Correspondence between altered functional and structural connectivity in the contralesional sensorimotor cortex after unilateral stroke in rats: a combined resting-state functional MRI and manganese-enhanced MRI study |
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| Authors: | Maurits PA van Meer Kajo van der Marel Willem M Otte Jan Willem Berkelbach van der Sprenkel Rick M Dijkhuizen |
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| Affiliation: | 1Biomedical MR Imaging and Spectroscopy Group, Image Sciences Institute, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands;2Department of Neurosurgery, Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands;3Department of Child Neurology, Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands |
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| Abstract: | This study shows a significant correlation between functional connectivity, as measured with resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and neuroanatomical connectivity, as measured with manganese-enhanced MRI, in rats at 10 weeks after unilateral stroke and in age-matched controls. Reduced interhemispheric functional connectivity between the contralesional primary motor cortex (M1) and ipsilesional sensorimotor cortical regions was accompanied by a decrease in transcallosal manganese transfer from contralesional M1 to the ipsilesional sensorimotor cortex after a large unilateral stroke. Increased intrahemispheric functional connectivity in the contralesional sensorimotor cortex was associated with locally enhanced neuroanatomical tracer uptake, which underlines the strong link between functional and structural reorganization of neuronal networks after stroke. |
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| Keywords: | brain plasticity functional connectivity manganese-enhanced MRI rats resting-state functional MRI stroke |
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