Functional connectivity-based identification of subdivisions of the basal ganglia and thalamus using multilevel independent component analysis of resting state fMRI

• Published in: Human brain mapping Vol. 34; no. 6; pp. 1371 - 1385
• Main Authors: Kim, Dae-Jin, Park, Bumhee, Park, Hae-Jeong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hoboken Wiley Subscription Services, Inc., A Wiley Company 01.06.2013; Wiley-Liss; John Wiley & Sons, Inc
• Subjects: basal ganglia; Basal Ganglia - anatomy & histology; Basal Ganglia - physiology; Biological and medical sciences; Brain Mapping - methods; Electrodiagnosis. Electric activity recording; Female; functional connectivity; Humans; Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted - methods; independent component analysis; Investigative techniques, diagnostic techniques (general aspects); Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Male; Medical sciences; Nervous system; Neural Pathways - anatomy & histology; Neural Pathways - physiology; parcellation; Radiodiagnosis. Nmr imagery. Nmr spectrometry; Rest - physiology; thalamus; Thalamus - anatomy & histology; Thalamus - physiology; Young Adult; Nervous system diseases; independent component analysis; basal ganglia; functional connectivity; Radiodiagnosis; Central nervous system; Thalamus; parcellation; Basal ganglion; Nuclear magnetic resonance imaging; Encephalon
• ISSN: 1065-9471; 1097-0193; 1097-0193
• DOI: 10.1002/hbm.21517

This study aimed to identify subunits of the basal ganglia and thalamus and to investigate the functional connectivity among these anatomically segregated subdivisions and the cerebral cortex in healthy subjects. For this purpose, we introduced multilevel independent component analysis (ICA) of the resting‐state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). After applying ICA to the whole brain gray matter, we applied second‐level ICA restrictively to the basal ganglia and the thalamus area to identify discrete functional subunits of those regions. As a result, the basal ganglia and the thalamus were parcelled into 31 functional subdivisions according to their temporal activity patterns. The extracted parcels showed functional network connectivity between hemispheres, between subdivisions of the basal ganglia and thalamus, and between the extracted subdivisions and cerebral functional components. Grossly, these findings correspond to cortico‐striato‐thalamo‐cortical circuits in the brain. This study also showed the utility of multilevel ICA of resting state fMRI in brain network research. Hum Brain Mapp, 2013. © 2012 Wiley Perodicals, Inc.