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Resting-State Brain in Cognitive Decline: Analysis of Brain Network Architecture Using Graph Theory

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XXVII Brazilian Congress on Biomedical Engineering (CBEB 2020)

Part of the book series: IFMBE Proceedings ((IFMBE,volume 83))

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Abstract

Resting-State functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) provides the assessment of some brain functions without tasks. Through rs-fMRI, it is possible to discover that the brain is organized in spatially distributed and interconnected brain regions. Studies suggest that aging and certain neurological or neuropsychiatric diseases affect brain connectivity, such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI). The general objective of this work is to investigate the evolution of the brain connectivity of individuals with healthy aging who convert to MCI and individuals with MCI who convert to AD, using rs-fMRI and analysis based on graph theory (GT). The processing was implemented in SPM12-MATLAB, and the analysis was performed in the CONN Toolbox. The GT metrics chosen to describe the main topological characteristics of the networks were: characteristic path length, global efficiency, local efficiency, clustering coefficient, and degree. Two main findings emerged from this study. When using GT metrics and analyzing healthy subjects converting to MCI, it was possible to observe a decrease in all GT metrics. Second, changes in GT metrics indicated a rupture in the functional connectivity when the cognitive decline occurs from healthy aging to MCI and from MCI to AD.

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Conflict of Interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest. This study was financed in part by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior—Brasil (CAPES)—Finance Code 001.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Medical Image Computing Laboratory (MEDICOM), Pontifícia Universidade Católica Do Rio Grande Do Sul (PUCRS), Porto Alegre, Brazil

    C. M. Maulaz, D. B. A. Mantovani & A. M. Marques da Silva

Authors
  1. C. M. Maulaz
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  2. D. B. A. Mantovani
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  3. A. M. Marques da Silva
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to C. M. Maulaz .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Electrical Engineering, Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo, Vitória, Brazil

    Teodiano Freire Bastos-Filho

  2. Department of Electrical Engineering, Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo, Vitória, Brazil

    Eliete Maria de Oliveira Caldeira

  3. Department of Electrical Engineering, Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo, Vitória, Brazil

    Anselmo Frizera-Neto

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Maulaz, C.M., Mantovani, D.B.A., Marques da Silva, A.M. (2022). Resting-State Brain in Cognitive Decline: Analysis of Brain Network Architecture Using Graph Theory. In: Bastos-Filho, T.F., de Oliveira Caldeira, E.M., Frizera-Neto, A. (eds) XXVII Brazilian Congress on Biomedical Engineering. CBEB 2020. IFMBE Proceedings, vol 83. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-70601-2_279

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-70601-2_279

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-70600-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-70601-2

  • eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)

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