Visualization of resting‐state networks in utero
Open accessAbstract
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) allows the visualization of brain function and processing of versatile inputs of the human brain. Recently, this method has been shown to provide insights into the spatiotemporal distribution of processing networks that can be demonstrated to be active in the brain even in the absence of a task when the brain is 'at rest'. These so-called resting-state networks (RSNs), characterized by spontaneous intrinsic fluctuations between 0.01 and 0.1 Hz, have been repeatedly and reproducibly found to be organized into specific functional networks across the brain1-10. RSNs are always present: during task-focused behavior and while at rest, during sleep and anesthesia and across all ages, from infants to adults11-16. They appear to constitute a substructure for different neural processes, and thus form the basis for the processing of various inputs, e.g. sensory, cognitive and emotional, and of motor functions. Our group has recently published a study showing that RSNs are shaped and detectable in utero7. We presented the applicability of fMRI in a clinical fetal MRI setting, and demonstrated the presence of three different RSNs (frontal, occipital and temporal) in unsedated fetuses at 20–36 gestational weeks. Resting-state functional connectivity is based in part on direct anatomical connections, but not exclusively so, as revealed in a review by Damoiseaux and Greicius that examined existing literature regarding the relationship between structural and functional resting-state connectivity in the adult brain17. Indirect connections are likely to play an important role in the pattern of resting-state connectivity. In the developing brain, assessment of the relationship between functional and structural connectivity is further complicated by significant structural changes at the cellular and molecular level associated with the process of axonal myelination and their consequences for the evaluation of MRI findings. Apart from the possibility of performing resting-state fMRI measurements in utero, we aim to combine measurements of functional connectivity with structural connectivity markers. In parallel with structural changes, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) has been demonstrated to be a promising addition to standard fetal MRI protocols to study white matter microstructure18, 19. These newer MR imaging methods offer the possibility of higher sensitivity to subtle structural and functional alterations and of an accurate prognosis for fetuses suffering from brain pathologies. As an example, we present here the findings in a 32-week fetus with normal brain development, examined at our institution using a 1.5-T unit (Philips Medical Systems, Best, The Netherlands) with a SENSE (sensitivity encoding) cardiac coil with five elements. MRI measurements included standard anatomical sequences, fMRI and DTI (Figure 1). For visualization, the dataset was reconstructed according to the T2-weighted sequence (echo time (TE), 100 ms; repetition time (TR), 9720 ms; slice thickness, 4 mm; field of view (FOV), 300 × 300 mm; matrix size, 256 × 256; flip angle, 90°) in order to obtain an interactive surface model that could be viewed from any angle. Thereafter, a three-dimensional model of the head was semiautomatically created from the overlapping image layers using Mimics (Materialise, Leuven, Belgium) which allowed delineation using contrast detection in the areas of interest (Figure 2). Functional anisotropy maps were derived from a DTI sequence (TE, 90 ms; TR, 2264 ms; slice thickness, 3 mm; spacing, 3.3 mm; FOV, 240 × 240 mm; matrix, 256 × 256; b values, 0 s/mm2 and 700 s/mm2) using FDT (FMRIB's Diffusion Toolbox) version 2.0, a part of FSL (FMRIB's Software Library, www.fmrib.ox.ac.uk/fsl). Image preprocessing was performed with FSL including eddy current correction using FDT and brain extraction using BET (Brain Extraction Tool) version 2.1. Color coding represents main diffusion directions (not corrected for fetal head position). Colors such as purple are mixes of red, green and blue and therefore express vectors that have significant non-zero components in more than one of the x, y, z directions (Figure 2a). Functional measurements were performed using single-shot gradient-recalled echoplanar imaging (TE, 1000 ms; TR, 50 ms; 15 slices with slice thickness of 3 mm; FOV, 250 × 250; matrix size, 144 × 144; flip angle, 90°; 300 volumes) aligning the slices perpendicular to the brainstem. Image processing included motion correction, temporal filtering and brain extraction. The single-subject time-series volumes were subsequently analyzed using independent component analysis, as described previously7. Twenty-one statistically independent components were obtained. One component characterized by bilateral medial and lateral prefrontal activity is presented (Figure 2b). Multimodal assessment of a fetal brain at 32 weeks' gestation, with functional MRI, T2 imaging, functional anisotropy map and r
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Early in utero rs-fMRI studies in 2012 detected occipital and frontal networks in the developing brain.
“In 2012, early in utero rs-fMRI studies detected occipital and frontal networks in the developing brain [58, 59].”
From Brain structural and functional outcomes in the offspring of women experiencing psychological distress during pregnancy (2024) · cites this paper as [59]
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- Authors
- Schöpf, V., Kasprian, G., Schwindt, J., Kollndorfer, K., & Prayer, D.
- Affiliations
- Medical University of Vienna (AT)
- Corresponding author
- Schöpf, V.
- Venue
- Ultrasound in Obstetrics & Gynecology
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2012-03-27
- Volume
- 39
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 487-488
- ISSN
- 0960-7692 (ISSN-L)
- 1469-0705
- OpenAlex
- W1994583705
- Cited by
- 15
- References
- 19
- Citations by year
- 2025: 1 · 2024: 2 · 2022: 1 · 2021: 1 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 1 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 2 · 2013: 3
- FWCI
- 0.82
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Functional Brain Connectivity Studies
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging › Advanced MRI Techniques and Applications
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging › Advanced Neuroimaging Techniques and Applications
- Keywords
- resting-state networks, fetal MRI, fetal brain development, functional connectivity, structural connectivity, diffusion tensor imaging, white matter microstructure, axonal myelination, cardiac MRI, fetal brain maturation
- MeSH terms
- Brain Mapping, Female, Frontal Lobe, Humans, Image Processing, Computer-Assisted, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Occipital Lobe, Pregnancy, Temporal Lobe
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