The Ontogeny of the Human Connectome: Development and Dynamic Changes of Brain Connectivity Across the Life Span
Abstract
The human brain comprises distributed cortical regions that are structurally and functionally connected into a network that is known as the human connectome. Elaborate developmental processes starting in utero herald connectome genesis, with dynamic changes in its architecture continuing throughout life. Connectome changes during development, maturation, and aging may be governed by a set of biological rules or algorithms, forming and shaping the macroscopic architecture of the brain's wiring network. To explore the presence of developmental patterns indicative of such rules, this review considers insights from studies on the cellular and the systems level into macroscopic connectome genesis and dynamics across the life span. We observe that in parallel with synaptogenesis, macroscopic connectome formation and transformation is characterized by an initial overgrowth and subsequent elimination of cortico-cortical axonal projections. Furthermore, dynamic changes in connectome organization throughout the life span are suggested to follow an inverted U-shaped pattern, with an increasingly integrated topology during development, a plateau lasting for the majority of adulthood and an increasingly localized topology in late life. Elucidating developmental patterns in brain connectivity is crucial for our understanding of the human connectome and how it may give rise to brain function, including the occurrence of brain network disorders across the life span.
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The brain connectome becomes progressively integrated within a constantly evolving GNW architecture.
“In other words, the brain connectome becomes progressively integrated within a constantly evolving GNW architecture (Changeux, 2017; Collin and van den Heuvel, 2013).”
From Conscious Processing and the Global Neuronal Workspace Hypothesis (2020) · cites this paper as Collin and van den Heuvel, 2013
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- Authors
- Collin, G., & van den Heuvel, M. P.
- Affiliations
- University Medical Center Utrecht (NL)
- Brain Center Rudolf Magnus, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, Netherlands
- ORCID
- Collin, Guusje
- Venue
- The Neuroscientist
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2013-09-18
- Volume
- 19
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 616-628
- ISSN
- 1073-8584 (ISSN-L)
- 1089-4098
- OpenAlex
- W2168548178
- Cited by
- 198
- References
- 14
- Citations by year
- 2026: 9 · 2025: 12 · 2024: 15 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 13 · 2021: 13 · 2020: 43 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 21 · 2017: 16 · 2016: 13 · 2015: 16 · 2014: 9 · 2013: 1
- FWCI
- 7.10
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- The Neuroscientist (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Pure Amsterdam UMC (publishedVersion)
- Amsterdam UMC (VU Amsterdam) - Institutional Repository (publishedVersion)
- Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Functional Brain Connectivity Studies
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging › Advanced Neuroimaging Techniques and Applications
- Physical Sciences › Physics and Astronomy › Statistical and Nonlinear Physics › Complex Network Analysis Techniques
- Keywords
- human connectome, brain aging, synaptogenesis, corticocortical connections, network topology, lifespan development
- MeSH terms
- Aging, Brain, Humans, Nerve Net, Connectome
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