Author name cluster

Joel Park

Possible papers associated with this exact author name in Arrow. This page groups case-insensitive exact name matches and is not a full identity disambiguation profile.

13 papers

1 author row

YNICL Journal 2021 Journal Article

Uncinate fasciculus and its cortical terminals in aphasia after subcortical stroke: A multi-modal MRI study

Binlong Zhang
Jingling Chang
Joel Park
Zhongjian Tan
Lu Tang
Tianli Lyu
Yi Han
Ruiwen Fan

Aphasia, one of the most common cognitive impairments after stroke, is commonly considered to be a cortical deficit. However, many studies have reported cases of post subcortical stroke aphasia (PSSA). The pathology and recovery mechanism of PSSA remain unclear. This study aimed to investigate PSSA mechanism through a multimodal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) approach and a two-session study design (baseline and one month after treatment). Thirty-six PSSA patients and twenty-four matched healthy controls (HC) were included. All patients had subcortical infarctions involving left subcortical white matter for 1 to 6 months. The patients underwent MRI scan and Western Aphasia Battery (WAB) examination before and after one month's comprehensive treatment. Region-wise lesion-symptom mapping (RLSM), tractography, fractional anisotropy (FA), and amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (ALFF) analysis were conducted. After MRI preprocessing and exclusion, FA analysis included 35 patients pre-treatment and 16 patients post-treatment. ALFF analysis included 30 patients pre-treatment and 14 patients post-treatment. We found: 1) the amount of damage in the left uncinate fasciculus (UF) was associated with WAB aphasia quotient (AQ); 2) the left UF FA and left temporal pole (TP) ALFF were decreased and positively correlated with WAB-AQ, spontaneous speech, and naming in PSSA patients; and 3) PSSA patients showed increased left TP ALFF when their language ability recovered after treatment. The left TP ALFF change was positively correlated with AQ change. Our results demonstrate the importance of left UF and left TP (one of the cortical terminals of the left UF) in PSSA pathology and recovery. These results may further provide support for the disconnection theory in the mechanism of PSSA.

Details DOI

YNICL Journal 2020 Journal Article

Corrigendum to “Multivariate resting-state functional connectivity predicts responses to real and sham acupuncture treatment in chronic low back pain” [Neuroimage Clinical 23 (2019) 101885]

Yiheng Tu
Ana Ortiz
Randy L. Gollub
Jin Cao
Jessica Gerber
Courtney Lang
Joel Park
Georgia Wilson

The authors regret to find several errors that do not influence the main findings or conclusions.Specifically, we have found that the values of pre-and post-treatment clinical sub-scores for 'physical function' and 'sleep' in Fig. 4 contain errors.The corrected Fig. 4 is shown below: As a result, the Results section 3.3 (Page 6, right column): "Real and sham acupuncture significantly reduced PROMIS sub-scores in

Details DOI

YNIMG Journal 2020 Journal Article

Impaired mesocorticolimbic connectivity underlies increased pain sensitivity in chronic low back pain

Siyi Yu
Wen Li
Wei Shen
Robert R. Edwards
Randy L. Gollub
Georgia Wilson
Joel Park
Ana Ortiz

Chronic low back pain (cLBP) is a prevalent disorder. A growing body of evidence linking the pathology of the reward network to chronic pain suggests that pain sensitization may contribute to cLBP chronification via disruptions of mesocortical and mesolimbic circuits in the reward system. Resting-state (RS) functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data was acquired from 90 patients with cLBP and 74 matched pain-free controls (HCs) at baseline and after a manipulation for back pain intensification. The ventral tegmental area (VTA) was chosen as a seed region to perform RS functional connectivity (FC) analysis. Baseline rsFC of both the mesocortical (between the VTA and bilateral rostral anterior cingulate cortex (rACC)/and medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC)) and mesolimbic (between the VTA and bilateral hippocampus/parahippocampus) pathways was reduced in patients with cLBP (vs. HCs). In addition, patients exhibiting higher back pain intensity (compared to the relatively lower back pain intensity condition) also showed increases in both mesocortical and mesolimbic connectivity, implicating these pathways in pain downregulation in cLBP. Mediation analysis further isolated the mesolimbic (VTA-hippocampus/parahippocampus) dysconnectivity as a neural mechanism mediating the association between mechanical pain sensitivity (indexed by P40 pressure) and cLBP severity. In sum, the current study demonstrates deficient mesocorticolimbic connectivity in cLBP, with mesolimbic dysconnectivity potentially mediating the contribution of pain sensitization to pain chronification. These reward network dysfunctions and purportedly, dopaminergic dysregulations, may help us to identify key brain targets of neuromodulation in the treatment of cLBP.

Details DOI

YNIMG Journal 2019 Journal Article

A neural mechanism of direct and observational conditioning for placebo and nocebo responses

Yiheng Tu
Joel Park
Seppo P. Ahlfors
Sheraz Khan
Natalia Egorova
Courtney Lang
Jin Cao
Jian Kong

Classical theories suggest placebo analgesia and nocebo hyperalgesia are based on expectation and conditioned experience. Whereas the neural mechanism of how expectation modulates placebo and nocebo effects during pain anticipation have been extensively studied, little is known about how experience may change brain networks to produce placebo and nocebo responses. We investigated the neural pathways of direct and observational conditioning for conscious and nonconscious conditioned placebo/nocebo effects using magnetoencephalography and a face visual cue conditioning model. We found that both direct and observational conditioning produced conscious conditioned placebo and nocebo effects and a nonconscious conditioned nocebo effect. Alpha band brain connectivity changes before and after conditioning could predict the magnitude of conditioned placebo and nocebo effects. Particularly, the connectivity between the rostral anterior cingulate cortex and middle temporal gyrus was an important indicator for the manipulation of placebo and nocebo effects. Our study suggests that conditioning can mediate our pain experience by encoding experience and modulating brain networks.

Details DOI

YNICL Journal 2019 Journal Article

Corrigendum to ‘Multivariate resting-state functional connectivity predicts responses to real and sham acupuncture treatment in chronic low back pain’ Neuroimage Clinical, 23, 2019, 101885

Yiheng Tu
Ana Ortiz
Randy L. Gollub
Jin Cao
Jessica Gerber
Courtney Lang
Joel Park
Georgia Wilson

Details DOI

YNIMG Journal 2019 Journal Article

Decreased structural connectivity and resting-state brain activity in the lateral occipital cortex is associated with social communication deficits in boys with autism spectrum disorder

Minyoung Jung
Yiheng Tu
Courtney Amanda Lang
Ana Ortiz
Joel Park
Kristen Jorgenson
Xue-Jun Kong
Jian Kong

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a prevalent neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by atypical social communication and repetitive behaviors. In this study, we applied a multimodal approach to investigate brain structural connectivity, resting state activity, and surface area, as well as their associations with the core symptoms of ASD. Data from forty boys with ASD (mean age, 11. 5 years; age range, 5. 5–19. 5) and forty boys with typical development (TD) (mean age, 12. 3; age range, 5. 8–19. 7) were extracted from the Autism Brain Imaging Data Exchange II (ABIDE II) for data analysis. We found significantly decreased structural connectivity, resting state brain activity, and surface area at the occipital cortex in boys with ASD compared to boys with TD. In addition, we found that resting state brain activity and surface area in the lateral occipital cortex was negatively correlated with communication scores in boys with ASD. Our results suggest that decreased structural connectivity and resting-state brain activity in the occipital cortex may impair the integration of verbal and non-verbal communication cues in boys with ASD, thereby impacting their social development.

Details DOI

YNICL Journal 2019 Journal Article

Mind-body exercise improves cognitive function and modulates the function and structure of the hippocampus and anterior cingulate cortex in patients with mild cognitive impairment

Jing Tao
Jiao Liu
Xiangli Chen
Rui Xia
Moyi Li
Maomao Huang
Shuzhen Li
Joel Park

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is a common neurological disorder. This study aims to investigate the modulation effect of Baduanjin (a popular mind-body exercise) on MCI. 69 patients were randomized to Baduanjin, brisk walking, or an education control group for 24 weeks. The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging scans were applied at baseline and at the end of the experiment. Compared to the brisk walking and control groups, the Baduanjin group experienced significantly increased MoCA scores. Amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (ALFF) analysis showed significantly decreased ALFF values in the right hippocampus (classic low-freqency band, 0.01-0.08 Hz) in the Baduanjin group compared to the brisk walking group and increased ALFF values in the bilateral anterior cingulate cortex (ACC, slow-5 band, 0.01-0.027 Hz) in the Baduanjin group compared to the control group. Further, ALFF value changes in the right hippocampus and bilateral ACC were significantly associated with corresponding MoCA score changes across all groups. We also found increased gray matter volume in the Baduanjin group in the right hippocampus compared to the brisk walking group and in the bilateral ACC compared to the control group. In addition, there was an increased resting state functional connectivity between the hippocampus and right angular gyrus in the Baduanjin group compared to the control group. Our results demonstrate the potential of Baduanjin for the treatment of MCI.

Details DOI

YNICL Journal 2019 Journal Article

Multivariate resting-state functional connectivity predicts responses to real and sham acupuncture treatment in chronic low back pain

Yiheng Tu
Ana Ortiz
Randy L. Gollub
Jin Cao
Jessica Gerber
Courtney Lang
Joel Park
Georgia Wilson

Despite the high prevalence and socioeconomic impact of chronic low back pain (cLBP), treatments for cLBP are often unsatisfactory, and effectiveness varies widely across patients. Recent neuroimaging studies have demonstrated abnormal resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) of the default mode, salience, central executive, and sensorimotor networks in chronic pain patients, but their role as predictors of treatment responsiveness has not yet been explored. In this study, we used machine learning approaches to test if pre-treatment rsFC can predict responses to both real and sham acupuncture treatments in cLBP patients. Fifty cLBP patients participated in 4 weeks of either real (N = 24, age = 39.0 ± 12.6, 16 females) or sham acupuncture (N = 26, age = 40.0 ± 13.7, 15 females) treatment in a single-blinded trial, and a resting-state fMRI scan prior to treatment was used in data analysis. Both real and sham acupuncture can produce significant pain reduction, with those receiving real treatment experiencing greater pain relief than those receiving sham treatment. We found that pre-treatment rsFC could predict symptom changes with up to 34% and 29% variances for real and sham treatment, respectively, and the rsFC characteristics that were significantly predictive for real and sham treatment differed. These results suggest a potential way to predict treatment responses and may facilitate the development of treatment plans that optimize time, cost, and available resources.

Details DOI

YNICL Journal 2019 Journal Article

Non-pharmacological and pharmacological interventions relieve insomnia symptoms by modulating a shared network: A controlled longitudinal study

Fen Feng
Siyi Yu
Zhengyan Wang
Jialin Wang
Joel Park
Georgia Wilson
Mou Deng
Youping Hu

BACKGROUND: Primary insomnia (PI) is one of the most common complaints among the general population. Both non-pharmacological and pharmacological therapies have proven effective in treating primary insomnia. However, the underlying mechanism of treatment remains unclear, and no studies have compared the underlying mechanisms of different treatments. METHODS: In this study, we investigated gray matter volume (GMV) and resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) changes following both pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments in patients with PI. A total of 67 PI patients were randomized into benzodiazepine treatment, cupping treatment, or a wait-list control group for 4 weeks. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), gray matter volume (GMV), and resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) of the hippocampus were measured at the beginning and end of the experiment. RESULTS: We found 1) significantly decreased PSQI scores in the cupping and benzodiazepine treatment groups compared to the control group with no significant differences between the two treatment groups; 2) significant GMV increases in the cupping group compared to the control group at the right hippocampus after 4 weeks of treatment; 3) significantly increased rsFC between the right hippocampus and left rostral anterior cingulate cortex/medial prefrontal cortex (rACC/mPFC) in the two treatment groups, which was significantly associated with PSQI score decreases. DISCUSSION: Our findings suggest that benzodiazepine and cupping may share a common mechanism to relieve the symptoms of patients with PI.

Details DOI

YNICL Journal 2019 Journal Article

Transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation at 1 Hz modulates locus coeruleus activity and resting state functional connectivity in patients with migraine: An fMRI study

Yue Zhang
Jiao Liu
Hui Li
Zhaoxian Yan
Xian Liu
Jin Cao
Joel Park
Georgia Wilson

BACKGROUND: Migraine is a common episodic neurological disorder. Literature has shown that transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) at 1 Hz can significantly relieve migraine symptoms. However, its underlying mechanism remains unclear. This study aims to investigate the neural pathways associated with taVNS treatment of migraine. METHODS: Twenty-nine patients with migraine were recruited from outpatient neurology clinics. Each patient attended two magnetic resonance imaging/functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI/fMRI) scan sessions separated by one week. Each session included a pre-stimulation resting state fMRI scan, fMRI scans during real or sham 1 Hz taVNS (with block design), and a post-stimulation resting state fMRI scan. RESULTS: Twenty-six patients were included in the final analyses. Real taVNS evoked fMRI signal decreases in brain areas belonging to the default mode network (DMN) and brain stem areas including the locus coeruleus (LC), raphe nuclei, parabrachial nucleus, and solitary nucleus. Sham taVNS evoked fMRI signal decreases in brain areas belonging to the DMN. Compared to sham taVNS, real taVNS produced greater deactivation at the bilateral LC. Resting state functional connectivity (rsFC) analysis showed that after taVNS, LC rsFC with the right temporoparietal junction and left secondary somatosensory cortex (S2) significantly increased compared to sham taVNS. The increased rsFC of the left LC-left S2 was significantly negatively associated with the frequency of migraine attacks during the preceding month. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that taVNS at 1 Hz can significantly modulate activity/connectivity of brain regions associated with the vagus nerve central pathway and pain modulation system, which may shed light on the neural mechanisms underlying taVNS treatment of migraine.

Details DOI

YNICL Journal 2019 Journal Article

Visual network alterations in brain functional connectivity in chronic low back pain: A resting state functional connectivity and machine learning study

Wei Shen
Yiheng Tu
Randy L. Gollub
Ana Ortiz
Vitaly Napadow
Siyi Yu
Georgia Wilson
Joel Park

Chronic low back pain (cLBP) is associated with widespread functional and structural changes in the brain. This study aims to investigate the resting state functional connectivity (rsFC) changes of visual networks in cLBP patients and the feasibility of distinguishing cLBP patients from healthy controls using machine learning methods. cLBP (n = 90) and control individuals (n = 74) were enrolled and underwent resting-state BOLD fMRI scans. Primary, dorsal, and ventral visual networks derived from independent component analysis were used as regions of interest to compare resting state functional connectivity changes between the cLBP patients and healthy controls. We then applied a support vector machine classifier to distinguish the cLBP patients and control individuals. These results were further verified in a new cohort of subjects. We found that the functional connectivity between the primary visual network and the somatosensory/motor areas were significantly enhanced in cLBP patients. The rsFC between the primary visual network and S1 was negatively associated with duration of cLBP. In addition, we found that the rsFC of the visual network could achieve a classification accuracy of 79.3% in distinguishing cLBP patients from HCs, and these results were further validated in an independent cohort of subjects (accuracy = 66.7%). Our results demonstrate significant changes in the rsFC of the visual networks in cLBP patients. We speculate these alterations may represent an adaptation/self-adjustment mechanism and cross-model interaction between the visual, somatosensory, motor, attention, and salient networks in response to cLBP. Elucidating the role of the visual networks in cLBP may shed light on the pathophysiology and development of the disorder.

Details DOI

YNICL Journal 2017 Journal Article

Anatomical brain difference of subthreshold depression in young and middle-aged individuals

Jing Li
Zengjian Wang
JiWon Hwang
Bingcong Zhao
Xinjing Yang
Suicheng Xin
Yu Wang
Huili Jiang

BACKGROUND: Subthreshold depression (StD) is associated with substantial functional impairments due to depressive symptoms that do not fully meet the diagnosis of major depressive disorder (MDD). Its high incidence in the general population and debilitating symptoms has recently put it at the forefront of mood disorder research. AIM: In this study we investigated common volumetric brain changes in both young and middle-aged StD patients. METHODS: = 76) underwent voxel-based morphometry (VBM). RESULTS: VBM analysis found that: 1) compared with healthy controls, StD patients showed decreased gray matter volume (GMV) in the bilateral globus pallidus and precentral gyrus, as well as increased GMV in the left thalamus and right rostral anterior cingulate cortex/medial prefrontal cortex; 2) there is a significant association between Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale scores and the bilateral globus pallidus (negative) and left thalamus (positive); 3) there is no interaction between age (young vs. middle-age) and group (StD vs. controls). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate significant VBM brain changes in both young and middle-aged individuals with StD. Individuals with StD, regardless of age, may share common neural characteristics.

Details DOI

YNICL Journal 2016 Journal Article

Repeated acupuncture treatments modulate amygdala resting state functional connectivity of depressive patients

Xiaoyun Wang
Zengjian Wang
Jian Liu
Jun Chen
Xian Liu
Guangning Nie
Joon-Seok Byun
Yilin Liang

As a widely-applied alternative therapy, acupuncture is gaining popularity in Western society. One challenge that remains, however, is incorporating it into mainstream medicine. One solution is to combine acupuncture with other conventional, mainstream treatments. In this study, we investigated the combination effect of acupuncture and the antidepressant fluoxetine, as well as its underlying mechanism using resting state functional connectivity (rsFC) in patients with major depressive disorders. Forty-six female depressed patients were randomized into a verum acupuncture plus fluoxetine or a sham acupuncture plus fluoxetine group for eight weeks. Resting-state fMRI data was collected before the first and last treatments. Results showed that compared with those in the sham acupuncture treatment, verum acupuncture treatment patients showed 1) greater clinical improvement as indicated by Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) and Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) scores; 2) increased rsFC between the left amygdala and subgenual anterior cingulate cortex (sgACC)/preguenual anterior cingulate cortex (pgACC); 3) increased rsFC between the right amygdala and left parahippocampus (Para)/putamen (Pu). The strength of the amygdala-sgACC/pgACC rsFC was positively associated with corresponding clinical improvement (as indicated by a negative correlation with MADRS and SDS scores). Our findings demonstrate the additive effect of acupuncture to antidepressant treatment and suggest that this effect may be achieved through the limbic system, especially the amygdala and the ACC.

Details DOI