Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41945449›Full record

ArticleProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America2026

Typical development of the human fetal subplate: Regional heterogeneity, growth, and asymmetry assessed by in vivo T2-weighted MRI.

Andrea Gondová, Jennings Zhang, Sungmin You, Seungyoon Jeong, Milton Osiel Candela-Leal, Caitlin Kantrowitz Rollins, Patricia Ellen Grant, Hyuk Jin Yun, Kiho Im

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Andrea GondováFetal Neonatal Neuroimaging and Developmental Science Center, Division of Newborn Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115.ORCID 0000-0001-7442-5747
Jennings ZhangFetal Neonatal Neuroimaging and Developmental Science Center, Division of Newborn Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115.
Sungmin YouFetal Neonatal Neuroimaging and Developmental Science Center, Division of Newborn Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115.ORCID 0000-0002-2144-9523
Seungyoon JeongFetal Neonatal Neuroimaging and Developmental Science Center, Division of Newborn Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115.
Milton Osiel Candela-LealFetal Neonatal Neuroimaging and Developmental Science Center, Division of Newborn Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115.ORCID 0000-0001-7807-2539
Caitlin Kantrowitz RollinsDepartment of Neurology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115.ORCID 0000-0002-0500-0056
Patricia Ellen GrantFetal Neonatal Neuroimaging and Developmental Science Center, Division of Newborn Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115.ORCID 0000-0003-1005-4013
Hyuk Jin Yun *Fetal Neonatal Neuroimaging and Developmental Science Center, Division of Newborn Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115.
Kiho Im *Fetal Neonatal Neuroimaging and Developmental Science Center, Division of Newborn Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115.ORCID 0000-0002-9239-8970

Funding

Genetic and Hemodynamic Effects on Prenatal Cortical Development in Congenital Heart DiseaseR01NS114087 · NINDS · BOSTON CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL · PI IM, KIHO · 2020 to 2024
$2.8M
Measuring cortical plate and subplate thickness in the human fetal brain from magnetic resonance imagesR01EB031170 · NIBIB · BOSTON CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL · PI IM, KIHO · 2021 to 2025
$2.5M
Fetal Brain MRI as a Predictor of Late Neurodevelopmental Outcome in Congenital Heart DiseaseR01NS121334 · NINDS · BOSTON CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL · PI Caitlin Rollins · 2022 to 2026
$2.2M
Fetal Brain Development in Congenital Heart DiseaseK23NS101120 · NINDS · BOSTON CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL · PI ROLLINS, CAITLIN · 2017 to 2022
$1.1M
HHS | NIH | National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) R01EB031170HHS | NIH | National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) K23NS101120HHS | NIH | National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) R01NS114087HHS | NIH | National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) R01NS121334NIBIB NIH HHS R01 EB031170NINDS NIH HHS K23 NS101120NINDS NIH HHS R01 NS114087NINDS NIH HHS R01 NS121334
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The subplate (SP) is a transient fetal brain compartment supporting neuronal migration, axonal ingrowth, and early cortical activity, yet the dynamics of its regional development remain poorly understood in vivo. Using T2-weighted fetal MRI of 68 typically developing fetuses (22 to 32 wk gestational age, GA), we developed a semiautomated pipeline to quantify regional SP morphology (thickness, surface area, and volume). SP characteristics scaled strongly with GA and residual brain volume and showed marked regional differences. After correcting for geometric confounds, regional variation of SP thickness persisted, with highest values in parietal and perisylvian regions, suggesting that SP thickness may serve as a sensitive marker of intrinsic developmental differences. Between the late 2nd and early 3rd trimesters, mean SP thickness increased by 39.2% with large variation across regions (±11.0 SD), whereas surface area growth was more uniform (64.3% ±0.7 SD). Continuous growth trajectories clustered into distinct spatiotemporal profiles: early-developing regions (e.g., pericentral and medial occipital cortices) contrasted with later-developing regions (prefrontal, temporal, and parietal cortices). These patterns partially recapitulate primary-to-association, medial-to-lateral, and posterior-to-anterior maturational hierarchies, pointing to organized developmental programs. SP development also showed region-specific hemispheric asymmetries, including leftward thickness and volume asymmetry in the superior temporal and precentral gyri. Some asymmetries amplified, others attenuated or reversed with age, suggesting both transient states and potential precursors of postnatal lateralization. Together, these findings provide a framework for regional SP quantification and position SP morphology, particularly thickness, as a promising early biomarker that might link fetal SP changes to subsequent cortical development and neurodevelopmental outcomes.

Indexed as

BrainFetal DevelopmentFetusMagnetic Resonance ImagingFemaleGestational AgeHumansNeurodevelopmentPregnancydevelopmental trajectorieshemispheric asymmetryin vivo fetal MRIprenatal neurodevelopmentsubplate transient compartment

Identifiers

PMID41945449
PMCPMC13079921

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.