Gender Differences in the Dependence of Body Weight and Brain Connectivity Revealed by Diffusion Tensor Imaging

Karsten Mueller¹, Alfred Anwander¹, Annette Horstmann¹, Franziska Busse², Burkhard Pleger¹, Joeran Lepsien¹, Michael Stumvoll², Arno Villringer¹, Harald E. Mller¹

We revealed gender differences in the dependence between body weight and brain structure using diffusion tensor imaging. For the female volunteers, we observed a significant negative correlation between the body mass index (BMI) and fractional anisotropy (FA) in all parts of the corpus callosum. This correlation could not be found for male subjects. A negative correlation between BMI and axial diffusivity was significant for both women and men. An additional effect was found for the female participants only: A positive correlation between BMI and radial diffusivity. The underlying physiological reasons are still unclear and need to be further investigated.