DPABI harmonization: A toolbox for harmonizing multi-site brain imaging for big-data era.

Pooling multi-site datasets is the dominant trend to expand sample sizes in neuroimaging field, thereby enhancing statistical power and reproducibility of research findings. Nevertheless, the heterogeneity derived from aggregating data from various imaging sites obstructs efficient inferences. Our recent study thoroughly assessed methods for harmonizing multi-site resting-state fMRI images, accelerating progress and providing initial application instructions.

Structural connectome architecture shapes cortical atrophy in major depression disorder: a Chinese DIRECT consortium study.

Background: Cortical morphological alterations are evident in major depressive disorder (MDD), yet the underlying neurobiological processes that contribute to their characteristic spatial pattern remain unclear.

Methods: Large-scale, multi-site structural MRI data from a homogeneous Chinese cohort of 1,442 MDD patients and 1,277 healthy controls were used to calculate cortical morphological measures, which were compared between groups to determine cortical morphological alterations in MDD. A connectome constraint model was then used to examine whether structural connectome shapes MDD-related cortical morphological alterations, followed by performance of a network diffusion model to identify the epicenters.

Alterations in whole-brain white matter fiber networks in individuals with autism spectrum disorder after social skills training.

Social skills training (SST) has demonstrated efficacy in improving social deficits in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), but the underlying neural mechanisms remain unclear. This study investigated alterations in whole-brain white matter network topology after SST in ASD individuals and explored potential correlation with improvements in social interaction deficits. 38 ASD patients aged 12 - 30 years were recruited, including 19 who completed magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans and social responsiveness scale (SRS) assessments at both baseline and the endpoint of a 14-week SST (training group) and 19 age-, sex-, and IQ-matched patients who underwent MRI scans and SRS assessment at the same time points but did not receive SST (control group).

Subgenual anterior cingulate cortex functional connectivity abnormalities in depression: insights from brain imaging big data and precision-guided personalized intervention via transcranial magnetic stimulation.

The subgenual anterior cingulate cortex (sgACC) plays a central role in the pathophysiology of major depressive disorder (MDD). Its functional interactive profile with the left dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) is associated with transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) treatment outcomes. Previous research on sgACC functional connectivity (FC) in MDD has yielded inconsistent results, partly due to small sample sizes and limited statistical power.

Interpretable MRI-Based Deep Learning for Alzheimer's Risk and Progression.

Timely intervention for Alzheimer's disease (AD) requires early detection. The development of immunotherapies targeting amyloid-beta and tau underscores the need for accessible, time-efficient biomarkers for early diagnosis. Here, we directly applied our previously developed MRI-based deep learning model for AD to the large Chinese SILCODE cohort (722 participants, 1,105 brain MRI scans).

Crosswalk between HRSD and MADRS outcomes for rTMS in patients with depression.

Background: The Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD) and the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) are the two most common clinician-rated scales to quantify depression symptom change in repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) trials. However, it is unclear how the values of one scale translate to the other. Being able to translate scores between these scales could allow for aggregating rTMS clinical trial data.

The neural basis of dialectical thinking: recent advances and future prospects.

Dialectical thinking represents a cognitive style emphasizing change, contradiction, and holism. Cross-cultural studies reveal a stark contrast of dialectical thinking between East Asian and Western cultures, highlighting East Asians' superior ability to embrace contradictions and foresee transformation, fostering psychological resilience through emotional complexity and tolerance for contradictions. Despite its importance, the neural basis of dialectical thinking remains underexplored.

Functional connectivity changes in two cortico-hippocampal networks of Alzheimer's disease continuum and their correlations with cognition: A SILCODE study.

Background: The anterior-temporal (AT) and posterior-medial (PM) networks have been proposed to play pivotal roles in the memory processing associated with Alzheimer's disease (AD). Nevertheless, these two networks' intrinsic functional coupling characteristics are still vague in different AD stages.

Objective: To explore the functional connectivity (FC) alterations within and across the AT&PM networks in patients with dementia of the Alzheimer's type (DAT), mild cognitive impairment (MCI), subjective cognitive decline (SCD), and normal controls (NC).

Characterizing human spontaneous thoughts and its application in major depressive disorder.

Background: Spontaneous thought is a universal, complex, and heterogeneous cognitive activity that significantly impacts mental activity and strongly correlates with mental disorders.

Methods: Utilizing the think-aloud method, we captured spontaneous thoughts during rest from 38 diagnosed with depression, alongside 36 healthy controls and 137 healthy individuals. Through a comprehensive assessment of various dimensions of thought content, we compared thought content between individuals with depression and healthy controls, and between healthy women and men.

Transcriptomic decoding of regional cortical vulnerability to major depressive disorder.

Previous studies in small samples have identified inconsistent cortical abnormalities in major depressive disorder (MDD). Despite genetic influences on MDD and the brain, it is unclear how genetic risk for MDD is translated into spatially patterned cortical vulnerability. Here, we initially examined voxel-wise differences in cortical function and structure using the largest multi-modal MRI data from 1660 MDD patients and 1341 controls.

Moving beyond processing- and analysis-related variation in resting-state functional brain imaging.

When fields lack consensus standard methods and accessible ground truths, reproducibility can be more of an ideal than a reality. Such has been the case for functional neuroimaging, where there exists a sprawling space of tools and processing pipelines. We provide a critical evaluation of the impact of differences across five independently developed minimal preprocessing pipelines for functional magnetic resonance imaging.

Neuroanatomical dimensions in medication-free individuals with major depressive disorder and treatment response to SSRI antidepressant medications or placebo.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a heterogeneous clinical syndrome with widespread subtle neuroanatomical correlates. Our objective was to identify the neuroanatomical dimensions that characterize MDD and predict treatment response to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressants or placebo. In the COORDINATE-MDD consortium, raw MRI data were shared from international samples ( = 1,384) of medication-free individuals with first-episode and recurrent MDD ( = 685) in a current depressive episode of at least moderate severity, but not treatment-resistant depression, as well as healthy controls ( = 699).

Mapping the neural mechanism that distinguishes between holistic thinking and analytic thinking.

Holistic and analytic thinking are two distinct modes of thinking used to interpret the world with relative preferences varying across cultures. While most research on these thinking styles has focused on behavioral and cognitive aspects, a few studies have utilized functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to explore the correlations between brain metrics and self-reported scale scores. Other fMRI studies used single holistic and analytic thinking tasks.

Early-treatment cerebral blood flow change as a predictive biomarker of antidepressant treatment response: evidence from the EMBARC clinical trial.

Background: Major depressive disorder (MDD) is one of the most prevalent and disabling illnesses worldwide. Treatment of MDD typically relies on trial-and-error to find an effective approach. Identifying early response-related biomarkers that predict response to antidepressants would help clinicians to decide, as early as possible, whether a particular treatment might be suitable for a given patient.

The power of many brains: Catalyzing neuropsychiatric discovery through open neuroimaging data and large-scale collaboration.

Recent advances in open neuroimaging data are enhancing our comprehension of neuropsychiatric disorders. By pooling images from various cohorts, statistical power has increased, enabling the detection of subtle abnormalities and robust associations, and fostering new research methods. Global collaborations in imaging have furthered our knowledge of the neurobiological foundations of brain disorders and aided in imaging-based prediction for more targeted treatment.

A distinctive subcortical functional connectivity pattern linking negative affect and treatment outcome in major depressive disorder.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is associated with functional disturbances in subcortical regions. In this naturalistic prospective study (NCT03294525), we aimed to investigate relationships among subcortical functional connectivity (FC), mood symptom profiles and treatment outcome in MDD using multivariate methods. Medication-free participants with MDD (n = 135) underwent a functional magnetic resonance imaging scan at baseline and completed posttreatment clinical assessment after 8 weeks of antidepressant monotherapy.

Shared atypical spontaneous brain activity pattern in early onset schizophrenia and autism spectrum disorders: evidence from cortical surface-based analysis.

Schizophrenia and autism spectrum disorders (ASD) were considered as two neurodevelopmental disorders and had shared clinical features. we hypothesized that they have some common atypical brain functions and the purpose of this study was to explored the shared brain spontaneous activity strength alterations in early onset schizophrenia (EOS) and ASD in the children and adolescents with a multi-center large-sample study. A total of 171 EOS patients (aged 14.

Brain functional changes across mood states in bipolar disorder: from a large-scale network perspective.

Background: Exploring the neural basis related to different mood states is a critical issue for understanding the pathophysiology underlying mood switching in bipolar disorder (BD), but research has been scarce and inconsistent.

Methods: Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data were acquired from 162 patients with BD: 33 (hypo)manic, 64 euthymic, and 65 depressive, and 80 healthy controls (HCs). The differences of large-scale brain network functional connectivity (FC) between the four groups were compared and correlated with clinical characteristics.

Aberrant degree centrality profiles during rumination in major depressive disorder.

Rumination is closely linked to the onset and maintenance of major depressive disorder (MDD). Prior neuroimaging studies have identified the association between self-reported rumination trait and the functional coupling among a network of brain regions using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). However, little is known about the underlying neural circuitry mechanism during active rumination in MDD.