Wei Gao1, Hongtu Zhu2, John
Gilmore3, Weili Lin4
1Biomedical Engineering, UNC-Chapel
Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States; 2Biostatistics and
Biomedical Research Imaging Center, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill;
3Psychiatry, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill; 4Radiology
and Biomedical Research Imaging Center, University of North Carolina-Chapel
Hill
The
integrated action between functionally connected yet spatially distributed
regions to form different modules is central to normal brain function.
Numerous studies have been performed to detect possible brain modules
supporting specific functions including sensory processing and the higher
level cognition in adults. However, the formation of modular structures is
likely to be substantially influenced by both structural maturation and
learning, particularly during the early stage of brain development. In this
study, healthy pediatric subjects 2 wks to 2 yrs of age were recruited and
modularity analysis was performed to discern whole brain functional networks
so as to delineate the emerging and developing trajectory of brain modular
structures in a critical time period of early brain development.