Alterations in regional homogeneity and functional connectivity in the cerebellum of patients with sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

The purpose of this study was to examine the cerebellum's local and global functional characteristics in individuals with sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (sALS) and their correlation with clinical data. Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging was performed on 39 patients with sALS and on 23 healthy controls. Regional homogeneity (ReHo) in the cerebellum of all participants was analyzed, and the cerebellar regions with differences in ReHo were considered regions of interest (ROIs). In addition, the functional connectivity between the ROIs and other brain regions was analyzed. In patients with sALS, ReHo increased in parts of the posterior cerebellar lobe. Then, the two regions with increased ReHo of the cerebellum were used as seeds, and further analysis revealed that the connectivity of the right cerebellum to the right medial superior frontal gyrus, left lingual gyrus (calcarine sulcus), left precentral gyrus, left supplementary motor area, and right Crus II was significantly increased. The results demonstrate that resting-state functional connectivity changes in both motor and extra-motor regions of the cerebellum in patients with sALS, and that the cerebellum plays a pathophysiological role in sALS.