Biology subjects

Kotoski, A.

Publications and source records attributed to Kotoski, A..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

Structural co-modulation: An individualized measure of inter-component interactions in source-based morphometry

Source-based morphometry (SBM) is a powerful multivariate method for identifying covarying structural brain networks. However, standard SBM provides only a single loading value per component for each subject, which limits the characterization of relationships between these components. We propose a novel technical co-modulation approach to derive an individualized, network-like measure of structural brain organization. This method transforms the subject-specific SBM loading vector into a symmetric co-modulation matrix by computing the vectors outer product. Each element of this matrix quantifies the pairwise interaction between structural components, creating a subject-specific fingerprint. Similar to functional connectivity that maps the temporal synchronization between networks, this matrix maps their joint structural prominence, reflecting how strongly two networks co-occur within an individual. To demonstrate the utility of this method, we applied it to structural MRI data from 210 patients with schizophrenia (SZ) and 195 healthy controls (HC) from the fBIRN psychosis dataset using functional networks as priors for SBM. We observed widespread reductions in structural co-modulation in the SZ group, particularly within and between visual, default-mode, and cognitive control networks. Furthermore, co-modulation patterns were significantly correlated with cognitive performance and clinical symptom severity in patients. Structural co-modulation provides a robust framework for quantifying individualized relationships between structural brain features, overcoming key limitations of standard SBM and offering a new avenue for integrating structural and functional brain analyses.

bioengineering↗

bioRxiv2025

Neural flexibility in metabolic demand dynamics reveals sex-specific differences and supports cognition in late childhood

Dynamic coordination of metabolic demand across brain networks supports emerging cognitive abilities and may drive overall cognitive development, yet how these dynamics vary by sex and relate to cognition in late childhood remains unclear. Using resting-state fMRI from 2,000 healthy 9-to 11-year-olds in the ABCD study, we applied time-resolved dynamic time warping to quantify amplitude mismatches, a proxy of relative energy demand across brain intrinsic networks. Clustering revealed three recurring states: convergent (globally balanced), divergent (imbalanced), and mixed (intermediate). Females spent engaged more with the flexible mixed state, whereas males lingered longer in convergent and divergent states. Across the cohort, better performance on cognitive flexibility, processing speed, and long-term memory tasks correlated with greater overall time in the mixed state and with higher transition rates, but with shorter dwell in any single state. These findings indicate that neural flexibility, rather than prolonged stability, supports cognition during late childhood and that sex differences in dynamic energy coordination emerge well before adolescence.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2025

Dynamic Inter-Modality Source Coupling Reveals Sex Differences in Children based on Brain Structural-Functional Network Connectivity: A Multimodal MRI Study of the ABCD Dataset

BackgroundSex differences in brain development are well-documented, yet the dynamic coupling between structure and function remains underexplored. We introduce dynamic inter-modality source coupling (dIMSC), extending our previous work to link structural MRI source-based morphometry (SBM) with dynamic functional network connectivity (dFNC). MethodsWe used data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study (ages 9-11) and combined SBM-derived gray matter sources with sliding-window dFNC. dIMSC was computed as the time-resolved cross-correlation between these modalities to quantify structure-function coupling strength. We evaluated sex differences in these profiles and their interaction with cognitive performance. ResultsSignificant sex-specific patterns emerged: males exhibited stronger positive coupling in sensorimotor regions (postcentral gyrus), while females showed stronger coupling in higher-order associative regions (inferior parietal lobule). These configurations were functionally distinct: higher positive coupling occupancy predicted better crystallized cognition (vocabulary) in females, whereas it predicted better fluid cognition (working memory) in males. ConclusionTogether, these findings suggest that males and females utilize distinct structural-functional configurations to support cognitive processing, males relying on a sensorimotor-anchored organization and females on an associative-anchored one. The dIMSC method advances our earlier work by enabling time-resolved analysis of brain coupling, providing a powerful framework for investigating sex-specific neurodevelopmental mechanisms.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2024

Inter-modality source coupling: a fully- automated whole-brain data-driven structure- function fingerprint shows replicable links to reading in a large-scale (N~8K) analysis

ObjectiveBoth structural and functional brain changes have been individually associated with developing cognitive processes such as reading. However, there is limited research about the combined influence of resting-state functional and structural magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI and sMRI) features in reading development, which could provide insights into the interplay between brain structure and function in shaping cognitive growth. We propose a method called inter-modality source coupling (IMSC) to study the coupling between the rs-fMRI and sMRI and its relationship to reading ability in school-age children. MethodsThis approach is applied to baseline data from four thousand participants (9-11 years) and replicated in a second group. Our analysis focused on the relationship of IMSC to overall reading score. ResultsOur findings indicate that higher reading ability was linked with increased function-structure coupling among higher-level cortical regions, particularly those links between the inferior parietal lobule and inferior frontal areas, and conversely, lower reading ability was associated with enhanced function-structure coupling among the fusiform and lingual gyrus. Our study found evidence of spatial correspondence between the data indicating an interplay between brain structure and function in our participants. ConclusionOur approach revealed a linked pattern of whole brain structure to the corresponding functional connectivity pattern that correlated with reading ability. This novel IMSC analysis method provides a new approach to study the multimodal relationship between brain function and structure. SignificanceThese findings have interesting implications for understanding the multimodal complexity underlying the development of the neural basis for reading ability in school-aged children.

bioengineering↗