Differential Impairment of Thalamocortical Structural Connectivity in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.

ABSTRACT:

Aims

The thalamus is a major relay station that modulates input from many cortical areas and a filter for sensory input and is involved in the pathophysiology of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). However, it still remains unclear whether all thalamocortical networks are affected or whether there is selective vulnerability. In this study, we aimed to study the selective vulnerability of different thalamocortical structural connections in ALS and to test the hypothesis of a specific impairment in motor-related thalamocortical connectivity.

Methods

Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) tractography was used to identify thalamocortical structural pathways in 38 individuals with ALS and 35 gender/age-matched control subjects. Thalami of both groups were parcellated into subregions ba

SUBMITTER: Zhang JQ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6492698 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature