A longitudinal study of the brain structure network changes in HIV patients with ANI: combined VBM with SCN
BackgroundDespite the widespread adoption of combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) in managing HIV, the virus’s impact on the brain structure of patients remains significant. This study aims to longitudinally explore the persistent effects of HIV on brain structure, focusing on changes in gray m...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2024-04-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Neurology |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fneur.2024.1388616/full |
| _version_ | 1797203192504647680 |
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| author | Fan Xu Juming Ma Wei Wang Hongjun Li |
| author_facet | Fan Xu Juming Ma Wei Wang Hongjun Li |
| author_sort | Fan Xu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | BackgroundDespite the widespread adoption of combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) in managing HIV, the virus’s impact on the brain structure of patients remains significant. This study aims to longitudinally explore the persistent effects of HIV on brain structure, focusing on changes in gray matter volume (GMV) and structural covariance network (SCN) among patients at the Asymptomatic Neurocognitive Impairment (ANI) stage.MethodsThis research involved 45 HIV patients diagnosed with ANI and 45 demographically matched healthy controls (HCs). The participants were observed over a 1.5-year period. Differences in GMV between groups were analyzed using voxel-based morphometry (VBM), while the graph theory model facilitated the establishment of topological metrics for assessing network indices. These differences were evaluated using two-sample t-tests and paired-sample t-tests, applying the network-based statistics method. Additionally, the study examined correlations between GMV and cognitive performance, as well as clinical variables.ResultsCompared with HCs, HIV patients demonstrated reduced GMV in the right middle temporal gyrus and left middle frontal gyrus (FWE, p < 0.05), along with decreased betweenness centrality (BC) in the left anterior cingulate and paracingulate cortex. Conversely, an increase in the clustering coefficient (Cp) was observed (FDR, p < 0.05). During the follow-up period, a decline in GMV in the right fusiform gyrus (FWE, p < 0.05) and a reduction in node efficiency (Ne) in the triangular part of the inferior frontal gyrus were noted compared with baseline measurements (FDR, p < 0.05). The SCN of HIV patients exhibited small-world properties across most sparsity levels (Sigma >1), and area under the curve (AUC) analysis revealed no significant statistical differences between groups.ConclusionThe findings suggest that despite the administration of combination antiretroviral therapy (cART), HIV continues to exert slow and sustained damage on brain structures. However, when compared to HCs, the small-world properties of the patients’ SCNs did not significantly differ, and the clustering coefficient, indicative of the overall information-processing capacity of the brain network, was slightly elevated in HIV patients. This elevation may relate to compensatory effects of brain area functions, the impact of cART, functional reorganization, or inflammatory responses. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T08:15:26Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d41aca592a1e48f39e67edb9c47ea886 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-2295 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T08:15:26Z |
| publishDate | 2024-04-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Neurology |
| spelling | doaj.art-d41aca592a1e48f39e67edb9c47ea8862024-04-17T04:21:53ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Neurology1664-22952024-04-011510.3389/fneur.2024.13886161388616A longitudinal study of the brain structure network changes in HIV patients with ANI: combined VBM with SCNFan XuJuming MaWei WangHongjun LiBackgroundDespite the widespread adoption of combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) in managing HIV, the virus’s impact on the brain structure of patients remains significant. This study aims to longitudinally explore the persistent effects of HIV on brain structure, focusing on changes in gray matter volume (GMV) and structural covariance network (SCN) among patients at the Asymptomatic Neurocognitive Impairment (ANI) stage.MethodsThis research involved 45 HIV patients diagnosed with ANI and 45 demographically matched healthy controls (HCs). The participants were observed over a 1.5-year period. Differences in GMV between groups were analyzed using voxel-based morphometry (VBM), while the graph theory model facilitated the establishment of topological metrics for assessing network indices. These differences were evaluated using two-sample t-tests and paired-sample t-tests, applying the network-based statistics method. Additionally, the study examined correlations between GMV and cognitive performance, as well as clinical variables.ResultsCompared with HCs, HIV patients demonstrated reduced GMV in the right middle temporal gyrus and left middle frontal gyrus (FWE, p < 0.05), along with decreased betweenness centrality (BC) in the left anterior cingulate and paracingulate cortex. Conversely, an increase in the clustering coefficient (Cp) was observed (FDR, p < 0.05). During the follow-up period, a decline in GMV in the right fusiform gyrus (FWE, p < 0.05) and a reduction in node efficiency (Ne) in the triangular part of the inferior frontal gyrus were noted compared with baseline measurements (FDR, p < 0.05). The SCN of HIV patients exhibited small-world properties across most sparsity levels (Sigma >1), and area under the curve (AUC) analysis revealed no significant statistical differences between groups.ConclusionThe findings suggest that despite the administration of combination antiretroviral therapy (cART), HIV continues to exert slow and sustained damage on brain structures. However, when compared to HCs, the small-world properties of the patients’ SCNs did not significantly differ, and the clustering coefficient, indicative of the overall information-processing capacity of the brain network, was slightly elevated in HIV patients. This elevation may relate to compensatory effects of brain area functions, the impact of cART, functional reorganization, or inflammatory responses.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fneur.2024.1388616/fullHIVlongitudinal studyvoxel-based morphometrystructural covariance networkHIV-associated neurocognitive disorder |
| spellingShingle | Fan Xu Juming Ma Wei Wang Hongjun Li A longitudinal study of the brain structure network changes in HIV patients with ANI: combined VBM with SCN Frontiers in Neurology HIV longitudinal study voxel-based morphometry structural covariance network HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder |
| title | A longitudinal study of the brain structure network changes in HIV patients with ANI: combined VBM with SCN |
| title_full | A longitudinal study of the brain structure network changes in HIV patients with ANI: combined VBM with SCN |
| title_fullStr | A longitudinal study of the brain structure network changes in HIV patients with ANI: combined VBM with SCN |
| title_full_unstemmed | A longitudinal study of the brain structure network changes in HIV patients with ANI: combined VBM with SCN |
| title_short | A longitudinal study of the brain structure network changes in HIV patients with ANI: combined VBM with SCN |
| title_sort | longitudinal study of the brain structure network changes in hiv patients with ani combined vbm with scn |
| topic | HIV longitudinal study voxel-based morphometry structural covariance network HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fneur.2024.1388616/full |
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