TY - JOUR
T1 - Microvascular Dysfunction and Whole-Brain White Matter Connectivity
T2 - The Maastricht Study
AU - Beran, Magdalena
AU - van Gennip, April C. E.
AU - Stehouwer, Coen D. A.
AU - Jansen, Jacobus F. A.
AU - Gupta, Monideepa D.
AU - Houben, Alfons J. H. M.
AU - Berendschot, Tos T. J. M.
AU - Webers, Carroll A. B.
AU - Wesselius, Anke
AU - Schalkwijk, Casper G.
AU - Backes, Walter H.
AU - de Jong, Joost J. A.
AU - van der Kallen, Carla J. H.
AU - van Greevenbroek, Marleen M. J.
AU - Köhler, Sebastian
AU - Vonk, Jet M. J.
AU - Geerlings, Mirjam I.
AU - Schram, Miranda T.
AU - van Sloten, Thomas T.
N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2024 The Authors.
PY - 2024/2/6
Y1 - 2024/2/6
N2 - BACKGROUND: Microvascular dysfunction is involved in the development of various cerebral disorders. It may contribute to these disorders by disrupting white matter tracts and altering brain connectivity, but evidence is scarce. We investigated the association between multiple biomarkers of microvascular function and whole-brain white matter connectivity. METHODS AND RESULTS: Cross-sectional data from The Maastricht Study, a Dutch population-based cohort (n=4326; age, 59.4±8.6 years; 49.7% women). Measures of microvascular function included urinary albumin excretion, central retinal arteriolar and venular calibers, composite scores of flicker light–induced retinal arteriolar and venular dilation, and plasma biomarkers of endothelial dysfunction (intercellular adhesion molecule-1, vascular cell adhesion molecule-1, E-selectin, and von Willebrand factor). White matter connectivity was calculated from 3T diffusion magnetic resonance imaging to quantify the number (average node degree) and organization (characteristic path length, global efficiency, clustering coefficient, and local efficiency) of white matter connections. A higher plasma biomarkers of endothelial dysfunction composite score was associated with a longer characteristic path length (β per SD, 0.066 [95% CI, 0.017–0.114]) after adjustment for sociodemographic, lifestyle, and cardiovascular factors but not with any of the other white matter connectivity measures. After multiple comparison correction, this association was nonsignificant. None of the other microvascular function measures were associated with any of the connectivity measures. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that microvascular dysfunction as measured by indirect markers is not associated with whole-brain white matter connectivity.
AB - BACKGROUND: Microvascular dysfunction is involved in the development of various cerebral disorders. It may contribute to these disorders by disrupting white matter tracts and altering brain connectivity, but evidence is scarce. We investigated the association between multiple biomarkers of microvascular function and whole-brain white matter connectivity. METHODS AND RESULTS: Cross-sectional data from The Maastricht Study, a Dutch population-based cohort (n=4326; age, 59.4±8.6 years; 49.7% women). Measures of microvascular function included urinary albumin excretion, central retinal arteriolar and venular calibers, composite scores of flicker light–induced retinal arteriolar and venular dilation, and plasma biomarkers of endothelial dysfunction (intercellular adhesion molecule-1, vascular cell adhesion molecule-1, E-selectin, and von Willebrand factor). White matter connectivity was calculated from 3T diffusion magnetic resonance imaging to quantify the number (average node degree) and organization (characteristic path length, global efficiency, clustering coefficient, and local efficiency) of white matter connections. A higher plasma biomarkers of endothelial dysfunction composite score was associated with a longer characteristic path length (β per SD, 0.066 [95% CI, 0.017–0.114]) after adjustment for sociodemographic, lifestyle, and cardiovascular factors but not with any of the other white matter connectivity measures. After multiple comparison correction, this association was nonsignificant. None of the other microvascular function measures were associated with any of the connectivity measures. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that microvascular dysfunction as measured by indirect markers is not associated with whole-brain white matter connectivity.
KW - cerebral microcirculation
KW - cohort
KW - diffusion tensor imaging
KW - microvascular dysfunction
KW - white matter connectivity
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85184296380&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1161/JAHA.123.031573
DO - 10.1161/JAHA.123.031573
M3 - Article
C2 - 38240213
SN - 2047-9980
VL - 13
JO - Journal of the American Heart Association
JF - Journal of the American Heart Association
IS - 3
M1 - e9112
ER -