Reduced gray matter in the superior, medial and middle frontal gyri was also present in patients with agitation compared to patients without agitation. This implies that gray matter changes in the frontal region of the brain may underlie the mood disturbances commonly exhibited by Covid-19 patients.

“Neurological complications are increasingly documented for patients with Covid-19,” said Vince Calhoun, senior author of the study and director of TReNDS. Calhoun is Distinguished University Professor of Psychology at Georgia State and holds appointments in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Georgia Tech and in neurology and psychiatry at Emory University. “A reduction of gray matter has also been shown to be present in other mood disorders such as schizophrenia and is likely related to the way that gray matter influences neuron function.”


The study’s findings demonstrate changes to the frontal-temporal network could be used as a biomarker to determine the likely prognosis of Covid-19 or evaluate treatment options for the disease. Next, the researchers hope to replicate the study on a larger sample size that includes many types of brain scans and different populations of Covid-19 patients.

TReNDS is a partnership among Georgia State, Georgia Tech and Emory University and is focused on improving our understanding of the human brain using advanced analytic approaches. The center uses large-scale data sharing and multi-modal data fusion techniques, including deep learning, genomics, brain mapping and artificial intelligence.

CITATION: K. Duan, et. al., “Alterations of frontal-temporal gray matter volume associate with clinical measures of older adults with COVID-19.” (Neurobiology of Stress, May 2021) https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ynstr.2021.100326


About Georgia State University
Georgia State University is an enterprising urban public research institution in Atlanta, the leading cultural and economic center of the Southeast. Georgia’s largest university and a national leader in graduating students from diverse backgrounds, Georgia State is changing the way more than 54,000 students experience college across six campuses in metro Atlanta. The university’s world-class faculty scientists oversee a wide-ranging research portfolio that is generating new insights and new discoveries in health, sustainability, data science, cybersecurity and more.

The Georgia Institute of Technology, or Georgia Tech, is a top 10 public research university developing leaders who advance technology and improve the human condition.
The Institute offers business, computing, design, engineering, liberal arts, and sciences degrees. Its nearly 40,000 students, representing 50 states and 149 countries, study at the main campus in Atlanta, at campuses in France and China, and through distance and online learning. As a leading technological university, Georgia Tech is an engine of economic development for Georgia, the Southeast, and the nation, conducting more than $1 billion in research annually for government, industry, and society.

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