Transcriptional signatures of gray matter volume changes in mild traumatic brain injury

Abstract

Background

Neuroimaging studies have shown that patients with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) often exhibit changes in gray matter volume (GMV) in the brain. However, the results regarding these changes are inconsistent, and the underlying molecular mechanisms remain unclear. This study aimed to investigate GMV changes in mTBI patients and uncover the molecular mechanisms driving these alterations.

Methods

We conducted a neuroimaging meta-analysis on nine studies, involving 396 mTBI patients and 338 healthy controls, to identify consistent patterns of GMV changes. Additionally, we utilized the Allen Human Brain Atlas database to explore transcriptome-neuroimaging spatial correlations, identifying genes whose expression profiles are linked to GMV changes in mTBI patients. Enrichment analyses were also performed to determine the biological significance of the altered GMV-related genes.

Results

We observed consistent GMV increases in the bilateral middle cingulate/paracingulate gyri, right striatum, and right dorsolateral superior frontal gyrus, along with GMV decreases in the right insula and left lingual gyrus. Moreover, we found spatial associations between mTBI-related GMV changes and the expression of 977 genes, which were primarily enriched in specific biological processes, body tissues, and developmental time windows of the cerebral cortex.

Conclusion

Our findings improve the understanding of GMV abnormalities in mTBI patients and provide insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying these changes.