Cortical gyrification deficits in early-stage Parkinson's disease: the importance of bradykinesia
Timely, accurate diagnosis of Parkinson's disease is still challenging for clinicians. It is therefore crucial to identify novel biomarkers to better characterize the early stages of the disease. Here, we assessed cross-sectional brain structure differences between healthy control (HC) and Park...
| Autores: | , , , |
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| Tipo de recurso: | artículo |
| Estado: | Versión publicada |
| Fecha de publicación: | 2026 |
| País: | España |
| Institución: | Fundació Sant Joan de Déu |
| Repositorio: | r-FSJD. Repositorio Institucional de Producción Científica de la Fundació Sant Joan de Déu |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:dnet:r-fsjd______::93a9ec965ef9dca5eea5795b9338d32e |
| Acceso en línea: | https://fsjd.fundanetsuite.com/Publicaciones/ProdCientif/PublicacionFrw.aspx?id=30197 |
| Access Level: | acceso abierto |
| Palabra clave: | cortical folding neuroimaging neuroanatomy neurology functional capacity |
| Sumario: | Timely, accurate diagnosis of Parkinson's disease is still challenging for clinicians. It is therefore crucial to identify novel biomarkers to better characterize the early stages of the disease. Here, we assessed cross-sectional brain structure differences between healthy control (HC) and Parkinson's disease participants. We also explored potential correlations between brain structure and distinctive Parkinson's disease clinical features. We analysed T1-weighted brain images from 381 Parkinson's disease patients, primarily in the early stages, and 139 HC participants obtained from the Parkinson's Progression Markers Initiative (PPMI) database. The image processing protocol included quantification of several brain structure parameters: grey matter volume (GMV), cortical thickness, gyrification index (GI), sulcal depth and surface ratio. Regarding clinical variables, we gathered the Schwab and England score (as a measure of functional capacity), along with four motor symptom scores (bradykinesia, tremor, rigidity and postural instability) derived from the Movement Disorder Society-Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS). We found that the left parahippocampal and lingual gyri showed less gyrification in Parkinson's disease patients compared to HC participants. In Parkinson's disease patients, we also identified GI deficits associated with bradykinesia, the main cardinal motor sign, in right parietal (mainly the supramarginal gyrus), temporal and occipital regions. In addition, higher GI and GMV in the occipital cortex were associated with greater functional capacity in Parkinson's disease. In conclusion, the gyrification deficits observed in early-stage Parkinson's disease patients point to the potential value of cortical folding as a biomarker in Parkinson's disease. Our results indicate that GI deficits are closely associated with bradykinesia and impaired functional capacity, possibly reflecting connectivity issues and/or compensatory mechanisms. Call & eacute;n et al. report that reduced gyrification in the supramarginal gyrus is associated with more severe bradykinesia in Parkinson's disease patients, whereas higher gyrification in occipital areas relates to greater functional capacity. These findings suggest that cortical folding is a promising marker for early-stage Parkinson's disease. |
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