Elevated Brain Connectivity and Anisotropy after Two-week Intake of Chicken Essence
Poster No:
42
Submission Type:
Abstract Submission
Authors:
Yueh-hsun Lu1, Chun-Yi Lo2, Changwei Wu3
Institutions:
1Shuang-Ho Hospital, New Taipei City, N/A, 2Department of Biomedical Engineering, Chung Yuan Christian University, Taoyuan, Taoyuan, 3Taipei Medical University, New Taipei, Taiwan
First Author:
Co-Author(s):
Introduction:
Chicken essence (CE) is the concentrated liquid extract from whole chicken, widely used in traditional Chinese medicine for strengthening the musculoskeletal system, spleen, and stomach and for enhancing vigor[1,2]. Besides the effects in various organs, the effect of increasing short term memory in high stress subject also has been proved in previous study [3], but the underlying brain mechanisms remain elusive. The recent functional correlation tensor (FCT) describes functional information along white matter fibers by analyzing spatio-temporal correlations of resting-state fMRI signals (rs-fMRI). In this study, we aim to evaluate the effect on response speed and attention to the question by correlation of questionnaire and rs-fMRI.
Methods:
We investigated the effects of BRAND'S Essence of Chicken on brain function and structure using multimodal MRI (The project is supported by Suntory Inc. TMU JIRB: N202305052). A total of 72 healthy participants (33 males, 39 females, mean age 48 ± 12 years) were assessed before (pre-test) and two weeks after daily consumption of BRAND'S Essence of Chicken (post-test). Neuroimaging included rs-fMRI and 3D T1-weighted (T1w) images, along with neurobehavioral measures such as attention, memory, and reaction speed scores. The rs-fMRI data underwent typical preprocessing, including removal of initial time points, slice-timing correction, head motion correction, and Gaussian filtering. Data with motion exceeding thresholds (translation > 2 mm or rotation > 2°) were excluded. All images were aligned to the MNI152 atlas. Using a composite transformation matrix, the JHU ICBM-81-DTI atlas was registered to individual fMRI spaces for white matter segmentation. FCTs were calculated for each voxel to assess temporal correlations with neighbors, yielding a 3×3 matrix representing functional connectivity directionality. Fractional anisotropy (FA) values, derived from FCTs, were used to quantify the degree of directional connectivity in white matter tracts. Mean FA values were calculated for 38 cerebral white matter regions for both pre- and post-test data. Paired t-tests assessed changes in FA values and clinical indicators, with significance level at P < 0.05.
Results:
Analysis revealed significant improvements in clinical scores, including attention level, memory, reaction speed, and composite scores. Among these, reaction speed (P < 0.005) and attention level (P < 0.005) exhibited the most pronounced enhancements. In white matter, FA analysis showed significantly increasing in three regions: the right fornix (cres)/stria terminalis (FX/ST), superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF), and left anterior limb of the internal capsule (ALIC) (Figure 1). These regions demonstrated improved functional connectivity and enhanced anisotropy. Increased FA in these regions suggests better-organized directional connectivity, potentially linked to improved cognitive functions observed post-intervention.
·Figure 1: FA analysis showed significantly increasing in three regions: the right FX/ST, right SLF, and left ALIC.
Conclusions:
This study provides preliminary evidence that daily consumption of BRAND'S Essence of Chicken improves cognitive performance and increases brain connectivity. Significant increases in FA values in key white matter regions, including the FX/ST, SLF, and ALIC, reflect enhanced directionality and efficiency of functional connectivity. These changes align with improved clinical outcomes in attention, memory, and reaction speed, suggesting a potential mechanism by which this supplement supports cognitive health. Further association analysis is on-going for the future report.
Brain Stimulation:
Non-Invasive Stimulation Methods Other 1
Modeling and Analysis Methods:
Connectivity (eg. functional, effective, structural)
Novel Imaging Acquisition Methods:
BOLD fMRI
Perception, Attention and Motor Behavior:
Attention: Visual
Physiology, Metabolism and Neurotransmission:
Cerebral Metabolism and Hemodynamics 2
Keywords:
FUNCTIONAL MRI
Memory
MRI
Tractography
White Matter
Other - Chicken essence
1|2Indicates the priority used for review
Abstract Information
By submitting your proposal, you grant permission for the Organization for Human Brain Mapping (OHBM) to distribute your work in any format, including video, audio print and electronic text through OHBM OnDemand, social media channels, the OHBM website, or other electronic publications and media.
The Open Science Special Interest Group (OSSIG) is introducing a reproducibility challenge for OHBM 2025. This new initiative aims to enhance the reproducibility of scientific results and foster collaborations between labs. Teams will consist of a “source” party and a “reproducing” party, and will be evaluated on the success of their replication, the openness of the source work, and additional deliverables. Click here for more information. Propose your OHBM abstract(s) as source work for future OHBM meetings by selecting one of the following options:
Please indicate below if your study was a "resting state" or "task-activation” study.
Healthy subjects only or patients (note that patient studies may also involve healthy subjects):
Was this research conducted in the United States?
Were any human subjects research approved by the relevant Institutional Review Board or ethics panel? NOTE: Any human subjects studies without IRB approval will be automatically rejected.
Were any animal research approved by the relevant IACUC or other animal research panel? NOTE: Any animal studies without IACUC approval will be automatically rejected.
Please indicate which methods were used in your research:
For human MRI, what field strength scanner do you use?
Which processing packages did you use for your study?
Provide references using APA citation style.
2. Teoh SL, Sudfangsai S, Lumbiganon P, Laopaiboon M, Lai NM, Chaiyakunapruk N. Chicken Essence for Cognitive Function Improvement: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Nutrients. 2016 Jan 20;8(1):57.
3. Chan L, Wang HM, Chen KY, Lin YC, Wu PJ, Hsieh WL, Chen YR, Liu CP, Tsai HY, Chen YR, Chang HH, Hsieh YC, Hu CJ. Effectiveness of Essence of Chicken in Improving Cognitive Function in Young People Under Work-Related Stress: A Randomized Double-Blind Trial. Medicine (Baltimore). 2016 May;95(19):e3640.