Masters Applied Projects

Project 7

Resting State fMRI of the Development of Cortical and Subcortical Motor Network Effective Connectivity

Student: Imelda Fragoza

Mentors: Dr. Varina Boerwinkle – Phoenix Children’s Hospital
Dr. Sydney Schaefer – SBHSE
Dr. Bradley Greger – SBHSE

YouTube Link: View the video link below before joining the zoom meeting

Zoom link: XXX

Time: 10am – 2pm

Abstract

The aim of this project was to establish a normative effective connectivity network for pediatrics over their development. Having a normal effective connectivity network to compare an abnormal brain with could potentially enable physicians to identify where a disorder may be occurring and how to treat it. Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) data was taken from 94 normal pediatric subjects ranging from the ages of five to seventeen. Each subject was analyzed individually on a subject base level and the grouped into age groups to be analyzed and compared to each other. The data from these scans was first analyzed on a subject base level using Dynamic causal modeling (DCM) analysis software. DCM is used to identify effective connectivity which are causal connections between neuronal systems. The data was then grouped into the following four age groups: 5-7, 8-10, 11-13, and 14-17. The data from groups was analyzed using a Parametric Empirical Bayes (PEB) framework to compare connectivity. The following covariates were used for the group analysis, ranked from predicted greatest influence to least: mean, age, handedness, and gender.