Assessing the Functional-Structural Reorganization of Connector Hubs in Temporal Lobe Epilepsy
- 1McGill University
Abstract
Recent years have seen a rise in investigations on the organizational principles of brain networks in healthy and pathological conditions. Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) is a compelling case as its focal pathology is accompanied by widespread network disruptions. However, how TLE affects functional connector hubs, regions supporting long-range and inter-network communication, remain poorly understood. We mapped connector hub reorganization in patients with TLE relative to healthy controls. Patients exhibited widespread connector hub reductions in the ipsilateral occipital, cingulate, precuneus and hippocampal regions as well as the bilateral pallidum. Hub reductions occurred alongside the emergence of new hubs in contralateral regions. We furthermore observed strong associations between hub reductions and microstructural alterations in subcortical structures and the hippocampus. These findings demonstrate widespread, asymmetric connector hub reorganization extending beyond the epileptogenic temporal lobe, revealing distinct patterns of network disruption and brain-wide reorganization.
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BibTeX
@misc{dascal2026assessing,
title = {{Assessing the Functional-Structural Reorganization of Connector Hubs in Temporal Lobe Epilepsy}},
author = {A. Dascal and E. Delaire and A. Ngo and J. Chen and E. Sahlas and T. Arafat and C. Abdallah and M. Mobarak-Abadi and J. Royer and R. Rodriguez-Cruces and N. Bernasconi and A. Bernasconi and R. Pana and K. Lee and B. Bernhardt and C. Grova},
howpublished = {bioRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.64898/2026.09.25.754445},
url = {https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.25.754445v1},
note = {CC BY-ND},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Assessing the Functional-Structural Reorganization of Connector Hubs in Temporal Lobe Epilepsy
AU - A. Dascal
AU - E. Delaire
AU - A. Ngo
AU - J. Chen
AU - E. Sahlas
AU - T. Arafat
AU - C. Abdallah
AU - M. Mobarak-Abadi
AU - J. Royer
AU - R. Rodriguez-Cruces
AU - N. Bernasconi
AU - A. Bernasconi
AU - R. Pana
AU - K. Lee
AU - B. Bernhardt
AU - C. Grova
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/25
PB - bioRxiv
DO - 10.64898/2026.09.25.754445
UR - https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.25.754445v1
AB - Recent years have seen a rise in investigations on the organizational principles of brain networks in healthy and pathological conditions. Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) is a compelling case as its focal pathology is accompanied by widespread network disruptions. However, how TLE affects functional connector hubs, regions supporting long-range and inter-network communication, remain poorly understood. We mapped connector hub reorganization in patients with TLE relative to healthy controls. Patients exhibited widespread connector hub reductions in the ipsilateral occipital, cingulate, precuneus and hippocampal regions as well as the bilateral pallidum. Hub reductions occurred alongside the emergence of new hubs in contralateral regions. We furthermore observed strong associations between hub reductions and microstructural alterations in subcortical structures and the hippocampus. These findings demonstrate widespread, asymmetric connector hub reorganization extending beyond the epileptogenic temporal lobe, revealing distinct patterns of network disruption and brain-wide reorganization.
ER -