title: Population differences in brain morphology and microstructure among Chinese, Malay, and Indian neonates.
abstract: We studied a sample of 75 Chinese, 73 Malay, and 29 Indian healthy neonates taking part in a cohort study to examine potential differences in neonatal brain morphology and white matter microstructure as a function of ethnicity using both structural T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). We first examined the differences in global size and morphology of the brain among the three groups. We then constructed the T2-weighted MRI and DTI atlases and employed voxel-based analysis to investigate ethnic differences in morphological shape of the brain from the T2-weighted MRI, and white matter microstructure measured by fractional anisotropy derived from DTI. Compared with Malay neonates, the brains of Indian neonates' tended to be more elongated in anterior and posterior axis relative to the superior-inferior axis of the brain even though the total brain volume was similar among the three groups. Although most anatomical regions of the brain were similar among Chinese, Malay, and Indian neonates, there were anatomical variations in the spinal-cerebellar and cortical-striatal-thalamic neural circuits among the three populations. The population-related brain regions highlighted in our study are key anatomical substrates associated with sensorimotor functions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.
authors.forename: Jordan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bai
authors.forename: Muhammad Farid
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Abdul-Rahman
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rifkin-Graboi
authors.forename: Yap-Seng
authors.initials: YS
authors.lastname: Chong
authors.forename: Kenneth
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kwek
authors.forename: Seang-Mei
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Saw
authors.forename: Keith M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Godfrey
authors.forename: Peter D
authors.initials: PD
authors.lastname: Gluckman
authors.forename: Marielle V
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Fortier
authors.forename: Michael J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Meaney
authors.forename: Anqi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Qiu
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D044466:Asian People; D001921:Brain / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D056324:Diffusion Tensor Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D055815:Young Adult