A DIFFUSION TENSOR TRACTOGRAPHY STUDY OF YOUNG MALE CHILDREN WITH FRAGILE X

这个子项目是众多研究子项目之一

This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. Introduction: Mutation of the Fragile X Mental Retardation gene (FMR1) is associated with a host of cognitive and behavioral deficits, one of which is the inability to exercise effective inhibitory control. The ventral frontostriatal pathway, linking the caudate nucleus with the ventral prefrontal cortex, is known to be involved in the inhibition of cognitions and behaviors. Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) tractography provides the ability to investigate the structural integrity of white matter pathways within the living human brain. Specific Aims: To investigate the structural integrity of the ventral frontostriatal pathway. Methods: In this study, we used DTI to investigate the structural integrity of the ventral frontostriatal pathway in a sample of young male children with Fragile X, Typically Developing and Developmentally Delayed age matched control groups (1.58  3.64 years). In order to improve anatomical specificity, we used an approach that dissociates fibers that project from the ventral portion of the caudate nucleus to the ventral prefrontal cortex from those that project from the dorsal portion of the caudate nucleus to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex.