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Zheng C, Cao Y, Li Y, Ye Z, Jia X, Li M, Yu Y, Liu W. Long-term table tennis training alters dynamic functional connectivity and white matter microstructure in large scale brain regions. Brain Res 2024; 1838:148889. [PMID: 38552934 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2024.148889] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2024] [Revised: 03/22/2024] [Accepted: 03/26/2024] [Indexed: 05/12/2024]
Abstract
Table tennis training has been employed as an exercise treatment to enhance cognitive brain functioning in patients with mental illnesses. However, research on its underlying mechanisms remains limited. In this study, we investigated functional and structural changes in large-scale brain regions between 20 table tennis players (TTPs) and 21 healthy controls (HCs) using 7-Tesla magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques. Compared with those of HCs, TTPs exhibited significantly greater fractional anisotropy (FA) and axial diffusivity (AD) values in multiple fiber tracts. We used the locations with the most significant structural changes in white matter as the seed areas and then compared static and dynamic functional connectivity (sFC and dFC). Brodmann 11, located in the orbitofrontal cortex, showed altered dFC values to large-scale brain regions, such as the occipital lobe, thalamus, and cerebellar hemispheres, in TTPs. Brodmann 48, located in the temporal lobe, showed altered dFC to the parietal lobe, frontal lobe, cerebellum, and occipital lobe. Furthermore, the AD values of the forceps minor (Fmi) and right anterior thalamic radiations (ATRs) were negatively correlated with useful field of view (UFOV) test scores in TTPs. Our results suggest that table tennis players exhibit a unique pattern of dynamic neural activity, this provides evidence for potential mechanisms through which table tennis interventions can enhance attention and other cognitive functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chanying Zheng
- Interdisciplinary Institute of Neuroscience and Technology, Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China; Key Laboratory for Biomedical Engineering of Ministry of Education, College of Biomedical Engineering and Instrument Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Yuting Cao
- Key Laboratory for Biomedical Engineering of Ministry of Education, College of Biomedical Engineering and Instrument Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Yuyang Li
- Interdisciplinary Institute of Neuroscience and Technology, Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | | | - Xize Jia
- School of Psychology, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, China
| | - Mengting Li
- School of Psychology, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, China.
| | - Yang Yu
- Psychiatry Department, the Second Affiliated Hospital Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Zhejiang, Hangzhou, China.
| | - Wenming Liu
- Department of Sport Science, College of Education, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.
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Geisler M, de la Cruz F, Makris N, Billah T, Zhang F, Rathi Y, O'Donnell LJ, Bouix S, Herbsleb M, Bär KJ, Kikinis Z, Weiss T. Brains of endurance athletes differ in the association areas but not in the primary areas. Psychophysiology 2024; 61:e14483. [PMID: 37950391 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.14483] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2023] [Revised: 10/06/2023] [Accepted: 10/11/2023] [Indexed: 11/12/2023]
Abstract
Regular participation in sports results in a series of physiological adaptations. However, little is known about the brain adaptations to physical activity. Here we aimed to investigate whether young endurance athletes and non-athletes differ in the gray and white matter of the brain and whether cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) is associated with these differences. We assessed the CRF, volumes of the gray and white matter of the brain using structural magnetic resonance imaging (sMRI), and brain white matter connections using diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) in 20 young male endurance athletes and 21 healthy non-athletes. While total brain volume was similar in both groups, the white matter volume was larger and the gray matter volume was smaller in the athletes compared to non-athletes. The reduction of gray matter was located in the association areas of the brain that are specialized in processing of sensory stimuli. In the microstructure analysis, significant group differences were found only in the association tracts, for example, the inferior occipito-frontal fascicle (IOFF) showing higher fractional anisotropy and lower radial diffusivity, indicating stronger myelination in this tract. Additionally, gray and white matter brain volumes, as well as association tracts correlated with CRF. No changes were observed in other brain areas or tracts. In summary, the brain signature of the endurance athlete is characterized by changes in the integration of sensory and motor information in the association areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Geisler
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Jena, Germany
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine, University Hospital Jena, Jena, Germany
| | | | - Nikos Makris
- Psychiatry Neuroimaging Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Somerville, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Tashrif Billah
- Psychiatry Neuroimaging Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Somerville, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Fan Zhang
- Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Somerville, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Yogesh Rathi
- Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Somerville, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Lauren J O'Donnell
- Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Somerville, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Sylvain Bouix
- Département de génie logiciel et TI, École de Technologie Supérieure, Université du Québec, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Marco Herbsleb
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine, University Hospital Jena, Jena, Germany
- Department of Sports Medicine and Health Promotion, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Jena, Germany
| | - Karl-Jürgen Bär
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine, University Hospital Jena, Jena, Germany
| | - Zora Kikinis
- Psychiatry Neuroimaging Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Somerville, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Thomas Weiss
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Jena, Germany
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Fukuie M, Yamabe T, Kimura R, Zhu DC, Ohyama-Byun K, Maeda S, Sugawara J, Tarumi T. Ascending aortic impedance in young endurance athletes: a time-resolved phase-contrast MRI study. J Appl Physiol (1985) 2024; 136:555-566. [PMID: 38234292 DOI: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00184.2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2023] [Revised: 01/10/2024] [Accepted: 01/10/2024] [Indexed: 01/19/2024] Open
Abstract
Ventricular-vascular coupling in endurance athletes remains incompletely understood. The purpose of this study was to determine the ascending aortic impedance in endurance athletes and explore its associations with traditional cardiovascular measurements. In 15 young male endurance runners and 19 young healthy men, time-resolved (CINE) two-dimensional (2-D) phase-contrast MRI quantified the ascending aortic flow while the pressure waveform was simultaneously collected via a generalized transfer function. The aortic impedance modulus and phase were calculated in the frequency domain while characteristic impedance (ZcF) was calculated by averaging moduli between the 4th and 8th heart rate (HR) harmonics. Stroke volume (SV), left ventricular (LV) morphometry, double product, aortic compliance, and total peripheral resistance (TPR) were also measured. Endurance athletes had higher SV, slower HR, greater LV end-diastolic volume and mass, and lower double product than sedentary participants (all P < 0.05). ZcF was significantly lower in athletes than in sedentary participants (73.3 ± 19.2 vs. 93.4 ± 19.0 dyn·s/cm5, P = 0.005). Furthermore, ZcF was negatively correlated with SV (r = -0.691) and aortic compliance (r = -0.601) but was positively correlated with double product (r = 0.445) and TPR (r = 0.458; all P < 0.05). Multivariate analysis revealed that ZcF was the strongest predictor of SV followed by TPR and HR (adjusted R2 = 0.788, P < 0.001). Therefore, our findings collectively suggest that LV afterload quantified by aortic ZcF is significantly lower in endurance athletes than in sedentary adults. The lower pulsatile LV afterload may contribute to greater SV in endurance athletes.NEW & NOTEWORTHY This is the first study to investigate aortic impedance with the noninvasive, simultaneous recordings of aortic pressure using SphygmoCor XCEL and flow using phase-contrast MRI. We found that the characteristic impedance (Zc) is significantly lower in endurance athletes than sedentary adults, is the strongest predictor of stroke volume (SV), and is inversely associated with aortic compliance. These findings suggest that aortic impedance is a key determinant of the ventricular-vascular coupling adapted to long-term training in endurance athletes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina Fukuie
- Human Informatics and Interaction Research Institute, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, Tsukuba, Japan
- Graduate School of Comprehensive Human Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Takayuki Yamabe
- Human Informatics and Interaction Research Institute, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, Tsukuba, Japan
- Graduate School of Comprehensive Human Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Ryota Kimura
- Graduate School of Comprehensive Human Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan
| | - David C Zhu
- Department of Radiology and Cognitive Imaging Research Center, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, United States
| | - Keigo Ohyama-Byun
- Graduate School of Comprehensive Human Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Seiji Maeda
- Graduate School of Comprehensive Human Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan
- Sports Physiology, School of Sport Sciences, The University of Waseda, Saitama, Japan
| | - Jun Sugawara
- Human Informatics and Interaction Research Institute, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, Tsukuba, Japan
- Graduate School of Comprehensive Human Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Takashi Tarumi
- Human Informatics and Interaction Research Institute, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, Tsukuba, Japan
- Graduate School of Comprehensive Human Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan
- Institute for Exercise and Environmental Medicine, Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas, Dallas, Texas, United States
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Ishihara T, Hashimoto S, Tamba N, Hyodo K, Matsuda T, Takagishi H. The links between physical activity and prosocial behavior: an fNIRS hyperscanning study. Cereb Cortex 2024; 34:bhad509. [PMID: 38183181 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhad509] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2023] [Revised: 11/22/2023] [Accepted: 11/22/2023] [Indexed: 01/07/2024] Open
Abstract
The prevalence of physically inactive lifestyles in modern society raises concerns about the potential association with poor brain health, particularly in the lateral prefrontal cortex, which is crucial for human prosocial behavior. Here, we explored the relationship between physical activity and prosocial behavior, focusing on potential neural markers, including intra-brain functional connectivity and inter-brain synchrony in the lateral prefrontal cortex. Forty participants, each paired with a stranger, completed two experimental conditions in a randomized order: (i) face-to-face and (ii) face stimulus (eye-to-eye contact with a face stimulus of a fictitious person displayed on the screen). Following each condition, participants played economic games with either their partner or an assumed person displayed on the screen. Neural activity in the lateral prefrontal cortex was recorded by functional near-infrared spectroscopy hyperscanning. Sparse multiset canonical correlation analysis showed that a physically inactive lifestyle was covaried with poorer reciprocity, greater trust, shorter decision-making time, and weaker intra-brain connectivity in the dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex and poorer inter-brain synchrony in the ventral lateral prefrontal cortex. These associations were observed exclusively in the face-to-face condition. Our findings suggest that a physically inactive lifestyle may alter human prosocial behavior by impairing adaptable prosocial decision-making in response to social factors through altered intra-brain functional connectivity and inter-brain synchrony.
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Affiliation(s)
- Toru Ishihara
- Graduate School of Human Development and Environment, Kobe University, 3-11 Tsurukabuto, Nada-ku, Kobe 657-8501, Japan
| | - Shinnosuke Hashimoto
- Graduate School of Human Development and Environment, Kobe University, 3-11 Tsurukabuto, Nada-ku, Kobe 657-8501, Japan
| | - Natsuki Tamba
- Faculty of Global Human Sciences, Kobe University, 3-11 Tsurukabuto, Nada-ku, Kobe 657-8501, Japan
| | - Kazuki Hyodo
- Physical Fitness Research Institute, Meiji Yasuda Life Foundation of Health and Welfare, Tobuki 150, Hachioji, Tokyo 192-0001, Japan
| | - Tetsuya Matsuda
- Tamagawa University Brain Science Institute, 6-1-1 Tamagawagakuen, Machida, Tokyo 194-8610, Japan
| | - Haruto Takagishi
- Tamagawa University Brain Science Institute, 6-1-1 Tamagawagakuen, Machida, Tokyo 194-8610, Japan
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