Characterization of Cognitive Function in Survivors of Diffuse Gliomas Using Morphometric Correlation Networks

Chencai Wang; Nicholas S. Cho; Kathleen Van Dyk; Sabah Islam; Catalina Raymond; Justin Choi; Noriko Salamon; Whitney B. Pope; Albert Lai; Timothy F. Cloughesy; Phioanh L. Nghiemphu; Benjamin M. Ellingson

doi:10.3390/tomography8030116

Tomography (May 2022)

Characterization of Cognitive Function in Survivors of Diffuse Gliomas Using Morphometric Correlation Networks

Chencai Wang,
Nicholas S. Cho,
Kathleen Van Dyk,
Sabah Islam,
Catalina Raymond,
Justin Choi,
Noriko Salamon,
Whitney B. Pope,
Albert Lai,
Timothy F. Cloughesy,
Phioanh L. Nghiemphu,
Benjamin M. Ellingson

Affiliations

Chencai Wang: UCLA Brain Tumor Imaging Laboratory (BTIL), Center for Computer Vision and Imaging Biomarkers, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
Nicholas S. Cho: UCLA Brain Tumor Imaging Laboratory (BTIL), Center for Computer Vision and Imaging Biomarkers, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
Kathleen Van Dyk: Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, Semel Institute, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
Sabah Islam: UCLA Brain Tumor Imaging Laboratory (BTIL), Center for Computer Vision and Imaging Biomarkers, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
Catalina Raymond: UCLA Brain Tumor Imaging Laboratory (BTIL), Center for Computer Vision and Imaging Biomarkers, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
Justin Choi: Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
Noriko Salamon: Department of Radiological Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
Whitney B. Pope: Department of Radiological Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
Albert Lai: Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
Timothy F. Cloughesy: Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
Phioanh L. Nghiemphu: Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
Benjamin M. Ellingson: UCLA Brain Tumor Imaging Laboratory (BTIL), Center for Computer Vision and Imaging Biomarkers, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/tomography8030116
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 8, no. 3
pp. 1437 – 1452

Abstract

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This pilot study investigates structural alterations and their relationships with cognitive function in survivors of diffuse gliomas. Twenty-four survivors of diffuse gliomas (mean age 44.5 ± 11.5), from whom high-resolution T1-weighted images, neuropsychological tests, and self-report questionnaires were obtained, were analyzed. Patients were grouped by degree of cognitive impairment, and interregional correlations of cortical thickness were computed to generate morphometric correlation networks (MCNs). The results show that the cortical thickness of the right insula (R2 = 0.3025, p = 0.0054) was negatively associated with time since the last treatment, and the cortical thickness of the left superior temporal gyrus (R2 = 0.2839, p = 0.0107) was positively associated with cognitive performance. Multiple cortical regions in the default mode, salience, and language networks were identified as predominant nodes in the MCNs of survivors of diffuse gliomas. Compared to cognitively impaired patients, cognitively non-impaired patients tended to have higher network stability in network nodes removal analysis, especially when the fraction of removed nodes (among 66 nodes in total) exceeded 55%. These findings suggest that structural networks are altered in survivors of diffuse gliomas and that their cortical structures may also be adapting to support cognitive function during survivorship.

Published in Tomography

ISSN: 2379-1381 (Print); 2379-139X (Online)
Publisher: MDPI AG
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Medicine: Medicine (General): Computer applications to medicine. Medical informatics
Website: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/tomography

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