@article {819, title = {Analytic programming with FMRI data: a quick-start guide for statisticians using R.}, journal = {PLoS One}, volume = {9}, year = {2014}, month = {2014}, pages = {e89470}, abstract = {

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a thriving field that plays an important role in medical imaging analysis, biological and neuroscience research and practice. This manuscript gives a didactic introduction to the statistical analysis of fMRI data using the R project, along with the relevant R code. The goal is to give statisticians who would like to pursue research in this area a quick tutorial for programming with fMRI data. References of relevant packages and papers are provided for those interested in more advanced analysis.

}, keywords = {Brain, brain mapping, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Programming Languages}, issn = {1932-6203}, doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0089470}, author = {Eloyan, Ani and Li, Shanshan and Muschelli, John and Pekar, Jim J and Mostofsky, Stewart H and Caffo, Brian S} } @article {831, title = {Disruption of functional organization within the primary motor cortex in children with autism.}, journal = {Hum Brain Mapp}, volume = {35}, year = {2014}, month = {2014 Feb}, pages = {567-80}, abstract = {

Accumulating evidence suggests that motor impairments are prevalent in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), relate to the social and communicative deficits at the core of the diagnosis and may reflect abnormal connectivity within brain networks underlying motor control and learning. Parcellation of resting-state functional connectivity data using spectral clustering approaches has been shown to be an effective means of visualizing functional organization within the brain but has most commonly been applied to explorations of normal brain function. This article presents a parcellation of a key area of the motor network, the primary motor cortex (M1), a key area of the motor control network, in adults, typically developing (TD) children and children with ASD and introduces methods for selecting the number of parcels, matching parcels across groups and testing group differences. The parcellation is based solely on patterns of connectivity between individual M1 voxels and all voxels outside of M1, and within all groups, a gross dorsomedial to ventrolateral organization emerged within M1 which was left-right symmetric. Although this gross organizational scheme was present in both groups of children, statistically significant group differences in the size and segregation of M1 parcels within regions of the motor homunculus corresponding to the upper and lower limbs were observed. Qualitative comparison of the M1 parcellation for children with ASD with that of younger and older TD children suggests that these organizational differences, with a lack of differentiation between lower limb/trunk regions and upper limb/hand regions, may be due, at least in part, to a delay in functional specialization within the motor cortex.

}, keywords = {Adult, Autistic Disorder, brain mapping, Child, Developmental Disabilities, Female, Humans, Image Processing, Computer-Assisted, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Middle Aged, Motor Cortex, Oxygen, Young Adult}, issn = {1097-0193}, doi = {10.1002/hbm.22188}, author = {Nebel, Mary Beth and Joel, Suresh E and Muschelli, John and Barber, Anita D and Caffo, Brian S and Pekar, James J and Mostofsky, Stewart H} } @article {822, title = {An evaluation of independent component analyses with an application to resting-state fMRI.}, journal = {Biometrics}, volume = {70}, year = {2014}, month = {2014 Mar}, pages = {224-36}, abstract = {

We examine differences between independent component analyses (ICAs) arising from different assumptions, measures of dependence, and starting points of the algorithms. ICA is a popular method with diverse applications including artifact removal in electrophysiology data, feature extraction in microarray data, and identifying brain networks in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). ICA can be viewed as a generalization of principal component analysis (PCA) that takes into account higher-order cross-correlations. Whereas the PCA solution is unique, there are many ICA methods-whose solutions may differ. Infomax, FastICA, and JADE are commonly applied to fMRI studies, with FastICA being arguably the most popular. Hastie and Tibshirani (2003) demonstrated that ProDenICA outperformed FastICA in simulations with two components. We introduce the application of ProDenICA to simulations with more components and to fMRI data. ProDenICA was more accurate in simulations, and we identified differences between biologically meaningful ICs from ProDenICA versus other methods in the fMRI analysis. ICA methods require nonconvex optimization, yet current practices do not recognize the importance of, nor adequately address sensitivity to, initial values. We found that local optima led to dramatically different estimates in both simulations and group ICA of fMRI, and we provide evidence that the global optimum from ProDenICA is the best estimate. We applied a modification of the Hungarian (Kuhn-Munkres) algorithm to match ICs from multiple estimates, thereby gaining novel insights into how brain networks vary in their sensitivity to initial values and ICA method.

}, keywords = {Adolescent, Algorithms, Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity, brain mapping, Child, Child, Preschool, Computer Simulation, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Models, Statistical, Principal Component Analysis}, issn = {1541-0420}, doi = {10.1111/biom.12111}, author = {Risk, Benjamin B and Matteson, David S and Ruppert, David and Eloyan, Ani and Caffo, Brian S} } @article {816, title = {Evidence for Specificity of Motor Impairments in Catching and Balance in Children with Autism.}, journal = {J Autism Dev Disord}, year = {2014}, month = {2014 Sep 18}, abstract = {

To evaluate evidence for motor impairment specificity in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Children completed performance-based assessment of motor functioning (Movement Assessment Battery for Children: MABC-2). Logistic regression models were used to predict group membership. In the models comparing typically developing and developmental disability (DD), all three MABC subscale scores were significantly negatively associated with having a DD. In the models comparing ADHD and ASD, catching and static balance items were associated with ASD group membership, with a 1 point decrease in performance increasing odds of ASD by 36 and 39~\%, respectively. Impairments in motor skills requiring the coupling of visual and temporal feedback to guide and adjust movement appear specifically deficient in ASD.

}, issn = {1573-3432}, doi = {10.1007/s10803-014-2229-0}, author = {Ament, Katarina and Mejia, Amanda and Buhlman, Rebecca and Erklin, Shannon and Caffo, Brian and Mostofsky, Stewart and Wodka, Ericka} } @article {817, title = {The neural correlates of learned motor acuity.}, journal = {J Neurophysiol}, volume = {112}, year = {2014}, month = {2014 Aug 15}, pages = {971-80}, abstract = {

We recently defined a component of motor skill learning as "motor acuity," quantified as a shift in the speed-accuracy trade-off function for a task. These shifts are primarily driven by reductions in movement variability. To determine the neural correlates of improvement in motor acuity, we devised a motor task compatible with magnetic resonance brain imaging that required subjects to make finely controlled wrist movements under visual guidance. Subjects were imaged on day 1 and day 5 while they performed this task and were trained outside the scanner on intervening days 2, 3, and 4. The potential confound of performance changes between days 1 and 5 was avoided by constraining movement time to a fixed duration. After training, subjects showed a marked increase in success rate and a reduction in trial-by-trial variability for the trained task but not for an untrained control task, without changes in mean trajectory. The decrease in variability for the trained task was associated with increased activation in contralateral primary motor and premotor cortical areas and in ipsilateral cerebellum. A global nonlocalizing multivariate analysis confirmed that learning was associated with increased overall brain activation. We suggest that motor acuity is acquired through increases in the number of neurons recruited in contralateral motor cortical areas and in ipsilateral cerebellum, which could reflect increased signal-to-noise ratio in motor output and improved state estimation for feedback corrections, respectively.

}, issn = {1522-1598}, doi = {10.1152/jn.00897.2013}, author = {Shmuelof, Lior and Yang, Juemin and Caffo, Brian and Mazzoni, Pietro and Krakauer, John W} } @article {815, title = {Neuroinflammation and brain atrophy in former NFL players: An in vivo multimodal imaging pilot study.}, journal = {Neurobiol Dis}, volume = {74C}, year = {2014}, month = {2014 Nov 7}, pages = {58-65}, abstract = {

There are growing concerns about potential delayed, neuropsychiatric consequences (e.g, cognitive decline, mood or anxiety disorders) of sports-related traumatic brain injury (TBI). Autopsy studies of brains from a limited number of former athletes have described characteristic, pathologic changes of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) leading to questions about the relationship between these pathologic and the neuropsychiatric disturbances seen in former athletes. Research in this area will depend on in vivo methods that characterize molecular changes in the brain, linking CTE and other sports-related pathologies with delayed emergence of neuropsychiatric symptoms. In this pilot project we studied former National Football League (NFL) players using new neuroimaging techniques and clinical measures of cognitive functioning. We hypothesized that former NFL players would show molecular and structural changes in medial temporal and parietal lobe structures as well as specific cognitive deficits, namely those of verbal learning and memory. We observed a significant increase in binding of [(11)C]DPA-713 to the translocator protein (TSPO), a marker of brain injury and repair, in several brain regions, such as the supramarginal gyrus and right amygdala, in 9 former NFL players compared to 9 age-matched, healthy controls. We also observed significant atrophy of the right hippocampus. Finally, we report that these same former players had varied performance on a test of verbal learning and memory, suggesting that these molecular and pathologic changes may play a role in cognitive decline. These results suggest that localized brain injury and repair, indicated by increased [(11)C]DPA-713 binding to TSPO, may be linked to history of NFL play. [(11)C]DPA-713 PET is a promising new tool that can be used in future study design to examine further the relationship between TSPO expression in brain injury and repair, selective regional brain atrophy, and the potential link to deficits in verbal learning and memory after NFL play.

}, issn = {1095-953X}, doi = {10.1016/j.nbd.2014.10.019}, author = {Coughlin, Jennifer M and Wang, Yuchuan and Munro, Cynthia A and Ma, Shuangchao and Yue, Chen and Chen, Shaojie and Airan, Raag and Kim, Pearl K and Adams, Ashley V and Garcia, Cinthya and Higgs, Cecilia and Sair, Haris I and Sawa, Akira and Smith, Gwenn and Lyketsos, Constantine G and Caffo, Brian and Kassiou, Michael and Guilarte, Tomas R and Pomper, Martin G} } @article {818, title = {Reduction of motion-related artifacts in resting state fMRI using aCompCor.}, journal = {Neuroimage}, volume = {96}, year = {2014}, month = {2014 Aug 1}, pages = {22-35}, abstract = {

Recent studies have illustrated that motion-related artifacts remain in resting-state fMRI (rs-fMRI) data even after common corrective processing procedures have been applied, but the extent to which head motion distorts the data may be modulated by the corrective approach taken. We compare two different methods for estimating nuisance signals from tissues not expected to exhibit BOLD fMRI signals of neuronal origin: 1) the more commonly used mean signal method and 2) the principal components analysis approach (aCompCor: Behzadi et al., 2007). Further, we investigate the added benefit of "scrubbing" (Power et al., 2012) following both methods. We demonstrate that the use of aCompCor removes motion artifacts more effectively than tissue-mean signal regression. In addition, inclusion of more components from anatomically defined regions of no interest better mitigates motion-related artifacts and improves the specificity of functional connectivity estimates. While scrubbing further attenuates motion-related artifacts when mean signals are used, scrubbing provides no additional benefit in terms of motion artifact reduction or connectivity specificity when using aCompCor.

}, issn = {1095-9572}, doi = {10.1016/j.neuroimage.2014.03.028}, author = {Muschelli, John and Nebel, Mary Beth and Caffo, Brian S and Barber, Anita D and Pekar, James J and Mostofsky, Stewart H} } @article {792, title = {Shrinkage prediction of seed-voxel brain connectivity using resting state fMRI.}, journal = {Neuroimage}, volume = {102 Pt 2}, year = {2014}, month = {2014 Nov 15}, pages = {938-44}, abstract = {

Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) is used to investigate synchronous activations in spatially distinct regions of the brain, which are thought to reflect functional systems supporting cognitive processes. Analyses are often performed using seed-based correlation analysis, allowing researchers to explore functional connectivity between data in a seed region and the rest of the brain. Using scan-rescan rs-fMRI data, we investigate how well the subject-specific seed-based correlation map from the second replication of the study can be predicted using data from the first replication. We show that one can dramatically improve prediction of subject-specific connectivity by borrowing strength from the group correlation map computed using all other subjects in the study. Even more surprisingly, we found that the group correlation map provided a better prediction of a subject{\textquoteright}s connectivity than the individual{\textquoteright}s own data. While further discussion and experimentation are required to understand how this can be used in practice, results indicate that shrinkage-based methods that borrow strength from the population mean should play a role in rs-fMRI data analysis.

}, issn = {1095-9572}, doi = {10.1016/j.neuroimage.2014.05.043}, author = {Shou, Haochang and Eloyan, Ani and Nebel, Mary Beth and Mejia, Amanda and Pekar, James J and Mostofsky, Stewart and Caffo, Brian and Lindquist, Martin A and Crainiceanu, Ciprian M} } @article {786, title = {Statistical normalization techniques for magnetic resonance imaging.}, journal = {Neuroimage Clin}, volume = {6}, year = {2014}, month = {2014}, pages = {9-19}, abstract = {

While computed tomography and other imaging techniques are measured in absolute units with physical meaning, magnetic resonance images are expressed in arbitrary units that are difficult to interpret and differ between study visits and subjects. Much work in the image processing literature on intensity normalization has focused on histogram matching and other histogram mapping techniques, with little emphasis on normalizing images to have biologically interpretable units. Furthermore, there are no formalized principles or goals for the crucial comparability of image intensities within and across subjects. To address this, we propose a set of criteria necessary for the normalization of images. We further propose simple and robust biologically motivated normalization techniques for multisequence brain imaging that have the same interpretation across acquisitions and satisfy the proposed criteria. We compare the performance of different normalization methods in thousands of images of patients with Alzheimer{\textquoteright}s disease, hundreds of patients with multiple sclerosis, and hundreds of healthy subjects obtained in several different studies at dozens of imaging centers.

}, issn = {2213-1582}, doi = {10.1016/j.nicl.2014.08.008}, author = {Shinohara, Russell T and Sweeney, Elizabeth M and Goldsmith, Jeff and Shiee, Navid and Mateen, Farrah J and Calabresi, Peter A and Jarso, Samson and Pham, Dzung L and Reich, Daniel S and Crainiceanu, Ciprian M} } @article {806, title = {Acute lesions that impair affective empathy.}, journal = {Brain}, volume = {136}, year = {2013}, month = {2013 Aug}, pages = {2539-49}, abstract = {

Functional imaging studies of healthy participants and previous lesion studies have provided evidence that empathy involves dissociable cognitive functions that rely on at least partially distinct neural networks that can be individually impaired by brain damage. These studies converge in support of the proposal that affective empathy--making inferences about how another person feels--engages at least the following areas: prefrontal cortex, orbitofrontal gyrus, anterior insula, anterior cingulate cortex, temporal pole, amygdala and temporoparietal junction. We hypothesized that right-sided lesions to any one of these structures, except temporoparietal junction, would cause impaired affective empathy (whereas bilateral damage to temporoparietal junction would be required to disrupt empathy). We studied 27 patients with acute right hemisphere ischaemic stroke and 24 neurologically intact inpatients on a test of affective empathy. Acute impairment of affective empathy was associated with infarcts in the hypothesized network, particularly temporal pole and anterior insula. All patients with impaired affective empathy were also impaired in comprehension of affective prosody, but many patients with impairments in prosodic comprehension had spared affective empathy. Patients with impaired affective empathy were older, but showed no difference in performance on tests of hemispatial neglect, volume of infarct or sex distribution compared with patients with intact affective empathy.

}, keywords = {Adult, Aged, Brain, Brain Ischemia, brain mapping, Cognition, Emotions, Empathy, Female, Functional Laterality, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Nerve Net, Social Perception, Stroke}, issn = {1460-2156}, doi = {10.1093/brain/awt177}, author = {Leigh, Richard and Oishi, Kenichi and Hsu, John and Lindquist, Martin and Gottesman, Rebecca F and Jarso, Samson and Crainiceanu, Ciprian and Mori, Susumu and Hillis, Argye E} } @article {823, title = {Comparison of total hospital-acquired bloodstream infections to central line-associated bloodstream infections and implications for outcome measures in infection control.}, journal = {Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol}, volume = {34}, year = {2013}, month = {2013 Sep}, pages = {984-6}, abstract = {

The validity of the central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) measure is compromised by subjectivity. We observed significant decreases in both CLABSIs and total hospital-acquired bloodstream infections (BSIs) following a CLABSI prevention intervention in adult intensive care units. Total hospital-acquired BSIs could be explored as an adjunct, objective CLABSI measure.

}, keywords = {Adult, Catheter-Related Infections, Catheterization, Central Venous, Cross Infection, Humans, Intensive Care Units, Longitudinal Studies, Tertiary Care Centers}, issn = {1559-6834}, doi = {10.1086/671730}, author = {Leekha, Surbhi and Li, Shanshan and Thom, Kerri A and Preas, Michael Anne and Caffo, Brian S and Morgan, Daniel J and Harris, Anthony D} } @article {829, title = {Developmental changes in within- and between-network connectivity between late childhood and adulthood.}, journal = {Neuropsychologia}, volume = {51}, year = {2013}, month = {2013 Jan}, pages = {156-67}, abstract = {

A number of behavioral changes occur between late childhood and adulthood, including maturation of social cognition, reward receptivity, impulsiveness, risk-taking and cognitive control. Although some of these abilities show linear improvements with age, some abilities may temporarily worsen, reflecting both the restructuring and/or strengthening of connections within some brain systems. The current study uses resting state functional connectivity to examine developmental differences between late childhood and adulthood in task positive (TP) regions, which play a role in cognitive control functions, and task negative (TN) regions, which play a role in social cognition, self-referential, and internally-directed thought. Within the TP network, developmental differences in connectivity were found with the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Within the TN network, developmental differences in connectivity were found with a broad area of the medial prefrontal cortex and the right parahippocampal gyrus. Connections between the two networks also showed significant developmental differences. Stronger anticorrelations were found in the TN maps of the adult group for the right anterior insula/inferior frontal gyrus, bilateral anterior inferior parietal lobule, bilateral superior parietal lobule and an anterior portion of the right posterior cingulate cortex. There was a significant brain-behavior relationship between the strength of anticorrelation in these regions and inhibitory control performance on two Go/No-go tasks suggesting that the development of anticorrelations between late childhood and adulthood supports mature inhibitory control. Overall, maturation of these networks occurred in specific regions which are associated with cognitive control of goal-directed behavior, including those involved in working memory, social cognition, and inhibitory control.

}, keywords = {Adolescent, Adult, Age Factors, Analysis of Variance, Brain, brain mapping, Child, Child Development, Cognition, Female, Humans, Image Processing, Computer-Assisted, Inhibition (Psychology), Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Middle Aged, Neural Pathways, Neuropsychological Tests, Oxygen, Reaction Time, Young Adult}, issn = {1873-3514}, doi = {10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2012.11.011}, author = {Barber, Anita D and Caffo, Brian S and Pekar, James J and Mostofsky, Stewart H} } @article {826, title = {Effects of working memory demand on neural mechanisms of motor response selection and control.}, journal = {J Cogn Neurosci}, volume = {25}, year = {2013}, month = {2013 Aug}, pages = {1235-48}, abstract = {

Inhibitory control commonly recruits a number of frontal regions: pre-supplementary motor area (pre-SMA), frontal eye fields (FEFs), and right-lateralized posterior inferior frontal gyrus (IFG), dorsal anterior insula (DAI), dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), and inferior frontal junction (IFJ). These regions may directly implement inhibitory motor control or may be more generally involved in executive control functions. Two go/no-go tasks were used to distinguish regions specifically recruited for inhibition from those that additionally show increased activity with working memory demand. The pre-SMA and IFG were recruited for inhibition in both tasks and did not have greater activation for working memory demand on no-go trials, consistent with a role in inhibitory control. Activation in pre-SMA also responded to response selection demand and was increased with working memory on go trials specifically. The bilateral FEF and right DAI were commonly active for no-go trials. The FEF was also recruited to a greater degree with working memory demand on go trials and may bias top-down information when stimulus-response mappings change. The DAI, additionally responded to increased working memory demand on both go and no-go trials and may be involved in accessing sustained task information, alerting, or autonomic changes when cognitive demands increase. DLPFC activation was consistent with a role in working memory retrieval on both go and no-go trials. The inferior frontal junction, on the other hand, had greater activation with working memory specifically for no-go trials and may detect salient stimuli when the task requires frequent updating of working memory representations.

}, keywords = {Adult, Brain, brain mapping, Choice Behavior, Female, Humans, Image Processing, Computer-Assisted, Inhibition (Psychology), Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Memory, Short-Term, Motor Activity, Neuropsychological Tests, Oxygen, Reaction Time, Young Adult}, issn = {1530-8898}, doi = {10.1162/jocn_a_00394}, author = {Barber, Anita D and Caffo, Brian S and Pekar, James J and Mostofsky, Stewart H} } @article {809, title = {In vivo identification of morphologic retinal abnormalities in neuromyelitis optica.}, journal = {Neurology}, volume = {80}, year = {2013}, month = {2013 Apr 9}, pages = {1406-14}, abstract = {

OBJECTIVE: To assess eyes with neuromyelitis optica (NMO) for morphologic retinal abnormalities utilizing high-definition optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging.

METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, 39 patients with NMO spectrum disorders and 39 age- and sex-matched healthy controls underwent spectral-domain OCT and visual function testing.

RESULTS: Microcystic macular edema (MME) of the inner nuclear layer (INL) was identified in 10 of 39 patients (26\%) and was exclusively found in eyes with a history of optic neuritis (ON). MME eyes had lower high- and low-contrast letter-acuity scores (100\%: p = 0.002; 2.5\%: p = 0.002; 1.25\%: p = 0.004), lower peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness (p = 0.04), lower macular RNFL thickness (p = 0.004), lower ganglion cell layer + inner plexiform layer (GCIP) thickness (p = 0.007), higher INL thickness (p < 0.001), and a greater number of ON episodes (p = 0.008) relative to non-MME eyes with a history of ON. After adjusting for history of multiple ON episodes, these findings remained significant for macular-RNFL thickness (p = 0.03), INL thickness (p < 0.001), and 100\% and 2.5\% contrast letter-acuity scores (p = 0.008 and p = 0.03, respectively). NMO spectrum eyes without ON history had lower macular RNFL thickness (p = 0.003), GCIP thickness (p = 0.002), outer nuclear layer thickness (p = 0.02), and low-contrast letter-acuity scores (2.5\%: p = 0.03; 1.25\%: p = 0.002) compared to healthy controls.

CONCLUSIONS: We have identified a pattern of retinal morphologic abnormalities in NMO that is associated with severe retinal axonal and neuronal loss and corresponding visual disability. MME may contribute to poor visual outcomes following NMO-associated ON or alternatively represent a marker of ON severity. Additionally, our results support that subclinical involvement of the anterior visual pathway may occur in NMO spectrum disorders.

}, keywords = {Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Aquaporin 4, Autoantibodies, Case-Control Studies, Chi-Square Distribution, Female, Humans, Macular Edema, Male, Middle Aged, Nerve Fibers, Neuromyelitis Optica, Retina, Tomography, Optical Coherence, Vision Tests, Visual Acuity, Young Adult}, issn = {1526-632X}, doi = {10.1212/WNL.0b013e31828c2f7a}, author = {Sotirchos, Elias S and Saidha, Shiv and Byraiah, Gita and Mealy, Maureen A and Ibrahim, Mohamed A and Sepah, Yasir Jamal and Newsome, Scott D and Ratchford, John N and Frohman, Elliot M and Balcer, Laura J and Crainiceanu, Ciprian M and Nguyen, Quan Dong and Levy, Michael and Calabresi, Peter A} } @article {802, title = {OASIS is Automated Statistical Inference for Segmentation, with applications to multiple sclerosis lesion segmentation in MRI.}, journal = {Neuroimage Clin}, volume = {2}, year = {2013}, month = {2013}, pages = {402-13}, abstract = {

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be used to detect lesions in the brains of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients and is essential for diagnosing the disease and monitoring its progression. In practice, lesion load is often quantified by either manual or semi-automated segmentation of MRI, which is time-consuming, costly, and associated with large inter- and intra-observer variability. We propose OASIS is Automated Statistical Inference for Segmentation (OASIS), an automated statistical method for segmenting MS lesions in MRI studies. We use logistic regression models incorporating multiple MRI modalities to estimate voxel-level probabilities of lesion presence. Intensity-normalized T1-weighted, T2-weighted, fluid-attenuated inversion recovery and proton density volumes from 131 MRI studies (98 MS subjects, 33 healthy subjects) with manual lesion segmentations were used to train and validate our model. Within this set, OASIS detected lesions with a partial area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for clinically relevant false positive rates of 1\% and below of 0.59\% (95\% CI; [0.50\%, 0.67\%]) at the voxel level. An experienced MS neuroradiologist compared these segmentations to those produced by LesionTOADS, an image segmentation software that provides segmentation of both lesions and normal brain structures. For lesions, OASIS out-performed LesionTOADS in 74\% (95\% CI: [65\%, 82\%]) of cases for the 98 MS subjects. To further validate the method, we applied OASIS to 169 MRI studies acquired at a separate center. The neuroradiologist again compared the OASIS segmentations to those from LesionTOADS. For lesions, OASIS ranked higher than LesionTOADS in 77\% (95\% CI: [71\%, 83\%]) of cases. For a randomly selected subset of 50 of these studies, one additional radiologist and one neurologist also scored the images. Within this set, the neuroradiologist ranked OASIS higher than LesionTOADS in 76\% (95\% CI: [64\%, 88\%]) of cases, the neurologist 66\% (95\% CI: [52\%, 78\%]) and the radiologist 52\% (95\% CI: [38\%, 66\%]). OASIS obtains the estimated probability for each voxel to be part of a lesion by weighting each imaging modality with coefficient weights. These coefficients are explicit, obtained using standard model fitting techniques, and can be reused in other imaging studies. This fully automated method allows sensitive and specific detection of lesion presence and may be rapidly applied to large collections of images.

}, issn = {2213-1582}, doi = {10.1016/j.nicl.2013.03.002}, author = {Sweeney, Elizabeth M and Shinohara, Russell T and Shiee, Navid and Mateen, Farrah J and Chudgar, Avni A and Cuzzocreo, Jennifer L and Calabresi, Peter A and Pham, Dzung L and Reich, Daniel S and Crainiceanu, Ciprian M} } @article {811, title = {Relationships between retinal axonal and neuronal measures and global central nervous system pathology in multiple sclerosis.}, journal = {JAMA Neurol}, volume = {70}, year = {2013}, month = {2013 Jan}, pages = {34-43}, abstract = {

OBJECTIVE: To determine the relationships between conventional and segmentation-derived optical coherence tomography (OCT) retinal layer thickness measures with intracranial volume (a surrogate of head size) and brain substructure volumes in multiple sclerosis (MS).

DESIGN: Cross-sectional study.

SETTING: Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland.

PARTICIPANTS: A total of 84 patients with MS and 24 healthy control subjects.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: High-definition spectral-domain OCT conventional and automated segmentation-derived discrete retinal layer thicknesses and 3-T magnetic resonance imaging brain substructure volumes.

RESULTS: Peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer as well as composite ganglion cell layer+inner plexiform layer thicknesses in the eyes of patients with MS without a history of optic neuritis were associated with cortical gray matter (P=.01 and P=.04, respectively) and caudate (P=.04 and P=.03, respectively) volumes. Inner nuclear layer thickness, also in eyes without a history of optic neuritis, was associated with fluid-attenuated inversion recovery lesion volume (P=.007) and inversely associated with normal-appearing white matter volume (P=.005) in relapsing-remitting MS. As intracranial volume was found to be related with several of the OCT measures in patients with MS and healthy control subjects and is already known to be associated with brain substructure volumes, all OCT-brain substructure relationships were adjusted for intracranial volume. CONCLUSIONS Retinal measures reflect global central nervous system pathology in multiple sclerosis, with thicknesses of discrete retinal layers each appearing to be associated with distinct central nervous system processes. Moreover, OCT measures appear to correlate with intracranial volume in patients with MS and healthy control subjects, an important unexpected factor unaccounted for in prior studies examining the relationships between peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer thickness and brain substructure volumes.

}, keywords = {Adult, Axons, Caudate Nucleus, Central Nervous System, Cerebral Cortex, Cross-Sectional Studies, Female, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Middle Aged, Multiple Sclerosis, Retina, Retinal Neurons, Tomography, Optical Coherence}, issn = {2168-6157}, doi = {10.1001/jamaneurol.2013.573}, author = {Saidha, Shiv and Sotirchos, Elias S and Oh, Jiwon and Syc, Stephanie B and Seigo, Michaela A and Shiee, Navid and Eckstein, Chistopher and Durbin, Mary K and Oakley, Jonathan D and Meyer, Scott A and Frohman, Teresa C and Newsome, Scott and Ratchford, John N and Balcer, Laura J and Pham, Dzung L and Crainiceanu, Ciprian M and Frohman, Elliot M and Reich, Daniel S and Calabresi, Peter A} } @article {827, title = {Analysis of group ICA-based connectivity measures from fMRI: application to Alzheimer{\textquoteright}s disease.}, journal = {PLoS One}, volume = {7}, year = {2012}, month = {2012}, pages = {e49340}, abstract = {

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a powerful tool for the in vivo study of the pathophysiology of brain disorders and disease. In this manuscript, we propose an analysis stream for fMRI functional connectivity data and apply it to a novel study of Alzheimer{\textquoteright}s disease. In the first stage, spatial independent component analysis is applied to group fMRI data to obtain common brain networks (spatial maps) and subject-specific mixing matrices (time courses). In the second stage, functional principal component analysis is utilized to decompose the mixing matrices into population-level eigenvectors and subject-specific loadings. Inference is performed using permutation-based exact logistic regression for matched pairs data. The method is applied to a novel fMRI study of Alzheimer{\textquoteright}s disease risk under a verbal paired associates task. We found empirical evidence of alternative ICA-based metrics of connectivity when comparing subjects evidencing mild cognitive impairment relative to carefully matched controls.

}, keywords = {Aged, Algorithms, Alzheimer Disease, Brain, brain mapping, Case-Control Studies, Female, Humans, Image Processing, Computer-Assisted, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Middle Aged, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Nerve Net, Principal Component Analysis, Task Performance and Analysis, Time Factors}, issn = {1932-6203}, doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0049340}, author = {Li, Shanshan and Eloyan, Ani and Joel, Suresh and Mostofsky, Stewart and Pekar, James and Bassett, Susan Spear and Caffo, Brian} } @article {pmid22472185, title = {Cadmium Exposure and All Cause and Cardiovascular Mortality in the US General Population}, journal = {Environ Health Perspect}, year = {2012}, month = {Apr}, author = {Tellez-Plaza, M. and Navas-Acien, A. and Menke, A. and Crainiceanu, C and Pastor-Barriuso, R. and Guallar, E.} } @article {nicole, title = {Distribution of cell-free and cell-associated HIV surrogates in the female genital tract following simulated vaginal intercourse}, journal = {Appeared online in the Journal of Infectious Diseases}, year = {2012}, author = {Louissaint, N and Nimmagadda, S and Bakshi, R and Du, Y and Macura, K and King, K and Wahl, R and Goldsmith, J and Caffo, B and Cao, Y and Anderson, J and Fuchs, E and Hendrix, C} } @article {mhssr2012, title = {Functional Generalized Additive Models}, journal = {J. of Computational and Graphical Statistics}, year = {2012}, pages = {to appear}, author = {McLean, M. and Hooker, G. and Staicu, A. M. and Scheipl, F. and Ruppert, D.} } @article {barber, title = {Motor "dexterity"?: evidence that left hemisphere lateralization of motor circuit connectivity is associated with better motor performance in children}, journal = {Cerebral Cortex}, year = {2012}, author = {Barber, A and Srinivasan, P and Joel, S. and Caffo, B and Pekar, J and Mostofsky, S} } @article {pmid22006982, title = {Optical coherence tomography segmentation reveals ganglion cell layer pathology after optic neuritis}, journal = {Brain}, volume = {135}, number = {Pt 2}, year = {2012}, month = {Feb}, pages = {521{\textendash}533}, author = {Syc, S. B. and Saidha, S. and Newsome, S and Ratchford, J and Levy, M. and Ford, E. and Crainiceanu, C and Durbin, M. K. and Oakley, J. D. and Meyer, S. A. and Frohman, E. M. and Calabresi, P} } @article {pmid22442041, title = {Predicting Breakdown of the Blood-Brain Barrier in Multiple Sclerosis without Contrast Agents}, journal = {AJNR Am J Neuroradiol}, year = {2012}, month = {Mar}, author = {Shinohara, R and Goldsmith, J and Mateen, F J and Crainiceanu, C and Reich, D S} } @article {710, title = {Relationships Between Retinal Axonal and Neuronal Measures and Global Central Nervous System Pathology in Multiple Sclerosis.}, journal = {Arch Neurol}, year = {2012}, month = {2012 Oct 1}, pages = {1-10}, abstract = {

OBJECTIVE To determine the relationships between conventional and segmentation-derived optical coherence tomography (OCT) retinal layer thickness measures with intracranial volume (a surrogate of head size) and brain substructure volumes in multiple sclerosis (MS). DESIGN Cross-sectional study. SETTING Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland. PARTICIPANTS A total of 84 patients with MS and 24 healthy control subjects. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES High-definition spectral-domain OCT conventional and automated segmentation-derived discrete retinal layer thicknesses and 3-T magnetic resonance imaging brain substructure volumes. RESULTS Peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer as well as composite ganglion cell layer\ +\ inner plexiform layer thicknesses in the eyes of patients with MS without a history of optic neuritis were associated with cortical gray matter (P\ =\ .01 and P\ =\ .04, respectively) and caudate (P\ =\ .04 and P\ =\ .03, respectively) volumes. Inner nuclear layer thickness, also in eyes without a history of optic neuritis, was associated with fluid-attenuated inversion recovery lesion volume (P\ =\ .007) and inversely associated with normal-appearing white matter volume (P\ =\ .005) in relapsing-remitting MS. As intracranial volume was found to be related with several of the OCT measures in patients with MS and healthy control subjects and is already known to be associated with brain substructure volumes, all OCT-brain substructure relationships were adjusted for intracranial volume. CONCLUSIONS Retinal measures reflect global central nervous system pathology in multiple sclerosis, with thicknesses of discrete retinal layers each appearing to be associated with distinct central nervous system processes. Moreover, OCT measures appear to correlate with intracranial volume in patients with MS and healthy control subjects, an important unexpected factor unaccounted for in prior studies examining the relationships between peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer thickness and brain substructure volumes.

}, issn = {1538-3687}, doi = {10.1001/archneurol.2013.573}, author = {Saidha, Shiv and Sotirchos, Elias S and Oh, Jiwon and Syc, Stephanie B and Seigo, Michaela A and Shiee, Navid and Eckstein, Chistopher and Durbin, Mary K and Oakley, Jonathan D and Meyer, Scott A and Frohman, Teresa C and Newsome, Scott and Ratchford, John N and Balcer, Laura J and Pham, Dzung L and Crainiceanu, Ciprian M and Frohman, Elliot M and Reich, Daniel S and Calabresi, Peter A} } @article {lewis2011differential, title = {Differential involvement of striato-and cerebello-thalamo-cortical pathways in tremor-and akinetic/rigid-predominant Parkinson{\textquoteright}s disease}, journal = {Neuroscience}, year = {2011}, publisher = {Elsevier}, author = {Lewis, M.M. and Du, G. and Sen, S. and Kawaguchi, A. and Truong, Y. and Lee, S. and Mailman, R.B. and Huang, X.} } @article {nicole2, title = {Distribution of Cell-free and Cell-associated HIV surrogates in the Colon Following Simulated Receptive Anal Intercourse in Healthy Men}, journal = {Journal of Acquired Immune Defficiency Syndromes, Basic and Translational Science}, volume = {59}, number = {1}, year = {2011}, pages = {10{\textendash}17}, author = {Louissaint, N and Nimmagadda, S and Fuchs, E and Bashki, R and Cao, Y and Lee, L and Goldsmith, J and Caffo, B and Du, Y and King, K and Menendez, F and Torbenson, M and Hendrix, C} } @article {reiss2011extracting, title = {Extracting information from functional connectivity maps via function-on-scalar regression}, journal = {NeuroImage}, volume = {56}, number = {1}, year = {2011}, pages = {140{\textendash}148}, author = {Reiss, P.T. and Mennes, M. and Petkova, E. and Huang, L. and Hoptman, M.J. and Biswal, B.B. and Colcombe, S.J. and Zuo, X.N. and Milham, M.P.} } @article {Yuste2011, title = {Imaging action potentials with calcium indicators.}, journal = {Cold Spring Harbor protocols}, volume = {2009}, number = {8}, year = {2011}, pages = {pdb.prot5316}, abstract = {

The understanding of neuronal circuits has been, and will continue to be, greatly advanced by the simultaneous imaging of action potentials in neuronal ensembles. This protocol describes "bulk" loading of brain slices with acetoxymethyl (AM) ester calcium indicators in order to monitor action potential activity in large populations of neurons simultaneously. The imaging of calcium influx into neurons provides an indirect, but accurate, measure of action potential generation in individual neurons. Single-cell resolution, and thus the easy identification of every active cell, is the key advantage of the technique.

}, url = {http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21807854}, author = {Yuste, Rafael and MacLean, Jason and Vogelstein, Joshua T and Paninski, Liam} } @article {AJT:AJT3735, title = {MELD Exceptions and Rates of Waiting List Outcomes}, journal = {American Journal of Transplantation}, volume = {11}, number = {11}, year = {2011}, pages = {2362{\textendash}2371}, publisher = {Blackwell Publishing Inc}, keywords = {Liver transplantation, MELD score, organ allocation}, issn = {1600-6143}, doi = {10.1111/j.1600-6143.2011.03735.x}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-6143.2011.03735.x}, author = {Massie, A and Caffo, B and Gentry, S and Hall, E and Axelrod, D and Lentine, K and Schnitzler, M and Gheorghian, A and Salvalaggio, P and Segev, D} } @article {Mondul2011e6, title = {Minimal detection bias in the inverse association between statin drug use and advanced prostate cancer risk: A simulation study}, journal = {Cancer Epidemiology, PMCID: PMC3142317}, volume = {35}, number = {4}, year = {2011}, pages = {e6 - e11}, keywords = {Prostate-specific antigen}, issn = {1877-7821}, doi = {DOI: 10.1016/j.canep.2010.11.005}, url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877782110002055}, author = {Alison M. Mondul and Caffo, B and Elizabeth A. Platz} } @article {hedlin2009covariate, title = {Covariate-adjusted nonparametric analysis of magnetic resonance images using Markov chain Monte Carlo}, journal = {Statistics and its Interface, NIHMSID: 210823}, volume = {3}, number = {1}, year = {2010}, pages = {113-123}, author = {Hedlin, H and Caffo, B and Mahfoud, Z and Bassett, S} } @article {reiss2010fast, title = {Fast function-on-scalar regression with penalized basis expansions}, journal = {International Journal of Biostatistics}, volume = {6}, number = {1}, year = {2010}, pages = {article{\textendash}28}, author = {Reiss, P.T. and Huang, L. and Mennes, M.} } @article {Paninski2010, title = {A new look at state-space models for neural data.}, journal = {Journal of computational neuroscience}, volume = {29}, number = {1-2}, year = {2010}, pages = {107{\textendash}26}, abstract = {

State space methods have proven indispensable in neural data analysis. However, common methods for performing inference in state-space models with non-Gaussian observations rely on certain approximations which are not always accurate. Here we review direct optimization methods that avoid these approximations, but that nonetheless retain the computational efficiency of the approximate methods. We discuss a variety of examples, applying these direct optimization techniques to problems in spike train smoothing, stimulus decoding, parameter estimation, and inference of synaptic properties. Along the way, we point out connections to some related standard statistical methods, including spline smoothing and isotonic regression. Finally, we note that the computational methods reviewed here do not in fact depend on the state-space setting at all; instead, the key property we are exploiting involves the bandedness of certain matrices. We close by discussing some applications of this more general point of view, including Markov chain Monte Carlo methods for neural decoding and efficient estimation of spatially-varying firing rates.

}, keywords = {1 introduction, Action Potentials, Action Potentials: physiology, Animals, Computer Simulation, for inference in state-space, forward-backward methods, hidden markov model, models, neural coding, Neurological, Neurons, Neurons: physiology, Retinal Ganglion Cells, Retinal Ganglion Cells: physiology, state-space models, Statistical, Synapses, Synapses: physiology, tridiagonal matrix}, issn = {1573-6873}, doi = {10.1007/s10827-009-0179-x}, url = {http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19649698}, author = {Paninski, Liam and Ahmadian, Yashar and Gil, Daniel and Shinsuke, Ferreira and Rahnama, Kamiar and Michael, Rad and Vogelstein, Joshua T and Wu, Wei and Ferreira, Daniel Gil and Koyama, Shinsuke and {Rahnama Rad}, Kamiar and Vidne, Michael} } @article {segev2010perioperative, title = {Perioperative Mortality and Long-term Survival Following Live Kidney Donation}, journal = {Journal of the American Medical Association, NIHMSID: 316358}, volume = {303}, number = {10}, year = {2010}, pages = {959{\textendash}966}, publisher = {Am Med Assoc}, author = {Segev, D and Muzaale, A and Caffo, B and Mehta, S and Singer, A and Taranto, S and McBride, M and Montgomery, R} } @article {pmid20227508, title = {Two-stage decompositions for the analysis of functional connectivity for fMRI with application to Alzheimer{\textquoteright}s disease risk}, journal = {Neuroimage}, volume = {51}, number = {3}, year = {2010}, month = {Jul}, pages = {1140{\textendash}1149}, author = {Caffo, B and Crainiceanu, C and Verduzco, G. and Joel, S. and Mostofsky, S and Bassett, S and Pekar, J} } @article {MishchenkoPaninski09, title = {A Bayesian approach for inferring neuronal connectivity from calcium fluorescent imaging data}, journal = {Annals of Applied Statistics}, volume = {in press}, year = {2009}, author = {Mishchenko, Yuriy and Vogelstein, Joshua T and Paninski, Liam} } @article {mostofsky2009decreased, title = {Decreased connectivity and cerebellar activity in autism during motor task performance}, journal = {Brain, PMCID: PMC2732264}, volume = {132}, number = {9}, year = {2009}, pages = {2413{\textendash}2425}, publisher = {Oxford Univ Press}, author = {Mostofsky, S and Powell, S and Simmonds, D and Goldberg, M and Caffo, B and Pekar, J} } @article {yousem2009intelligence, title = {Intelligence and Medial Temporal Lobe Function in Older Adults: A Functional MR Imaging-Based Investigation}, journal = {American Journal of Neuroradiology, PMCID: PMC2843089}, volume = {30}, number = {8}, year = {2009}, pages = {1477{\textendash}1481}, publisher = {Am Soc Neuroradiology}, author = {Yousem, D and Yassa, M and Cristinzio, C and Kusevic, I and Mohamed, M and Caffo, B and Bassett, S} } @article {lindquistJASA09, title = {Logistic Regression with Brownian-like Predictors}, journal = {Journal of the American Statistical Association}, volume = {104}, year = {2009}, pages = {1575-1585}, author = {Lindquist, Martin A and McKeague, I.W.} } @article {redgrave2008differential, title = {Differential brain activation in anorexia nervosa to Fat and Thin words during a Stroop task}, journal = {NeuroReport, PMCID: PMC2891098}, volume = {19}, number = {12}, year = {2008}, pages = {1181{\textendash}1185}, author = {Redgrave, G and Bakker, A and Bello, N and Caffo, B and Coughlin, J and Guarda, A and McEntee, J and Pekar, J and Reinblatt, S and Verduzco, G. and Moran, T} } @article {guilarte2008dysregulation, title = {Dysregulation of Glutamate Carboxypeptidase II in Psychiatric Disease}, journal = {Schizophrenia Research, PMCID: PMC2287371}, volume = {99}, number = {1-3}, year = {2008}, pages = {324{\textendash}332}, publisher = {NIH Public Access}, author = {Guilarte, T and Hammoud, D and McGlothan, J and Caffo, B and Foss, C and Kozikowski, A and Pomper, M} } @article {stamatakis2008fasting, title = {Fasting Glycemia in Sleep Disordered Breathing: Lowering the Threshold on Oxyhemoglobin Desaturation}, journal = {Sleep, PMCID: PMC2491502}, volume = {31}, number = {7}, year = {2008}, pages = {1018{\textendash}1024}, publisher = {American Academy of Sleep Medicine}, author = {Stamatakis, K and Sanders, M and Caffo, B and Resnick, H and Gottlieb, D and Mehra, R and Punjabi, N} } @article {suskauer2008fmri, title = {fMRI of Intrasubject Variability in ADHD: Anomalous Premotor Activity With Prefrontal Compensation}, journal = {Journal of American Academy of Child \& Adolescent Psychiatry, NIHMSID: 71813}, volume = {47}, number = {10}, year = {2008}, pages = {1141{\textendash}1150}, author = {Suskauer, S and Simmonds, D and Caffo, B and Denckla, M and Pekar, J and Mostofsky, S} } @article {Vogelstein2007, title = {Dynamically reconfigurable silicon array of spiking neurons with conductance-based synapses.}, journal = {IEEE Transactions on Neural Networks}, volume = {18}, number = {1}, year = {2007}, pages = {253{\textendash}65}, publisher = {IEEE INSTITUTE OF ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONICS}, abstract = {

A mixed-signal very large scale integration (VLSI) chip for large scale emulation of spiking neural networks is presented. The chip contains 2400 silicon neurons with fully programmable and reconfigurable synaptic connectivity. Each neuron implements a discrete-time model of a single-compartment cell. The model allows for analog membrane dynamics and an arbitrary number of synaptic connections, each with tunable conductance and reversal potential. The array of silicon neurons functions as an address-event (AE) transceiver, with incoming and outgoing spikes communicated over an asynchronous event-driven digital bus. Address encoding and conflict resolution of spiking events are implemented via a randomized arbitration scheme that ensures balanced servicing of event requests across the array. Routing of events is implemented externally using dynamically programmable random-access memory that stores a postsynaptic address, the conductance, and the reversal potential of each synaptic connection. Here, we describe the silicon neuron circuits, present experimental data characterizing the 3 mm x 3 mm chip fabricated in 0.5-microm complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) technology, and demonstrate its utility by configuring the hardware to emulate a model of attractor dynamics and waves of neural activity during sleep in rat hippocampus.

}, issn = {10459227}, doi = {10.1109/TNN.2006.883007}, url = {http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17278476}, author = {Vogelstein, Joshua T and Mallik, Udayan and Vogelstein, Joshua T and Cauwenberghs, Gert} } @article {Gime:Crai:Barb:Jeno:Morg:semi:2006, title = {Semiparametric Regression in Capture\textndashrecapture Modeling}, journal = {Biometrics}, volume = {62}, number = {3}, year = {2006}, pages = {691{\textendash}698}, keywords = {auxiliary variables, Bayesian inference, Demographic rates, Environmental covariates, penalized splines, Winbugs}, author = {Gimenez, O. and Crainiceanu, C and Barbraud, C. and Jenouvrier, S. and Morgan, B. J. T.} } @article {pmid12941553, title = {Prevalence estimates for paratuberculosis adjusted for test variability using Bayesian analysis}, journal = {Prev. Vet. Med.}, volume = {60}, number = {4}, year = {2003}, month = {Sep}, pages = {281{\textendash}295}, author = {van Schaik, G. and Schukken, Y. H. and Crainiceanu, C and Muskens, J. and VanLeeuwen, J. A.} } @article {Greenspan1997, title = {Loss of FHIT expression in cervical carcinoma cell lines and primary tumors.}, journal = {Cancer Research}, volume = {57}, number = {21}, year = {1997}, pages = {4692{\textendash}4698}, publisher = {Department of Pathology, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA.}, abstract = {

Allelic deletions involving the short arm of chromosome 3 (3p13-21.1) have been observed frequently in cervical carcinomas. Recently, a candidate tumor suppressor gene, FHIT (Fragile Histidine Triad), was cloned and mapped to this chromosomal region (3p14.2). Abnormal FHIT transcripts have been identified previously in a variety of tumor cell lines and primary carcinomas, although their significance and the molecular mechanisms underlying their origin remain incompletely defined. In addition, integration of human papillomavirus DNA has been identified at a fragile site (FRA3B) within the FHIT locus in cervical cancer. These observations motivated us to evaluate FHIT mRNA and protein expression in cervical cancer cell lines, primary cervical carcinomas, and normal tissues. Transcripts of the expected size and sequence were the predominant species identified by reverse transcription (RT)-PCR in cultured keratinocytes and all normal tissues evaluated. In contrast, aberrant FHIT transcripts were readily demonstrated in 6 of 7 cervical carcinoma cell lines and 17 of 25 (68\%) primary cervical carcinomas. Northern blot analyses demonstrated reduced or absent FHIT expression in the cervical carcinoma cell lines, particularly those with aberrant RT-PCR products. Immunohistochemical analysis of Fhit expression in cervical tissues revealed strong immunoreactivity in nonneoplastic squamous and glandular cervical epithelium and marked reduction or loss of Fhit protein in 25 of 33 (76\%) primary cervical carcinomas. In those cervical cancer cell lines and primary tumors with exclusively aberrant or absent FHIT transcripts by RT-PCR, Fhit protein expression was always markedly reduced or absent. The frequent alterations in FHIT expression in many cervical carcinomas, but not in normal tissues, suggest that FHIT gene alterations may play an important role in cervical tumorigenesis.

}, url = {http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9354423}, author = {Greenspan, D L and Connolly, D C and Wu, R and Lei, R Y and Vogelstein, Joshua T and Kim, Y T and Mok, J E and Mu{\~n}oz, N and Bosch, F X and Shah, K and Cho, K R} }