institute for Biomedical Imaging and Translational Research (CIBIT), Institute of Nuclear Sciences Applied to Health (ICNAS), University of Coimbra, 3000-548 Coimbra, PortugalCoimbra Institute for Biomedical Imaging and Translational Research (CIBIT), Institute of Nuclear Sciences Applied to Health (ICNAS), University of Coimbra, 3000-548 Coimbra, PortugalFaculty of Sciences and Technology, University of Coimbra, 3030-201 Coimbra, PortugalCoimbra Institute for Biomedical Imaging and Translational Research (CIBIT), Institute of Nuclear Sciences Applied to Health (ICNAS), University of Coimbra, 3000-548 Coimbra, PortugalCoimbra Institute for Biomedical Imaging and Translational Research (CIBIT), Institute of Nuclear Sciences Applied to Health (ICNAS), University of Coimbra, 3000-548 Coimbra, PortugalBackground: Retinal texture has gained momentum as a source of biomarkers of neurodegeneration, as it is sensitive to subtle differences in the central nervous system from texture analysis of the neuroretina. Sex differences in the retina structure, as detected by layer thickness measurements from optical coherence tomography (OCT) data, have been discussed in the literature. However, the effect of sex on retinal interocular differences in healthy adults has been overlooked and remains largely unreported. Methods: We computed mean value fundus images for the neuroretina layers as imaged by OCT of healthy individuals. Texture metrics were obtained from these images to assess whether women and men have the same retina texture characteristics in both eyes. Texture features were tested for group mean differences between the right and left eye. Results: Corrected texture differences exist only in the female group. Conclusions: This work illustrates that the differences between the right and left eyes manifest differently in females and males. This further supports the need for tight control and minute analysis in studies where interocular asymmetry may be used as a disease biomarker, and the potential of texture analysis applied to OCT imaging to spot differences in the retina.https://www.mdpi.com/2313-433X/10/1/6texture analysisneuroretinacentral nervous systemsex differencesinterocular asymmetryoptical coherence tomography |
| spellingShingle | Ana Nunes Pedro Serranho Pedro Guimarães João Ferreira Miguel Castelo-Branco Rui Bernardes When Sex Matters: Differences in the Central Nervous System as Imaged by OCT through the Retina Journal of Imaging texture analysis neuroretina central nervous system sex differences interocular asymmetry optical coherence tomography |
| title | When Sex Matters: Differences in the Central Nervous System as Imaged by OCT through the Retina |
| title_full | When Sex Matters: Differences in the Central Nervous System as Imaged by OCT through the Retina |
| title_fullStr | When Sex Matters: Differences in the Central Nervous System as Imaged by OCT through the Retina |
| title_full_unstemmed | When Sex Matters: Differences in the Central Nervous System as Imaged by OCT through the Retina |
| title_short | When Sex Matters: Differences in the Central Nervous System as Imaged by OCT through the Retina |
| title_sort | when sex matters differences in the central nervous system as imaged by oct through the retina |
| topic | texture analysis neuroretina central nervous system sex differences interocular asymmetry optical coherence tomography |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2313-433X/10/1/6 |
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