Structural control energy of resting‐state functional brain states reveals less cost‐effective brain dynamics in psychosis vulnerability

Abstract

How the brain's white‐matter anatomy constrains brain activity is an open question that might give insights into the mechanisms that underlie mental disorders such as schizophrenia. Chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome (22q11DS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder with an extremely high risk for psychosis providing a test case to study developmental aspects of schizophrenia. In this study, we used principles from network control theory to probe the implications of aberrant structural connectivity for the brain's functional dynamics in 22q11DS. We retrieved brain states from resting‐state functional magnetic resonance images of 78 patients with 22q11DS and 85 healthy controls. Then, we compared them in terms of persistence control energy; that is, the control energy that would be required to persist in each of these states based on individual structural connectivity and a dynamic model. Persistence control energy was altered in a broad pattern of brain states including both energetically more demanding and less demanding brain states in 22q11DS. Further, we found a negative relationship between persistence control energy and resting‐state activation time, which suggests that the brain reduces energy by spending less time in energetically demanding brain states. In patients with 22q11DS, this behavior was less pronounced, suggesting a deficiency in the ability to reduce energy through brain activation. In summary, our results provide initial insights into the functional implications of altered structural connectivity in 22q11DS, which might improve our understanding of the mechanisms underlying the disease.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Feb 10, 2021
Source ID
10.1002/hbm.25358

Entities

People

  • Corrado Sandini
  • Daniela Zöller
  • Danielle Bassett
  • Dimitri Van De Ville
  • Marie Schaer
  • Stephan Eliez

Organizations

  • Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
  • Army Research Office
  • Assisi Foundation of Memphis
  • Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
  • John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation
  • National Institute of Mental Health
  • National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
  • National Science Foundation
  • Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne
  • Swiss National Science Foundation
  • United States Army Research Laboratory
  • University of Geneva
  • University of Pennsylvania
  • University of Tübingen

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Psychology

Readers

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