只有少数研究评估了儿童和青春期两个半球之间的结构差异。然而,现有的研究结果缺乏一致性或仅限于特定的大脑区域,一个特定的大脑特征,或相对狭窄的年龄范围。这里,我们在迄今为止最大的儿科样本之一(n=4265)中调查了大脑不对称与年龄和性别之间的关联,1-18岁,在参加ENIGMA(通过Meta分析增强神经影像学遗传学)联盟的69个站点进行扫描。我们的研究表明,儿童时期已经存在显著的大脑不对称,但是它们的大小和方向取决于所检查的大脑区域和使用的形态测量(皮质体积或厚度,区域表面积,或皮质下体积)。关于年龄的影响,随着时间的推移,一些不对称性变得越来越弱,而另一些则变得越来越强;有时他们甚至颠倒了方向。关于性别差异,女性表现出显著不对称性的区域总数大于男性,而在男性中,表明显著不对称的测量总数更大(因为我们在每个皮质区域获得了一个以上的测量值)。男性的显着不对称程度也更大。然而,年龄效应和性别差异的效应大小都很小。一起来看,这些发现表明,大脑不对称是大脑固有的组织模式,表现在生命早期。总的来说,大脑不对称在整个童年和青春期似乎相对稳定,对男性和女性有不同的影响。
Only a small number of studies have assessed structural differences between the two hemispheres during childhood and adolescence. However, the existing findings lack consistency or are restricted to a particular brain region, a specific brain feature, or a relatively narrow age range. Here, we investigated associations between brain
asymmetry and age as well as sex in one of the largest pediatric samples to date (n = 4265), aged 1-18 years, scanned at 69 sites participating in the ENIGMA (Enhancing NeuroImaging Genetics through Meta-Analysis) consortium. Our study revealed that significant brain asymmetries already exist in childhood, but their magnitude and direction depend on the brain region examined and the morphometric measurement used (cortical volume or thickness, regional surface area, or subcortical volume). With respect to effects of age, some asymmetries became weaker over time while others became stronger; sometimes they even reversed direction. With respect to sex differences, the total number of regions exhibiting significant asymmetries was larger in females than in males, while the total number of measurements indicating significant asymmetries was larger in males (as we obtained more than one measurement per cortical region). The magnitude of the significant asymmetries was also greater in males. However, effect sizes for both age effects and sex differences were small. Taken together, these findings suggest that cerebral asymmetries are an inherent organizational pattern of the brain that manifests early in life. Overall, brain
asymmetry appears to be relatively stable throughout childhood and adolescence, with some differential effects in males and females.