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Effects of acute alcohol exposure and chronic alcohol use on neurite orientation dispersion and density imaging (NODDI) parameters

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Abstract

Rationale

Little is known about how acute and chronic alcohol exposure may alter the in vivo membrane properties of neurons.

Objectives

We employed neurite orientation dispersion and density imaging (NODDI) to examine acute and chronic effects of alcohol exposure on neurite density.

Methods

Twenty-one healthy social drinkers (CON) and thirteen nontreatment-seeking individuals with alcohol use disorder (AUD) underwent a baseline multi-shell diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) scan. A subset (10 CON, 5 AUD) received dMRI during intravenous infusions of saline and alcohol during dMRI. NODDI parametric images included orientation dispersion (OD), isotropic volume fraction (ISOVF), and corrected intracellular volume fraction (cICVF). Diffusion tensor imaging metrics of fractional anisotropy and mean, axial, and radial diffusivity (FA, MD, AD, RD) were also computed. Average parameter values were extracted from white matter (WM) tracts defined by the Johns Hopkins University atlas.

Results

There were group differences in FA, RD, MD, OD, and cICVF, primarily in the corpus callosum. Both saline and alcohol had effects on AD and cICVF in WM tracts proximal to the striatum, cingulate, and thalamus. This is the first work to indicate that acute fluid infusions may alter WM properties, which are conventionally believed to be insensitive to acute pharmacological challenges. It also suggests that the NODDI approach may be sensitive to transient changes in WM. The next steps should include determining if the effect on neurite density differs with solute or osmolality, or both, and translational studies to assess how alcohol and osmolality affect the efficiency of neurotransmission.

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Data availability

Deidentified data may be made available from the first author upon reasonable request.

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Funding

This work was supported by the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) R21AA016901 (KKY), NIAAA R01AA018354 (KKY), National Institute on Aging (NIA) R01 AG053993 (YCW), NIAAA AA07462 (T32, EJC), NIAAA AA025518 (F31, EJC), NIAAA P60AA007611, and the Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (NIH UL1TR001108, Indiana Clinical Research Center).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, Indiana University School of Medicine, 355 W. 16th St., GH Ste. 4100, Indianapolis, IN, 46202, USA

    Karmen K. Yoder, Sourajit M. Mustafi, Meredith E. Halcomb, Karen L. Hile & Yu-Chien Wu

  2. Center for Neuroimaging, Indiana Institute of Biomedical Imaging, Indiana University School of Medicine, 355 W. 16th St., GH Ste. 4100, Indianapolis, IN, 46202, USA

    Karmen K. Yoder, Evgeny J. Chumin, Sourajit M. Mustafi, Meredith E. Halcomb, Karen L. Hile & Yu-Chien Wu

  3. Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine, 320 W. 15th Street, Ste. 414, Indianapolis, IN, 46202, USA

    Karmen K. Yoder, Evgeny J. Chumin & Yu-Chien Wu

  4. Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, 1101 E 10th St, IN, 47405, Bloomington, USA

    Evgeny J. Chumin

  5. Indiana University Network Science Institute, Indiana University, 1015 E 11th St, Bloomington, IN, 47408, USA

    Evgeny J. Chumin

  6. Indiana University School of Medicine, 340 W. 10th St., Indianapolis, IN, 46202, USA

    Kelly A. Kolleck

  7. Department of Psychiatry, Indiana University School of Medicine, 355 W. 16th St., GH Ste. 4800, Indianapolis, IN, 46202, USA

    Martin H. Plawecki & Sean J. O’Connor

  8. Department of Neurology, Indiana University School of Medicine, 355 W. 16th St., GH Ste. 4700, Indianapolis, IN, 46202, USA

    Mario Dzemidzic

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  1. Karmen K. Yoder
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  2. Evgeny J. Chumin
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Correspondence to Karmen K. Yoder.

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Yoder, K.K., Chumin, E.J., Mustafi, S.M. et al. Effects of acute alcohol exposure and chronic alcohol use on neurite orientation dispersion and density imaging (NODDI) parameters. Psychopharmacology 240, 1465–1472 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-023-06380-0

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