Abstract Details

Title Structural and Functional Organization of the Brain Connectome in Patients with Different Motor Neuron Diseases: A Multicenter Study

Topic Neuromuscular and Clinical Neurophysiology (EMG)

Presentation(s) P4 - Poster Session 4 (5:30 PM-6:30 PM)

Poster/Presentation
Number 12-020

Objective To investigate structural and functional neural organization in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), primary lateral sclerosis (PLS) and progressive muscular atrophy (PMA).

Background Graph analysis and connectomics might represent a powerful approach to detect upper motor neuron degeneration, extra-motor brain changes and network reorganization associated with the disease.

Design/Methods

173 ALS, 38 PLS, 28 PMA patients and 79 healthy controls were recruited from three different centers. Subjects underwent 3DT1-weighted, Diffusion Tensor (DT) and resting-state functional MRI. Graph analysis and connectomics assessed global and local structural and functional topological network properties and regional structural and functional connectivity.

Results Compared to healthy controls, ALS and PLS patients showed altered structural global network properties (lower mean nodal strength, local efficiency and clustering coefficient, longer mean path length), while PMA patients showed unchanged global structure. All patient groups showed preserved global and local functional connectivity in each comparison. ALS and PLS patients showed altered structural local properties in sensorimotor, basal ganglia, frontal and parietal areas relative to controls, while only PLS patients demonstrated altered local structural alterations in sensorimotor network relative to PMA group. Widespread structural changes were observed in ALS and PLS patients relative to controls: decreased fractional anisotropy within the sensorimotor networks and in connections to the medial and lateral prefrontal cortex. ALS patients showed increased functional connectivity involving precentral, middle and superior frontal gyri, while PLS patients in the sensorimotor, basal ganglia and temporal networks relative to controls. ALS and PLS patients also showed decreased fractional anisotropy relative to PMA cases within the sensorimotor and frontal networks.

Conclusions

This study showed widespread motor/extra-motor network degeneration in ALS and PLS. Network-based advanced MRI analyses provide an objective in vivo assessment of motor neuron disease related pathological changes, delivering potential diagnostic and prognostic markers.

Authors/Disclosures
Federica Agosta (San Raffaele Scientific Institute) PRESENTER	Federica Agosta has received personal compensation in the range of $500-$4,999 for serving on a Speakers Bureau for Philips. Federica Agosta has received personal compensation in the range of $500-$4,999 for serving as an Editor, Associate Editor, or Editorial Advisory Board Member for Elsevier INC.
Silvia Basaia	Silvia Basaia has nothing to disclose.
	No disclosure on file
	No disclosure on file
Camilla Cividini, MSc (San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University)	Ms. Cividini has nothing to disclose.
	No disclosure on file
Cristina Moglia (University of Torino)	Cristina Moglia has nothing to disclose.
	No disclosure on file
Yuri Falzone	Yuri Falzone has nothing to disclose.
Andrea Falini	No disclosure on file
	No disclosure on file
	No disclosure on file
Gioacchino Tedeschi, MD (University of Campania "L. Vanvitelli")	Dr. Tedeschi has received personal compensation in the range of $500-$4,999 for serving on a Scientific Advisory or Data Safety Monitoring board for Roche. Dr. Tedeschi has received personal compensation in the range of $500-$4,999 for serving on a Scientific Advisory or Data Safety Monitoring board for Lilly. Dr. Tedeschi has received personal compensation in the range of $500-$4,999 for serving on a Scientific Advisory or Data Safety Monitoring board for Novartis.
Massimo Filippi, MD, FAAN (Ospedale San Raffaele, Neuroimaging Research Unit)	Dr. Filippi has received personal compensation in the range of $5,000-$9,999 for serving as a Consultant for Alexion, Almirall, Biogen, Merck, Novartis, Roche, Sanofi. Dr. Filippi has received personal compensation in the range of $500-$4,999 for serving on a Scientific Advisory or Data Safety Monitoring board for Alexion, Biogen, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Merck, Novartis, Roche, Sanofi, Sanofi-Aventis, Sanofi-Genzyme, Takeda. Dr. Filippi has received personal compensation in the range of $500-$4,999 for serving on a Speakers Bureau for Bayer, Biogen, Celgene, Chiesi Italia SpA, Eli Lilly, Genzyme, Janssen, Merck-Serono, Neopharmed Gentili, Novartis, Novo Nordisk, Roche, Sanofi, Takeda, and TEVA. Dr. Filippi has received personal compensation in the range of $10,000-$49,999 for serving as an Editor, Associate Editor, or Editorial Advisory Board Member for Springer Nature. The institution of Dr. Filippi has received research support from Biogen Idec, Merck-Serono, Novartis, Roche, the Italian Ministry of Health, the Italian Ministry of University and Research, and Fondazione Italiana Sclerosi Multipla.

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