A systematic review and coordinate-based meta-analysis of resting-state fMRI in athletes from open and closed skills sports

• Published in: Scientific reports Vol. 15; no. 1; pp. 21870 - 18
• Main Authors: Yan, Zhurui, Zhao, Mengqi, Qi, Yapeng, Chen, Antao, Mou, Hong, Jia, Xize, Wang, Yingying
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 01.07.2025; Nature Portfolio
• Subjects: 631/378/2632; 631/378/2649; 631/477; Activation likelihood estimation; Athletes; Brain - diagnostic imaging; Brain - physiology; Brain Mapping; Functional connectivity; Humanities and Social Sciences; Humans; Magnetic Resonance Imaging - methods; Meta-analysis; multidisciplinary; Rest - physiology; Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Seed-based d mapping; Sports - physiology; Functional connectivity; Seed-based d mapping; Activation likelihood estimation; Athletes; Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging; Meta-analysis
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-025-07192-2

The impact of prolonged sports training on athletes’ brain functional activity remains inconclusive. A systematic review and coordinate-based meta-analysis of resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-MRI) is necessary to identify functional connectivity changes induced by prolonged sports training. A total of 31 studies were included in the systematic review, and 18 studies with 347 non-athletes and 327 athletes were analyzed using coordinate-based activation likelihood estimation (ALE) and seed-based d mapping with permutation of subject images (SDM-PSI) meta-analysis. Results revealed that greater functional connectivity in athletes in the paracentral lobule, medial frontal gyrus, precuneus, inferior parietal lobule, supramarginal gyrus, inferior frontal gyrus, Rolandic operculum, and median cingulate/paracingulate gyri (DCG). Consistent changes in the DCG were identified in closed-skill sports athletes. Furthermore, increased regional functional activity was observed in the posterior cingulate gyrus, lingual gyrus and cerebellum. Both meta-analytical methods emphasize altered functional activity within the default mode network (DMN), cerebellar network (CBN), ventral attention network (VAN), visual network (VA), and sensorimotor network (SMN). These findings suggest that long-term sport training optimizes connection strength and efficiency in brain regions associated with visual attention, cognitive and motor control in athletes. Overall, our study reveals shared neural adaptations across different types of athletes, offering new insights into the effects of long-term specific training on brain functional connectivity in specialists.