AUTHOR=Liu Hai , Lin Junyu , Shang Huifang 

TITLE=Voxel-based meta-analysis of gray matter and white matter changes in patients with spinocerebellar ataxia type 3

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Neurology

VOLUME=Volume 14 - 2023

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neurology/articles/10.3389/fneur.2023.1197822

DOI=10.3389/fneur.2023.1197822

ISSN=1664-2295

ABSTRACT=Purpose: Increasing neuroimaging studies have revealed gray matter (GM) and white matter (WM) anomalies of several brain regions by voxel-based morphometry (VBM) studies on patients with spinocerebellar ataxia type 3 (SCA3), however, the findings of previous studies on SCA3 patients by VBM studies remain inconsistent. The aim of the study was to identify consistent findings of gray matter (GM) and white matter (WM) changes of SCA3 patients by voxel-wise meta-analysis of whole-brain VBM studies.Methods: VBM studies comparing GM or WM changes of SCA3 patients and healthy controls (HCs) were retrieved from PubMed, Embase, Web of science, and Medline databases from January 1990 to February 2023. Manual searches were also conducted, and authors of studies were contacted for additional data. The coordinates with significant differences in GM and WM between SCA3 patients and HCs were extracted from each cluster. A meta-analysis was performed using anisotropic effect size-based signed differential mapping (AES-SDM) software.Results: A total of seven studies comprising 160 SCA3 patients and 165 HCs were included for the GM volume meta-analysis. Three studies comprising 57 SCA3 patients and 63 HCs were included for WM volume meta-analysis. Compared with HCs subjects, the reduced GM volume in SCA3 patients were found in the bilateral cerebellar hemispheres, cerebellar vermium, pons, right lingual gyrus, and right fusiform gyrus. The decreased WM volume was mainly concentrated in the bilateral cerebellar hemispheres, right corticospinal tract, middle cerebellar peduncles, cerebellar vermis, and left lingual gyrus. No increased density or volume of any brain structures was found. In the Jackknife sensitivity analysis, the results remained largely robust.Our meta-analysis clearly found the shrinkage of GM and WM volume in patients with SCA3. These lesions are involved in ataxia symptoms, abnormal eye movements, visual impairment, cognitive impairment, and affective disorders. The findings can explain the clinical manifestations and provide morphological basis of SCA3.