News — LOS ANGELES (March 17, 2025) -- Cedars-Sinai Investigators Create New Map of Brain Connections That Could Help Identify Babies With Developmental Delays, Guide Early Interventions">Cedars-Sinai Investigators Create New Map of Brain Connections That Could Help Identify Babies With Developmental Delays, Guide Early Interventions
The brains of babies delivered before 37 weeks’ gestation show weaker neural connections between key brain regions compared with those of full-term infants, a recent Cedars-Sinai study shows. The findings, reported in , suggest a potential marker for identifying infants at risk of developmental delays and for guiding early interventions.
Investigators created one of the first detailed maps of brain connections that are established in early life, focusing on the cerebellum. Located at the back of the head, this part of the brain was known for movement control; however, investigators now know it plays important roles in thought and social functioning as well. Investigators mapped how cerebellar connections mature within the cerebellum and between other brain areas during the first two years of life.
“As infants grow, we found a dramatic shift in the development of connections from motor and visual areas toward areas devoted to higher-order thought, and discovered that these connections were weaker in preterm than in full-term infants,” said , director of Neuroimaging Research and professor of Biomedical Sciences at Cedars-Sinai and senior author of the study.
The findings emphasize the cerebellum’s importance in early brain and behavioral development and improve scientific understanding of how early brain networks shape lifelong thinking and social skills, Gao said. This new understanding could have significant implications for neurodevelopmental assessments, clinical monitoring and targeted therapies.
_ _ _
In Case You Missed It:
_ _ _
Cedars-Sinai Expert: April is Parkinson's Disease Awareness Month
, vice chair of the Department of Neurology and director of the Division of Movement Disorders at Cedars-Sinai, studies early and advanced Parkinson's disease therapies and pioneered the use of deep brain stimulation in Parkinson's. He can discuss the patient experience, the latest therapies available to patients and ongoing clinical research. "Every patient experiences Parkinson’s disease in a unique way,” Tagliati said. “We are dedicated to understanding the disease and the different ways it might present itself.”
_ _ _
Cedars-Sinai Health Sciences University is advancing groundbreaking research and educating future leaders in medicine, biomedical sciences and allied health sciences. about the university.
Interested in interviewing a Cedars-Sinai expert? Email [email protected].
RSS