Cortical scaling of the neonatal brain in typical and altered development
Abstract
Theoretically derived scaling laws capture the nonlinear relationships between rapidly expanding brain volume and cortical gyrification across mammalian species and in adult humans. However, the preservation of these laws has not been comprehensively assessed in typical or pathological brain development. Here, we assessed the scaling laws governing cortical thickness (CT), surface area (SA), and cortical folding in the neonatal brain. We also assessed multivariate morphological terms that capture brain size, shape, and folding processes. The sample consisted of 345 typically developing infants, 73 preterm infants, and 107 infants with congenital heart disease (CHD) who underwent brain MRI. Our results show that typically developing neonates and those with CHD follow the cortical folding scaling law obtained from mammalian brains, children, and adults which captures the relationship between exposed SA, total SA, and CT. Cortical folding scaling was not affected by gestational age at birth, postmenstrual age at scan, sex, or multiple birth in these populations. CHD was characterized by a unique reduction in the multivariate morphological term capturing size, suggesting that CHD affects cortical growth overall but not cortical folding processes. In contrast, preterm birth was characterized by altered cortical folding scaling and altered shape, suggesting that the developmentally programmed processes of cortical folding are disrupted in this population. The degree of altered shape was associated with cognitive abilities in early childhood in preterm infants.
Article Details
Journal Info
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
National Academy of Sciences
Authors (15)
Alexandra F. Bonthrone
Centre for the Developing Brain, Research Department of Early Life Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King’s College London
Daniel Cromb
Centre for the Developing Brain, Research Department of Early Life Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King’s College London
Andrew Chew
Centre for the Developing Brain, Research Department of Early Life Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King’s College London
Barat Gal-Er
Centre for the Developing Brain, Research Department of Early Life Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King’s College London
Christopher Kelly
Centre for the Developing Brain, Research Department of Early Life Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King’s College London
Shona Falconer
Centre for the Developing Brain, Research Department of Early Life Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King’s College London
Tomoki Arichi
Centre for the Developing Brain, Research Department of Early Life Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King’s College London
Kuberan Pushparajah
Research Department of Cardiovascular Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King’s College London
John Simpson
Department of Fetal and Paediatric Cardiology, Evelina London Children’s Hospital
Mary A. Rutherford
Centre for the Developing Brain, Research Department of Early Life Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King’s College London
Joseph V. Hajnal
Centre for the Developing Brain, Research Department of Early Life Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King’s College London
Chiara Nosarti
Centre for the Developing Brain, Research Department of Early Life Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King’s College London
A. David Edwards
Centre for the Developing Brain, Research Department of Early Life Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King’s College London
Jonathan O’Muircheartaigh
Centre for the Developing Brain, Research Department of Early Life Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King’s College London
Serena J. Counsell
Centre for the Developing Brain, Research Department of Early Life Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King’s College London