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Neuroradiology
Published in: Neuroradiology 5/2018

Open Access 01-05-2018 | Functional Neuroradiology

Structural connectome with high angular resolution diffusion imaging MRI: assessing the impact of diffusion weighting and sampling on graph-theoretic measures

Authors: Giuseppina Caiazzo, Michele Fratello, Federica Di Nardo, Francesca Trojsi, Gioacchino Tedeschi, Fabrizio Esposito

Published in: Neuroradiology | Issue 5/2018

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Abstract

Purpose

Advances in computational network analysis have enabled the characterization of topological properties of human brain networks (connectomics) from high angular resolution diffusion imaging (HARDI) MRI structural measurements. In this study, the effect of changing the diffusion weighting (b value) and sampling (number of gradient directions) was investigated in ten healthy volunteers, with specific focus on graph theoretical network metrics used to characterize the human connectome.

Methods

Probabilistic tractography based on the Q-ball reconstruction of HARDI MRI measurements was performed and structural connections between all pairs of regions from the automated anatomical labeling (AAL) atlas were estimated, to compare two HARDI schemes: low b value (b = 1000) and low direction number (n = 32) (LBLD); high b value (b = 3000) and high number (n = 54) of directions (HBHD).

Results

LBLD and HBHD data sets produced connectome images with highly overlapping hub structure. Overall, the HBHD scheme yielded significantly higher connection probabilities between cortical and subcortical sites and allowed detecting more connections. Small worldness and modularity were reduced in HBHD data. The clustering coefficient was significantly higher in HBHD data indicating a higher level of segregation in the resulting connectome for the HBHD scheme.

Conclusion

Our results demonstrate that the HARDI scheme as an impact on structural connectome measures which is not automatically implied by the tractography outcome. As the number of gradient directions and b values applied may introduce a bias in the assessment of network properties, the choice of a given HARDI protocol must be carefully considered when comparing results across connectomic studies.
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Metadata
Title
Structural connectome with high angular resolution diffusion imaging MRI: assessing the impact of diffusion weighting and sampling on graph-theoretic measures
Authors
Giuseppina Caiazzo
Michele Fratello
Federica Di Nardo
Francesca Trojsi
Gioacchino Tedeschi
Fabrizio Esposito
Publication date
01-05-2018
Publisher
Springer Berlin Heidelberg
Published in
Neuroradiology / Issue 5/2018
Print ISSN: 0028-3940
Electronic ISSN: 1432-1920
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00234-018-2003-7

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