Altered single-subject gray matter structural networks in social anxiety disorder

Previous fMRI studies have reported more random brain functional graph configurations in social anxiety disorder (SAD). However, it is still unclear whether the same configurations would occur in gray matter (GM) graphs. Structural MRI was performed on 49 patients with SAD and on 51 age- and gender-...

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Published in:Cerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. 1991) Vol. 33; no. 6; p. 3311
Main Authors: Chen, Ying, Yang, Xun, Zhang, Xun, Cao, Hengyi, Gong, Qiyong
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: United States 10.03.2023
Subjects:
Brain - diagnostic imaging
Case-Control Studies
Cerebral Cortex
Gray Matter - diagnostic imaging
Humans
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Phobia, Social - diagnostic imaging
symptom severity
psychoradiology
gray matter graphs
social anxiety disorder
ISSN:1460-2199, 1460-2199
Online Access:Get more information
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Summary:Previous fMRI studies have reported more random brain functional graph configurations in social anxiety disorder (SAD). However, it is still unclear whether the same configurations would occur in gray matter (GM) graphs. Structural MRI was performed on 49 patients with SAD and on 51 age- and gender-matched healthy controls (HC). Single-subject GM networks were obtained based on the areal similarities of GM, and network topological properties were analyzed using graph theory. Group differences in each topological metric were compared, and the structure-function coupling was examined. These network measures were further correlated with the clinical characteristics in the SAD group. Compared with controls, the SAD patients demonstrated globally decreased clustering coefficient and characteristic path length. Altered topological properties were found in the fronto-limbic and sensory processing systems. Altered metrics were associated with the illness duration of SAD. Compared with the HC group, the SAD group exhibited significantly decreased structural-functional decoupling. Furthermore, structural-functional decoupling was negatively correlated with the symptom severity in SAD. These findings highlight less-optimized topological configuration of the brain structural networks in SAD, which may provide insights into the neural mechanisms underlying the excessive fear and avoidance of social interactions in SAD.
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ISSN:1460-2199
1460-2199
DOI:10.1093/cercor/bhac498