The objective is to identify brain structures which mediate controlling influences on breathing and blood pressure during waking and quiet sleep, and thus to assist determination of the mechanisms of failure in the Sudden Infant Death syndrome (SIDS). Blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) functional magnetic resonance imaging will be used to visualize neural activity in 1) twenty-two patients with Congenital Central Hypoventilation Syndrome (CCHS), a disorder characterized by absence of central chemoreception, loss of breathing drive during sleep, impaired breathing responses to hyperthermia, and occasional waking hypotonia; 2) twnety-two Prader-Walli patients, who show diminished peripheral, but intact central chemoreception; and 3) twenty-two age- and gender-matched controls. Images will be acquired during baseline, and during hyperoxic, hypercapnic, hypoxic, inspiratory loading, hyperthermic, paced breathing and passive motion challenges, and during cold pressor application, while respiratory measures, heart rate and variability, non-invasive blood pressure, and an index of sympathetic outflow (sweating"""""""" are collected. Brain images from baseline conditions will be compare to images collected during experimental challenges in waking for all three groups, and in quiet sleep for CCHS and control subjects. The extent of activation and time course of changes in activated brain regions during challenges will be compared between groups. The timing of signal changes in different brain sites will be correlated with physiological changes accompanying the challengers. The studies have the potential to reveal the rain sites underlying breathing and blood pressure control, and the potential mechanisms of failure in SIDS.
| Harper, Ronald M; Kumar, Rajesh; Macey, Paul M et al. (2015) Impaired neural structure and function contributing to autonomic symptoms in congenital central hypoventilation syndrome. Front Neurosci 9:415 |
| Richardson, Heidi L; Macey, Paul M; Kumar, Rajesh et al. (2013) Neural and physiological responses to a cold pressor challenge in healthy adolescents. J Neurosci Res 91:1618-27 |
| Kumar, Rajesh; Chavez, Alexa S; Macey, Paul M et al. (2012) Altered global and regional brain mean diffusivity in patients with obstructive sleep apnea. J Neurosci Res 90:2043-52 |
| Kumar, Rajesh; Delshad, Sean; Woo, Mary A et al. (2012) Age-related regional brain T2-relaxation changes in healthy adults. J Magn Reson Imaging 35:300-8 |
| Kumar, Rajesh; Woo, Marlyn S; Macey, Paul M et al. (2012) Progressive gray matter changes in patients with congenital central hypoventilation syndrome. Pediatr Res 71:701-6 |
| Macey, Paul M; Wu, Paula; Kumar, Rajesh et al. (2012) Differential responses of the insular cortex gyri to autonomic challenges. Auton Neurosci 168:72-81 |
| Harper, Ronald M; Kumar, Rajesh; Macey, Paul M et al. (2012) Functional neuroanatomy and sleep-disordered breathing: implications for autonomic regulation. Anat Rec (Hoboken) 295:1385-95 |
| Kumar, Rajesh; Nguyen, Haidang D; Macey, Paul M et al. (2012) Regional brain axial and radial diffusivity changes during development. J Neurosci Res 90:346-55 |
| Kumar, Rajesh; Delshad, Sean; Macey, Paul M et al. (2011) Development of T2-relaxation values in regional brain sites during adolescence. Magn Reson Imaging 29:185-93 |
| Scorza, Fulvio A; Terra, Vera C; Arida, Ricardo M et al. (2011) Sudden death in a child with epilepsy: potential cerebellar mechanisms? Arq Neuropsiquiatr 69:707-10 |
Showing the most recent 10 out of 66 publications
