Demonstration of TE-dependence of lateralization of structural connectomes

Motivation: Lateralization of structural connectomes has become a widespread measurement for investigating brain asymmetry alterations during brain development, maturation and aging in health and disease. However, it is still unclear whether the acquisition parameters affect the lateralization measurement of structural connectomes. Goal(s): We aim to investigate the TE-dependence of lateralization of structural connectomes. Approach: We compared the lateral indices of structural connectivity generated by diffusion MRI on five different TEs. Results: Diverse TE values in MRI scans lead to apparent differences in connectome lateralization, with more than 30% of connections of the same subject likely to have different lateral indices. Impact: This research reveals the unknown relationship between TE and connectome lateralization and discover the potential influence of TE in connectome’s anatomy analysis, helping improve the acquisition protocol of future neuroimaging studies, especially in brain asymmetry during development, maturation and aging.