Naturalistic Brain Mapping in Children with Diffuse Optical Tomography

这笔赠款将开发高性能的自然主义光学功能成像仪器、范例和 绘制典型和非典型大脑发育图的计算工具。神经发育的范例 自闭症谱系障碍(ASD)在普通人群中影响着1/54的儿童。因为很早 对患有自闭症的幼儿进行干预已被证明能够改善结果，创新的治疗方法 在行为症状出现之前及早发现ASD潜在的脑功能改变 对于推进治疗策略和改善预后是必要的。目前的脑地形图方法包括 由于功能磁共振成像(FMRI)对健康发育进程具有良好的敏感性 以及非典型的自闭症大脑发育，但在觉醒研究中构成了重大的方法学挑战， 由于喧闹、幽闭恐怖的环境和要求儿童保持不动，儿童与人互动。 此外，许多为成人开发的成像范例不是自然主义的，也不适合儿童 光学神经成像是一种很有前途的fmri的潜在替代品，可以提供更自然的成像。 比核磁共振更有经验。而传统的功能近红外光谱系统成像质量较差 由于稀疏成像阵列的质量，新的高密度漫反射光学断层扫描(HD-DOT)系统具有 改善了图像质量。然而，大型光电控制台和笨重的光纤通常用于 HD-DOT限制头部运动，并要求参与者保持不动，以避免运动引起的噪音。这 格兰特将开发一种独特的轻量级HD-DOT系统，其大小相当于自行车头盔，利用硅 光电倍增管(SiPM)检测可显著提高微光性能。 自然主义成像范式的目标是比传统的还原更接近地概括现实生活条件 协议(例如，闪烁的棋盘图案)。理想情况下，自然主义范式使用高度引人入胜的多模式 内容，特别适合于不能公开行为的人群(如幼儿) 回应或执行重复的或可预测的任务。使用电影或电影的自然主义观看范式 电视节目实现了可重复性和对刺激呈现的控制，同时保留了更大的生态 有效性。虽然已经用HD-DOT展示了基本电影回归的可行性，但完全复杂的 使用fMRI开发的电影观看分析尚未转换为HD-DOT。 为了补充观影，我们还将推进自发脑活动图方法。功能性 静息状态下大脑的连通性分析已经成为绘制人脑图谱的主要方法。然而， 传统的FC分析依赖于经常容易混淆的双变量相关度量 生理过程。相比之下，在这项针对HD-DOT的拨款中开发的多变量FC(MFC)分析 提高网络测量的空间特异性、可重复性和可靠性的潜力。这部电影 映射将通过提供任务本地化来补充MFC，任务本地化是现代FC研究的共同特征。

This grant will develop high-performance naturalistic optical functional imaging instrumentation, paradigms, and computational tools for mapping typical and atypical brain development. An exemplar neurodevelopmental disorder, autism spectrum disorder (ASD), affects 1/54 children in the general population. Because early interventions in toddlers with ASD have been proven to result in improved outcomes, innovative methods for early detection of the alterations in brain function underlying ASD prior to manifestation of behavioral symptoms are necessary to advance treatment strategies and improve prognoses. Current brain mapping methods such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) offer promising sensitivity to healthy development progression and to atypical ASD brain development, yet pose significant methodological challenges in studies of awake, interacting children due to the loud, claustrophobic environment and the requirement for children to stay still. Further, many imaging paradigms developed for adults are not naturalistic and do not translate well to children Optical neuroimaging, a promising potential surrogate to fMRI, can provide a much more naturalistic imaging experience than MRI. While traditional functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) systems had poor image quality due to sparse imaging arrays, newer high-density diffuse optical tomography (HD-DOT) systems have improved image quality. However, the large opto-electronic consoles and bulky fiber optics typically used with HD-DOT restrict head motion and require participants to remain stationary to avoid motion induced noise. This grant will develop a unique lightweight HD-DOT system the size of a bike helmet that leverages silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) detection to dramatically improve low light level performance. Naturalistic imaging paradigms aim to recapitulate real-life conditions more closely than traditional reductive protocols (e.g., flashing checkerboard patterns). Ideally, naturalistic paradigms use highly engaging multi-modal content and are particularly well suited for populations (e.g., young children) unable to make overt behavioral responses or perform a repetitive or predictable task. Naturalistic viewing paradigms employing movies or television shows enable repeatability and control over stimulus presentation while preserving greater ecological validity. While feasibility of rudimentary movie regressors have been shown with HD-DOT, the full complexity of movie viewing analyses that has been developed with fMRI has not yet been translated to HD-DOT. To complement movie viewing, we will also advance spontaneous brain activity mapping methods. Functional connectivity analysis of the brain at rest has become a dominant approach to human brain mapping. However, traditional FC analysis rests on bivariate correlation measures that are often susceptible to confounding physiological processes. In contrast, a multi-variate FC (MFC) analysis, developed in this grant for HD-DOT, has the potential to improve the spatial specificity, repeatability, and reliability of the network measures. The movie mapping will complement MFC by providing task localizers, a common feature of modern FC Studies.