Objectives To measure the microstructural differences in the brains of participants with amnestic mild cognitive impairment ( aMCI) and compare with a control group using a magnetic resonance diffusion tensor imaging ( DTI) technique with fully automated image analysis tools. Methods A standardized clinical and neuropsychological evaluation was conducted on each subject 31 participants (15 participants with aMCI, 16 healthy elderly adults) underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based DTI. To control the effects of anatomical variation, the diffusion images of all participants were registered to standard anatomical space. Voxel-by-voxel comparisons showed significant regional reductions in white matter regions of fractional anisotropy (FA) in the participants with aMCI as compared with the controls. Results Significantly decreased FA value measurements (P<0. 001) were observed in the right frontal white matter in participants with aMCI. Moreover, there was a statistically significant difference between the patients with aMCI and controls in considering the small regions of bilateral superior frontal gyrus white matter (P < 0.001). Conclusions White matter damage of frontal lobe may play an important role in histopathologic changes associated with amnestic mild cognitive impairment

Objective To study the activated status of insula during the performance of word generation task, and to explore the function of different part of insula with functional MRI (fMRI). Methods Twenty-eight subjects were recruited in this study (male 15, female 13), all of them underwent block-designed fMRI with word generation tasks and resting-state scan. SPM 5 and REST 1.3 were used to process the data. Bilateral anterior insula and posterior insula were selected as seeds to calculate the connectivity coefficiency with other voxels, and differences between the anterior and the posterior insula were compared. Results Bilateral anterior insula was significantly activated, while bilateral posterior insula was significantly deactivated. The functional connectivity areas with left anterior insula included right anterior insula, right posterior insula, supplementary motor area (SMA), left superior temporal gyrus, left middle frontal gyrus, left superior frontal gyrus, left inferior parietal lobe, middle cingulate gyrus, right striatum and right inferior frontal gyrus. The functional connectivity areas with left posterior insula included right posterior insula, left anterior insula, right superior temporal gyrus, middle cingulate gyrus, right precentral gyrus and right striatum. The functional connectivity areas with right anterior insula included SMA, left inferior frontal gyrus, right inferior parietal lobe, left inferior parietal lobe, left superior temporal gyrus, right precentral gyrus, right striatum, middle cingulate gyrus, left middle frontal gyrus, left striatum, right middle frontal gyrus, right inferior frontal gyrus and left transverse temporal gyrus. The functional connectivity areas with right posterior insula included right precentral gyrus, left superior temporal gyrus, left anterior insula, left posterior insula, right supramarginal gyrus and middle cingulate gyrus. Conclusion Anterior insula and posterior insula are functionally connected with different areas, and concerned with the language function in different manners. Left lateral anterior insula may play an important role in the language function.

Brain ; drug effects ; physiopathology ; Consciousness ; drug effects ; physiology ; Consciousness Disorders ; diagnosis ; drug therapy ; Humans ; Research

Objective To investigate the executive function of the patients with first-episode schizophrenia,and their relationships with the positive and negative symptoms. And to evaluate the activation characteristics of prefrontal cortex(PFC) in the schizophrenia. Methods Near-infrared spectroscopy(NIRS) was used to assess the activation of the bilateral PFCs during the computerized version of Tower of London(TOL) tasks in schizophrenia and controls. The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale(PANSS) was used to assess the psychiatric symptoms of the schizophrenia. 40 schizophrenic patients and 40 age- and gender-matched healthy subjects participated in this study. Results ( 1 ) The number of correct TOL responses in patients ( one-move ( 7.35 ± 1. 94 ), two-move ( 7.30 ± 2.53 ), three-move ( 6.58 ± 2.53 ), four-move ( 2.90 ± 1.89 ) ) was significantly less than the healthy controls( one-move (8.82 ± 1.48 ), two-move ( 8.38 ± 1.59 ), three-move ( 7.68 ± 1.47 ), four-move ( 3.73 ±1.71 ); P＜0. 05 ). ( 2 ) There was a significant negative correlation between the patients' task performance and the negative symptom scores(P ＜ 0.05 ). (3) The majority of the prefrontal area was activated in health subjects.Patients were characterized by significant decreased activation in the left PFC during the TOL task compared to healthy subjects. Conclusion Schizophrenic patients have executive function disorder at the initial stage of the disease.The results support that schizophrenia patients have hypofrontality ,and executive function is significantly negatively correlated with negative symptoms. NIRS my be a useful tool for research and clinical assessment for major psychoses.

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a popular modulatory technique for the noninvasive diagnosis and therapy of neurological and psychiatric diseases. Unfortunately, current modulation strategies are only modestly effective. The literature provides strong evidence that the modulatory effects of TMS vary depending on device components and stimulation protocols. These differential effects are important when designing precise modulatory strategies for clinical or research applications. Developments in TMS have been accompanied by advances in combining TMS with neuroimaging techniques, including electroencephalography, functional near-infrared spectroscopy, functional magnetic resonance imaging, and positron emission tomography. Such studies appear particularly promising as they may not only allow us to probe affected brain areas during TMS but also seem to predict underlying research directions that may enable us to precisely target and remodel impaired cortices or circuits. However, few precise modulation strategies are available, and the long-term safety and efficacy of these strategies need to be confirmed. Here, we review the literature on possible technologies for precise modulation to highlight progress along with limitations with the goal of suggesting future directions for this field.

Biomarkers ; Brain/diagnostic imaging* ; Brain Diseases/diagnostic imaging* ; Humans ; Machine Learning ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Neuroimaging

Humans ; Artificial Intelligence ; Algorithms ; Brain ; Head

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a popular modulatory technique for the noninvasive diagnosis and therapy of neurological and psychiatric diseases. Unfortunately, current modulation strategies are only modestly effective. The literature provides strong evidence that the modulatory effects of TMS vary depending on device components and stimulation protocols. These differential effects are important when designing precise modulatory strategies for clinical or research applications. Developments in TMS have been accompanied by advances in combining TMS with neuroimaging techniques, including electroencephalography, functional near-infrared spectroscopy, functional magnetic resonance imaging, and positron emission tomography. Such studies appear particularly promising as they may not only allow us to probe affected brain areas during TMS but also seem to predict underlying research directions that may enable us to precisely target and remodel impaired cortices or circuits. However, few precise modulation strategies are available, and the long-term safety and efficacy of these strategies need to be confirmed. Here, we review the literature on possible technologies for precise modulation to highlight progress along with limitations with the goal of suggesting future directions for this field.
Brain/diagnostic imaging* ; Electroencephalography ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Neuroimaging ; Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation

Brain/diagnostic imaging* ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Neuroimaging ; White Matter/diagnostic imaging*

Connectome/methods* ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging/methods* ; Brain/diagnostic imaging* ; Head ; Brain Mapping/methods* ; Nerve Net