Increased wiring cost during development is driven by long-range cortical, but not subcortical connections

Sex differences in resting-state functional networks in awake rats

Sex-related differences can be found in many brain disorders and psychophysiological traits, highlighting the importance to systematically understand the sex differences in brain function in humans and animal models. Despite emerging effort to address sex differences in behaviors and disease models in rodents, how brain-wide functional connectivity (FC) patterns differ between male and female rats remains largely unknown. Here, we used resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rsfMRI) to investigate regional and systems-level differences between female and male rats. Our data show that female rats display stronger hypothalamus connectivity, whereas male rats exhibit more prominent striatum-related connectivity. At the global scale, female rats demonstrate stronger segregation within the cortical and subcortical systems, while male rats display more prominent cortico-subcortical interactions, particularly between the cortex and striatum. Taken together, these data provide a comprehensive framework of sex differences in resting-state connectivity patterns in the awake rat brain, and offer a reference for studies aiming to reveal sex-related FC differences in different animal models of brain disorders.

Sex differences in resting-state functional networks in awake rats

Sex-related differences can be found in many brain disorders and psychophysiological traits, highlighting the importance to systematically understand the sex differences in brain function in humans and animal models. Despite emerging effort to address sex differences in behaviors and disease models in rodents, how brain-wide functional connectivity (FC) patterns differ between male and female rats remains largely unknown. Here we used resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rsfMRI) to investigate regional and systems-level differences between female and male rats. Our data show that female rats display stronger hypothalamus connectivity, whereas male rats exhibit more prominent striatum-related connectivity. At the global scale, female rats demonstrate stronger segregation within the cortical and subcortical systems, while male rats display more prominent cortico-subcortical interactions, particularly between the cortex and striatum. Taken together, these data provide a comprehensive framework of sex differences in resting-state connectivity patterns in the awake rat brain, and offer a reference for studies aiming to reveal sex-related FC differences in different animal models of brain disorders.

Alpha-mangostin attenuates the apoptotic pathway of abamectin in the fetal rats' brain by targeting pro-oxidant stimulus, catecholaminergic neurotransmitters, and transcriptional regulation of reelin and nestin

Abamectin, an avermectin member, can induce significant neurodegeneration symptoms in non-target organisms. However, its neurodevelopmental influences in mammals are unclear. Here, we focus on the antiapoptotic action of alpha-mangostin against the developmental neurotoxicity of abamectin with the possible involvement of reelin and nestin mRNA gene expression. Thirty-two pregnant rats were allocated to four groups (8 rats/group); control, alpha-mangostin (20 mg/kg/d), abamectin (0.5 mg/kg), and co-treated group (alpha-mangostin + abamectin). The animals have gavaged their doses during the gestation period. The fetotoxicity and many signs of growth retardation were observed in the abamectin-intoxicated rats. In comparison with the control group, abamectin prompted a significant elevation (p < 0.05) in the levels of malondialdehyde and nitric oxide, along with many symptoms of histopathological changes in the fetal cerebral cortex. However, the glutathione, dopamine, and serotonin concentrations together with the activities of glutathione-S-transferase, catalase, and superoxide dismutase were markedly decreased (p < 0.05) in the abamectin group. Moreover, abamectin remarkably upregulated (p < 0.05) the brain mRNA gene expression of reelin, nestin, and caspase-9 as well as the immunoreactivity of Bax and caspase-3 proteins in the cerebral cortex. It should be noted that alpha-mangostin mitigated the developmental neurotoxicity of abamectin to the normal range by recovering the levels of oxidant/antioxidant biomarkers, catecholamines; and apoptosis-related proteins with the involvement of reelin and nestin genes regulation. Those records revealed that the transcription regulation of reelin and nestin could be involved in the neuroprotective efficacy of alpha-mangostin, especially avermectin's developmental neurotoxicity.

Dissociable multi-scale patterns of development in personalized brain networks

The brain is organized into networks at multiple resolutions, or scales, yet studies of functional network development typically focus on a single scale. Here, we derive personalized functional networks across 29 scales in a large sample of youths (n = 693, ages 8-23 years) to identify multi-scale patterns of network re-organization related to neurocognitive development. We found that developmental shifts in inter-network coupling reflect and strengthen a functional hierarchy of cortical organization. Furthermore, we observed that scale-dependent effects were present in lower-order, unimodal networks, but not higher-order, transmodal networks. Finally, we found that network maturation had clear behavioral relevance: the development of coupling in unimodal and transmodal networks are dissociably related to the emergence of executive function. These results suggest that the development of functional brain networks align with and refine a hierarchy linked to cognition.