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Functional Connectome of the Fetal Brain
Open accessAbstract
Large-scale functional connectome formation and reorganization is apparent in the second trimester of pregnancy, making it a crucial and vulnerable time window in connectome development. Here we identified which architectural principles of functional connectome organization are initiated before birth, and contrast those with topological characteristics observed in the mature adult brain. A sample of 105 pregnant women participated in human fetal resting-state fMRI studies (fetal gestational age between 20 and 40 weeks). Connectome analysis was used to analyze weighted network characteristics of fetal macroscale brain wiring. We identified efficient network attributes, common functional modules, and high overlap between the fetal and adult brain network. Our results indicate that key features of the functional connectome are present in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy. Understanding the organizational principles of fetal connectome organization may bring opportunities to develop markers for early detection of alterations of brain function. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The fetal to neonatal period is well known as a critical stage in brain development. Rapid neurodevelopmental processes establish key functional neural circuits of the human brain. Prenatal risk factors may interfere with early trajectories of connectome formation and thereby shape future health outcomes. Recent advances in MRI have made it possible to examine fetal brain functional connectivity. In this study, we evaluate the network topography of normative functional network development during connectome genesis in utero. Understanding the developmental trajectory of brain connectivity provides a basis for understanding how the prenatal period shapes future brain function and disease dysfunction.
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“Fetal resting-state networks also tend to form clusters or modules; this tendency, called modularity, decreases with advancing gestational age [69, 70].”
From Brain structural and functional outcomes in the offspring of women experiencing psychological distress during pregnancy (2024) · cites this paper as [70]
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“Fetal networks, like adults, exhibit efficient small-world organization, suggesting that regions are simultaneously well integrated with topologically distant regions of the brain while forming specialized clusters with their close-by neighbors [69, 70].”
From Brain structural and functional outcomes in the offspring of women experiencing psychological distress during pregnancy (2024) · cites this paper as [70]
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Citations
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Sorted by citations
MRI of the Neonatal Brain: A Review of Methodological Challenges and Neuroscientific Advances
Dubois, J., Alison, M., Counsell, S. J., Hertz‐Pannier, L., Hüppi, P. S., & Benders, M. J. N. L. (2021) · Journal of Magnetic Resonance Imaging · doi:10.1002/jmri.27192 · Cited by 226
Self-citationSpontaneous activity in developing thalamic and cortical sensory networks
Martini, F. J., Guillamón-Vivancos, T., Moreno‐Juan, V., Valdeolmillos, M., & López‐Bendito, G. (2021) · Neuron · doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2021.06.026 · Cited by 195
Functional brain connectivity changes across the human life span: From fetal development to old age
Edde, M., Leroux, G., Altena, E., & Chanraud, S. (2021) · Journal of Neuroscience Research · doi:10.1002/jnr.24669 · Cited by 143
Premature Birth and Developmental Programming: Mechanisms of Resilience and Vulnerability
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“Fetal networks, like adults, exhibit ef fi cient small-world organization, suggesting that regions are simultaneously well integrated with topologically distant regions of the brain while forming specialized clusters with their close-by neighbors [69, 70].”
Background
Metadata
- Authors
- Turk, E., van den Heuvel, M. I., Benders, M. J., de Heus, R., Franx, A., Manning, J. H., Hect, J. L., Hernandez-Andrade, E., Hassan, S. S., Romero, R., Kahn, R. S., Thomason, M. E., & van den Heuvel, M. P.
- Affiliations
- Utrecht University (NL)
- University Medical Center Utrecht (NL)
- United States Department of Health and Human Services (US)
- Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (US)
- NYU Langone Health (US)
- ORCID
- Venue
- The Journal of Neuroscience
- Publisher
- Society for Neuroscience
- Published
- 2019-11-04
- Volume
- 39
- Issue
- 49
- Pages
- 9716-9724
- ISSN
- 0270-6474 (ISSN-L)
- 1529-2401
- PMC
- PMC6891066
- OpenAlex
- W2985941729
- Cited by
- 176
- References
- 68
- Citations by year
- 2026: 18 · 2025: 31 · 2024: 37 · 2023: 21 · 2022: 30 · 2021: 21 · 2020: 18
- FWCI
- 10.03
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Journal of Neuroscience (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-sa)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- Research portal (Tilburg University) (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- VU Research Portal (publishedVersion, other-oa)
- Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS) (submittedVersion)
- Utrecht University Repository (Utrecht University) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Pure Amsterdam UMC (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Amsterdam UMC (VU Amsterdam) - Institutional Repository (submittedVersion)
- Utrecht University Repository (Utrecht University) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHSN275201300006C)
- Australian Government
- Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (452-16-015)
- National Institutes of Health (HHSN 275201300006C)
- National Institute of Mental Health (R01MH110793)
- National Institute on Drug Abuse (R34DA050287)
- National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (P30ES020957, R21ES026022)
- National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (HHSN275201300006C)
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (HHSN275201300006C)
- NHLBI Division of Intramural Research
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Functional Brain Connectivity Studies
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging › Advanced Neuroimaging Techniques and Applications
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging › Advanced MRI Techniques and Applications
- Keywords
- fetal brain, functional connectome, fetal brain development, resting-state functional connectivity, network topology, network efficiency, functional modules, prenatal risk factors, brain development, second trimester
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Atlases as Topic, Brain, Female, Fetus, Gestational Age, Humans, Image Processing, Computer-Assisted, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Nerve Net, Pregnancy, Pregnancy Trimester, Second, Fetal Development, Connectome
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