Distinct Theta–gamma network reorganization differentiates hippocampal sclerosis and MRI-negative mesial temporal lobe epilepsy

作者：Sha Huang, Ziwei Tian, Quan Wang, Chen Chen, Li Feng, Weiting Tang, Bo Xiao · 发表于：Neurobiology of Disease · 年份：2026 · DOI：10.1016/j.nbd.2026.107552 · 研究领域：Functional Brain Connectivity Studies、Epilepsy research and treatment、Memory and Neural Mechanisms

INTRODUCTION: Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE), particularly mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE), often presents with visual working memory (VWM) impairments, with potential heterogeneity between hippocampal sclerosis (HS) and MRI-negative subtypes. However, task-related electrophysiological (EEG) evidence regarding brain network alterations during VWM processing in MTLE remains limited. This study aims to identify shared brain network alterations and their behavioral correlates in patients with MTLE and to further characterize subtype-specific differences between HS-MTLE and MRI negative-MTLE. METHODS: We recruited 60 right-handed participants, including 30 patients with MTLE (12 HS-MTLE, 18 MRI negative-MTLE) and 30 healthy controls (HCs). All participants completed the Chinese version of the Wechsler Memory Scale-Revised (WMS-RC) and performed a VWM task during simultaneous EEG recording. Graph theory analysis was used to assess the in-degree and out-degree of directed functional networks in the theta and gamma frequency bands; the results were correlated with clinical and cognitive behavioral indicators. RESULTS: Behaviorally, patients with MTLE showed significant VWM impairments compared with HCs, with no significant difference between HS and MRI-negative subtypes. Common network alterations in patients with MTLE included decreased theta-band connectivity from occipital to temporal regions, with this theta-band connectivity significantly associated with slower task response...