Functional Connectivity-Derived Optimal Gestational-Age Cut Points for Fetal Brain Network Maturity

Asis-Cruz, Josepheen De; Barnett, Scott D.; Kim, Jung-Hoon; Limperopoulos, Catherine

doi:10.3390/brainsci11070921

Cited by 12 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 49 publications

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“…This has been called a transitional pain circuitry of the fetus and neonate, similar to the transitional fetal and neonatal circulatory system ( 126 ). Before 30–32 weeks, electrical activity in the brain is centered around the subplate and is marked by the presence of delta brushes and spontaneous activity transients on EEG ( 28 , 127 , 128 ).…”

Section: The Subplate Modulation Hypothesismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This has been called a transitional pain circuitry of the fetus and neonate, similar to the transitional fetal and neonatal circulatory system (126). Before 30-32 weeks, electrical activity in the brain is centered around the subplate and is marked by the presence of delta brushes and spontaneous activity transients on EEG (28,127,128). Evidence supporting the subplate as an active and functional precursor of the cortex includes modulatory activity of both sensorimotor and somatosensory functions prior to thalamic innervation of the cortical plate: (1) neurobehavioral studies indicate subplate modulation of fetal motor activity beginning at 9-10 weeks gestation (129); (2) research demonstrates subplate activation in response to sensory stimuli (130); (3) pain indicators prior to 24 weeks gestation suggest the pre-existence of pathways of pain perception (Table 3).…”

Section: The Subplate Modulation Hypothesismentioning

confidence: 99%

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The fetal pain paradox

Thill

2023

Front. Pain Res.

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Controversy exists as to when conscious pain perception in the fetus may begin. According to the hypothesis of cortical necessity, thalamocortical connections, which do not form until after 24–28 weeks gestation, are necessary for conscious pain perception. However, anesthesiologists and neonatologists treat age-matched neonates as both conscious and pain-capable due to observable and measurable behavioral, hormonal, and physiologic indicators of pain. In preterm infants, these multimodal indicators of pain are uncontroversial, and their presence, despite occurring prior to functional thalamocortical connections, has guided the use of analgesics in neonatology and fetal surgery for decades. However, some medical groups state that below 24 weeks gestation, there is no pain capacity. Thus, a paradox exists in the disparate acknowledgment of pain capability in overlapping patient populations. Brain networks vary by age. During the first and second trimesters, the cortical subplate, a unique structure that is present only during fetal and early neonatal development, forms the first cortical network. In the third trimester, the cortical plate assumes this function. According to the subplate modulation hypothesis, a network of connections to the subplate and subcortical structures is sufficient to facilitate conscious pain perception in the fetus and the preterm neonate prior to 24 weeks gestation. Therefore, similar to other fetal and neonatal systems that have a transitional phase (i.e., circulatory system), there is now strong evidence for transitional developmental phases of fetal and neonatal pain circuitry.

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Section: The Subplate Modulation Hypothesismentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: The Subplate Modulation Hypothesismentioning

confidence: 99%

The fetal pain paradox

Thill

2023

Front. Pain Res.

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“…In-utero fetal brain development follows a highly organized, dynamic and precisely patterned process that lays a critical foundation for lifelong neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric brain health 1, 2 . The architecture of the human connectome also changes rapidly with brain maturation and plays a critical role in critical periods of early brain development 3, 4 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Towards A More Informative Representation of the Fetal-Neonatal Brain Connectome using Variational Autoencoder

Kim

Asis-Cruz

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Recent advances in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) have helped elucidate previously inaccessible trajectories of early-life prenatal and neonatal brain development. To date, the interpretation of fetal-neonatal fMRI data has relied on linear analytic models, akin to adult neuroimaging data. However, unlike the adult brain, the fetal and newborn brain develops extraordinarily rapidly, far outpacing any other brain development period across the lifespan. Consequently, conventional linear computational models may not adequately capture these accelerated and complex neurodevelopmental trajectories during this critical period of brain development along the prenatal-neonatal continuum. To obtain a nuanced understanding of fetal-neonatal brain development, including non-linear growth, for the first time, we developed quantitative, systems-wide representations of neuronal circuitry in a large sample (>700) of fetuses, preterm, and full-term neonates using an unsupervised deep generative model called Variational Autoencoder (VAE), a model previously shown to be superior to linear models in representing complex resting state data in healthy adults. Here, we demonstrated that non-linear brain features, i.e., latent variables, derived with the VAE, carried important individual neural signatures, leading to improved representation of prenatal-neonatal brain maturational patterns and more accurate and stable age prediction compared to linear models. Using the VAE decoder, we also revealed distinct functional brain networks spanning the sensory and default mode networks. Using the VAE, we are able to reliably capture and quantify complex, non-linear fetal-neonatal functional neural connectivity. This will lay the critical foundation for detailed mapping of healthy and aberrant functional brain signatures that have their origins in fetal life.

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“…In this Special Issue, several papers make use of functional neuroimaging data (fMRI) to derive connectivity: in particular, the papers by Chrobak et al [3], De Asis-Cruz et al [4], Khan et al [5], and Liu et al [6] are based on resting-state data, while only the paper by Tak et al [7] makes use of fMRI during a motor task (right-hand movement) together with dynamic causal modeling.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The last two papers investigate temporal changes in functional connectivity. In particular, the study by De Asis Cruz et al [4] analyzes how resting-state functional connectivity, derived from fMRI, can vary in healthy fetuses between 19 and 40 gestational weeks. A fundamental turning point seems to occur at 30-31 weeks, characterized by a shift from a connectivity network that is more based on endogenous neural activity, to a network that is more based on sensory-driven inputs.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Neural Networks and Connectivity among Brain Regions

2022

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As is widely understood, brain functioning depends on the interaction among several neural populations, which are linked via complex connectivity circuits and work together (in antagonistic or synergistic ways) to exchange information, synchronize their activity, adapt plastically to external stimuli or internal requirements, and more generally to participate in solving multifaceted cognitive tasks [...]

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Functional Connectivity-Derived Optimal Gestational-Age Cut Points for Fetal Brain Network Maturity

Cited by 12 publications

References 49 publications

The fetal pain paradox

The fetal pain paradox

Towards A More Informative Representation of the Fetal-Neonatal Brain Connectome using Variational Autoencoder

Neural Networks and Connectivity among Brain Regions

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