Biology subjects

Areces-Gonzalez, A.

Publications and source records attributed to Areces-Gonzalez, A..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2022

Harmonized-Multinational qEEG Norms (HarMNqEEG)

This paper extends our frequency domain quantitative electroencephalography (qEEG) methods pursuing higher sensitivity to detect Brain Developmental Disorders. Prior qEEG work lacked integration of cross-spectral information omitting important functional connectivity descriptors. Lack of geographical diversity precluded accounting for site-specific variance, increasing qEEG nuisance variance. We ameliorate these weaknesses. i) Create lifespan Hermitian Riemannian multinational qEEG norms for cross-spectral tensors. These norms result from the HarMNqEEG project fostered by the Global Brain Consortium. We calculate the norms with data from 9 countries, 12 devices, and 14 studies, including 1564 subjects. Instead of raw data, only anonymized metadata and EEG cross-spectral tensors were shared. After visual and automatic quality control developmental equations for the mean and standard deviation of qEEG traditional and Hermitian Riemannian descriptive parameters were calculated using additive mixed-effects models. We demonstrate qEEG "batch effects" and provide methods to calculate harmonized z-scores. ii) We also show that the multinational harmonized Hermitian Riemannian norms produce z-scores with increased diagnostic accuracy to predict brain dysfunction at school-age produced by malnutrition only in the first year of life. We provide data and software for constructing norms. iii) We offer open code and data to calculate different individual z-scores from the HarMNqEEG dataset. These results contribute to developing bias-free, low-cost neuroimaging technologies applicable in various health settings. HighlightsO_LIWe create lifespan Hermitian Riemannian qEEG norms for cross-spectral tensors. C_LIO_LIThe norms are based on 9 countries, 12 devices, and 14 studies, with 1564 subjects. C_LIO_LIWe demonstrate qEEG "batch effects", providing harmonization methods to remove them. C_LIO_LIMultinational harmonized z-scores increase diagnostic accuracy of brain dysfunction. C_LIO_LIData and software are available for norm and individual z-scores calculation. C_LI

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2021

An exploratory study of EEG connectivity during the first year of life in preterm and full-term infants

AimTo evaluate electroencephalography (EEG) connectivity during the first year of age in healthy full-term infants and preterm infants with prenatal and perinatal risk factors for perinatal brain damage. MethodsThree groups of infants were studied: healthy full-term infants (n = 71), moderate/late-preterm infants (n = 54), and very preterm infants (n = 56). All preterm infants had perinatal and/or perinatal risk factors for brain damage. EEG was obtained during phase II of natural nonrapid eye movement (NREM) sleep. EEG analysis was performed in 24 2.56-s artifact-free segments. For the calculation of EEG sources, spectral structured sparse Bayesian learning was used. Connectivity was computed by the phase-lag index. ResultsIn healthy full-term infants, EEG interhemispheric connectivity in the different frequency bands followed similar trends with age to those reported in each frequency band: delta connectivity decreased, theta increased at the end of the year, the alpha band showed different trends based on the region studied, and beta interhemispheric connectivity decreased with age. EEG connectivity in preterm infants showed differences from the results of the term group. DiscussionImportant structural findings may explain the differences observed in EEG connectivity between the term and preterm groups. ConclusionThe study of EEG connectivity during the first year of age provides essential information on normal and abnormal brain development.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2021

Brain charts for the human lifespan

Over the past few decades, neuroimaging has become a ubiquitous tool in basic research and clinical studies of the human brain. However, no reference standards currently exist to quantify individual differences in neuroimaging metrics over time, in contrast to growth charts for anthropometric traits such as height and weight1. Here, we built an interactive resource to benchmark brain morphology, www.brainchart.io, derived from any current or future sample of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data. With the goal of basing these reference charts on the largest and most inclusive dataset available, we aggregated 123,984 MRI scans from 101,457 participants aged from 115 days post-conception through 100 postnatal years, across more than 100 primary research studies. Cerebrum tissue volumes and other global or regional MRI metrics were quantified by centile scores, relative to non-linear trajectories2 of brain structural changes, and rates of change, over the lifespan. Brain charts identified previously unreported neurodevelopmental milestones3; showed high stability of individual centile scores over longitudinal assessments; and demonstrated robustness to technical and methodological differences between primary studies. Centile scores showed increased heritability compared to non-centiled MRI phenotypes, and provided a standardised measure of atypical brain structure that revealed patterns of neuroanatomical variation across neurological and psychiatric disorders. In sum, brain charts are an essential first step towards robust quantification of individual deviations from normative trajectories in multiple, commonly-used neuroimaging phenotypes. Our collaborative study proves the principle that brain charts are achievable on a global scale over the entire lifespan, and applicable to analysis of diverse developmental and clinical effects on human brain structure. Furthermore, we provide open resources to support future advances towards adoption of brain charts as standards for quantitative benchmarking of typical or atypical brain MRI scans.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2020

Bottom-up control of leakage in spectral electrophysiological source imaging via structured sparse bayesian learning

Brain electrical activity in different spectral bands has been associated with diverse mechanisms underlying Brain function. Deeper reconnoitering of these mechanisms entails mapping in grayordinates (Gray Matter coordinates), the spectral features of electrophysiological Brain signals. Such mapping is possible through MEG/EEG signals, due to their wide Brain coverage and excellent temporal resolution in reflecting neural-electrical-activity. This process-coined Electrophysiological Source Imaging (ESI)-can only produce approximated images of Brain activity, which are severely distorted by leakage: a pervasive effect in almost any imaging technique. It has been proposed that leakage control to tolerable levels can be achived through using priors or regularization within ESI, but their implementation commonly yields meager statistical guaranties. We introduce bottom-up control of leakage: defined as maximum Bayesian evidence search braced with priors precisely on the spectral responses. This is feasible due to an instance of Bayesian learning of complex valued data: spectral Structured Sparse Bayesian Learning (sSSBL). "Spectral" refers to specific spatial topologies that are reflected by the MEG/EEG spectra. We also present a new validation benchmark based on the concurrency between high density MEG and its associated pseudo-EEG of lower density. This reveals that prevealing methods like eLORETA and LCMV can fall short of expectations whereas sSSBL exibits an exellent performance. A final qualitative assesment reveals that sSSBL can outline brain lessions using just low density EEG, according to the T2 MRI shine through of the affected areas.

neuroscience↗