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Description
Purpose: Derived from diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), fractional anisotropy (FA) reflects WM tissue properties including swelling or damage to WM tissue. Evidence from binge drinking studies is exceedingly scant. However, a study that examined the impact of biological sex on FA reported greater FA in women who binge drink compared to control women, with men exhibiting the opposite effects. While recent studies on participants with alcohol use disorder (AUD) have observed similar sex-related effects, others have observed reduced FA. To address these gaps, the overall aim of this study is to examine FA in frontal tracts in a sample of young adults as a function of binge drinking. Participants: Eighty healthy, young adults (age = 22.13 ± 2.87) were classified as binge drinkers (BDs; 22 women) if they reported ≥ 5 binge episodes in the past six months (i.e. consuming 5+(men)/4+(women) alcoholic beverages within a two-hour period). Light drinkers (LDs; 20 women) reported ≤ 2 binge episodes in the past six months. Design/Methodology/Approach: DTI data were acquired on a 3T scanner at SDSU along 64 noncollinear directions with a simultaneous multi-slice diffusion sequence. A region of interest analysis of FA measured in 16 fiber tracts in frontal brain regions was performed and FA data were correlated with dispositional and drinking-related variables. Results: BDs had higher FA in the right anterior corona radiata, corticospinal tracts, and inferior fronto-occipital fasciculi relative to LDs. In the forceps minor and left cingulate region of the cingulum, higher FA was found in women BDs compared to LDs. Among women, FA was positively associated with measures of alcohol consumption, alcohol-related problems, craving, and motor impulsivity. Conclusions: Overall, higher FA was observed in BDs across a number of tracts. This finding was especially evident in women BDs as it correlated with higher levels of alcohol consumption. Higher FA may reflect increased neuroinflammatory signaling and regional neuroadaptations as a function of binge drinking, which aligns with findings from animal models. These results suggest that young women may be more vulnerable to the impact of binge drinking and are consistent with FA alterations reported in recent studies of AUD.
