Analysis of Brain Structural Connectivity Networks and White Matter Integrity in Patients With Mild Cognitive Impairment

Maurizio Bergamino; Simona Schiavi; Alessandro Daducci; Ryan R Walsh; Ashley M Stokes

doi:10.3389/fnagi.2022.793991

Analysis of Brain Structural Connectivity Networks and White Matter Integrity in Patients With Mild Cognitive Impairment

Front Aging Neurosci. 2022 Jan 31:14:793991. doi: 10.3389/fnagi.2022.793991. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Maurizio Bergamino¹, Simona Schiavi^{2

3}, Alessandro Daducci², Ryan R Walsh⁴, Ashley M Stokes¹

Affiliations

¹ Barrow Neuroimaging Innovation Center, Barrow Neurological Institute, Phoenix, AZ, United States.
² Department of Computer Science, University of Verona, Verona, Italy.
³ Department of Neuroscience, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics, Maternal and Child Health (DINOGMI), University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy.
⁴ Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center, Barrow Neurological Institute, Phoenix, AZ, United States.

Abstract

White matter integrity and structural connectivity may be altered in mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and these changes may closely reflect decline in specific cognitive domains. Multi-shell diffusion data in healthy control (HC, n = 31) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI, n = 19) cohorts were downloaded from the ADNI3 database. The data were analyzed using an advanced approach to assess both white matter microstructural integrity and structural connectivity. Compared with HC, lower intracellular compartment (IC) and higher isotropic (ISO) values were found in MCI. Additionally, significant correlations were found between IC and Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) scores in the MCI cohort. Network analysis detected structural connectivity differences between the two groups, with lower connectivity in MCI. Additionally, significant differences between HC and MCI were observed for global network efficiency. Our results demonstrate the potential of advanced diffusion MRI biomarkers for understanding brain changes in MCI.

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; diffusion tensor imaging (DTI); mild cognitive impairment; structural connectivity; tractography; white matter integrity.