Identifying the epileptic network by linking interictal functional and structural connectivity

Abstract Over the last two decades, it has become increasingly clear that epilepsy is a network disorder. However, it is unclear whether these networks are established only during seizures or persist interictally. The goal of this study was to identify whether functional seizure networks exist inter...

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Main Authors: Ujwal Boddeti, Pue Farooque, Hari McGrath, Jennifer Percy, Omar Chishti, Robert B. Duckrow, Dennis Spencer, Hitten P. Zaveri, Alexander Ksendzovsky
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-03-01
Series:Scientific Reports
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-93978-3
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author Ujwal Boddeti
Pue Farooque
Hari McGrath
Jennifer Percy
Omar Chishti
Robert B. Duckrow
Dennis Spencer
Hitten P. Zaveri
Alexander Ksendzovsky
author_facet Ujwal Boddeti
Pue Farooque
Hari McGrath
Jennifer Percy
Omar Chishti
Robert B. Duckrow
Dennis Spencer
Hitten P. Zaveri
Alexander Ksendzovsky
author_sort Ujwal Boddeti
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Over the last two decades, it has become increasingly clear that epilepsy is a network disorder. However, it is unclear whether these networks are established only during seizures or persist interictally. The goal of this study was to identify whether functional seizure networks exist interictally and evaluate if there is a structural basis to these networks. We identified four patients with mesial temporal lobe epilepsy who underwent resective epilepsy surgery. We estimated functional and structural connectivity across intracranial electrode contacts involved in seizure onset, early spread, and uninvolved controls. Across all interictal epochs considered, we found higher functional and white matter connectivity across cortical regions involved in seizure spread. Additionally, we observed that the patient in our cohort with the best seizure outcome had the highest functional connectivity across seizure contacts. Functional connectivity findings suggest the presence of an interictal seizure network that parallels underlying structural connectivity. Furthermore, our findings suggest that disruption or ablation of highly connected seizure regions may be necessary to achieve improved post-operative seizure freedom.
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institution Kabale University
issn 2045-2322
language English
publishDate 2025-03-01
publisher Nature Portfolio
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series Scientific Reports
spelling doaj-art-e5eafb696b034efd8029096ecd955e192025-08-20T03:41:41ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-03-0115111110.1038/s41598-025-93978-3Identifying the epileptic network by linking interictal functional and structural connectivityUjwal Boddeti0Pue Farooque1Hari McGrath2Jennifer Percy3Omar Chishti4Robert B. Duckrow5Dennis Spencer6Hitten P. Zaveri7Alexander Ksendzovsky8Surgical Neurology Branch, NINDS, National Institutes of HealthDepartment of Neurosurgery, Yale UniversityDepartment of Neurosurgery, Yale UniversityDepartment of Neurosurgery, Yale UniversityDepartment of Neurosurgery, Yale UniversityDepartment of Neurosurgery, Yale UniversityDepartment of Neurosurgery, Yale UniversityDepartment of Neurology, Yale UniversityDepartment of Neurosurgery, University of Maryland School of MedicineAbstract Over the last two decades, it has become increasingly clear that epilepsy is a network disorder. However, it is unclear whether these networks are established only during seizures or persist interictally. The goal of this study was to identify whether functional seizure networks exist interictally and evaluate if there is a structural basis to these networks. We identified four patients with mesial temporal lobe epilepsy who underwent resective epilepsy surgery. We estimated functional and structural connectivity across intracranial electrode contacts involved in seizure onset, early spread, and uninvolved controls. Across all interictal epochs considered, we found higher functional and white matter connectivity across cortical regions involved in seizure spread. Additionally, we observed that the patient in our cohort with the best seizure outcome had the highest functional connectivity across seizure contacts. Functional connectivity findings suggest the presence of an interictal seizure network that parallels underlying structural connectivity. Furthermore, our findings suggest that disruption or ablation of highly connected seizure regions may be necessary to achieve improved post-operative seizure freedom.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-93978-3Diffusion tensor imagingEpilepsyFunctional connectivityInterictal connectivityMesial temporal lobe epilepsySeizure networks
spellingShingle Ujwal Boddeti
Pue Farooque
Hari McGrath
Jennifer Percy
Omar Chishti
Robert B. Duckrow
Dennis Spencer
Hitten P. Zaveri
Alexander Ksendzovsky
Identifying the epileptic network by linking interictal functional and structural connectivity
Scientific Reports
Diffusion tensor imaging
Epilepsy
Functional connectivity
Interictal connectivity
Mesial temporal lobe epilepsy
Seizure networks
title Identifying the epileptic network by linking interictal functional and structural connectivity
title_full Identifying the epileptic network by linking interictal functional and structural connectivity
title_fullStr Identifying the epileptic network by linking interictal functional and structural connectivity
title_full_unstemmed Identifying the epileptic network by linking interictal functional and structural connectivity
title_short Identifying the epileptic network by linking interictal functional and structural connectivity
title_sort identifying the epileptic network by linking interictal functional and structural connectivity
topic Diffusion tensor imaging
Epilepsy
Functional connectivity
Interictal connectivity
Mesial temporal lobe epilepsy
Seizure networks
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-93978-3
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