Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42817812›Full record

ArticleCNS neuroscience & therapeutics2026

The Role of Glymphatic Clearance in Affective Decision-Making in Adolescents with Non-Suicidal Self-Injury.

Hongping Wang, Jiahua Zhang, Ruizi Pan, Xiaoqian Ye, Rong Wang, Ke Lv, Yue Yu, Qianqian Li, Ting Zhang, Dongpeng Wu and 2 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in CNS neuroscience & therapeutics, 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

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors.

Hongping WangDepartment of Neurology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0002-3158-6000
Jiahua ZhangThe School of Mental Health and Psychological Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China.
Ruizi PanDepartment of Neurology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China.
Xiaoqian YeDepartment of Neurology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0001-1652-3864
Rong WangDepartment of Radiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China.
Ke LvDepartment of Neurology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China.
Yue YuDepartment of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China.
Qianqian LiDepartment of Psychology and Sleep Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China.
Ting ZhangDepartment of Psychiatry, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China.
Dongpeng WuDepartment of Psychology and Sleep Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4451-9544
Dai ZhangDepartment of Radiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China.
Yanghua TianDepartment of Neurology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5038-0599

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China 32300869National Natural Science Foundation of China U24A20702Natural Science Foundation of Anhui Province 2308085QH267
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundAdolescents with non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) frequently exhibit severe sleep disturbances and heterogeneous cognitive impairments, yet the underlying neurophysiological basis remains unclear. The glymphatic system, a sleep-dependent macroscopic clearance network, is critical for metabolic waste removal and neurocognitive homeostasis. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the physiological role of glymphatic function in linking sleep burden to distinct cognitive performances in adolescents with NSSI.

methodsWe assessed 44 NSSI adolescents and 33 healthy controls (HCs). Using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI), glymphatic function was quantified by calculating the coupling strength between global blood-oxygen-level-dependent (gBOLD) signals and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) flow. To capture the heterogeneity in their cognitive profiles, we evaluated "hot" affective decision-making via the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) and "cold" executive function via the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST). Subjective sleep quality was assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI).

resultsIn the NSSI group, poorer sleep quality was positively correlated with stronger gBOLD-CSF coupling (r = 0.317, p = 0.036), and stronger gBOLD-CSF coupling predicted better IGT performance, especially during the high-load strategy phase (Block 3) (r = 0.447, p = 0.002). Furthermore, glymphatic function fully mediated the relationship between sleep quality and affective decision-making performance (indirect effect = 0.682, 95% CI [0.062, 1.515]). Interaction analyses confirmed this physiological-behavioral coupling was disease-specific (present only in NSSI; interaction p = 0.011) and domain-specific (supporting "hot" affective cognition rather than "cold" executive function).

conclusionsIn NSSI adolescents, sleep-associated glymphatic upregulation reflects a stress-induced compensatory response. This mechanism domain-specifically preserves high-load affective decision-making against severe psychopathological stress. These findings highlight brain metabolic clearance as a novel physiological target for bolstering cognitive resilience in high-risk youth.

Indexed as

AffectDecision MakingGlymphatic SystemSelf-Injurious BehaviorAdolescentExecutive FunctionFemaleHumansMagnetic Resonance ImagingMaleNeuropsychological TestsSleep Qualityaffective decision‐makinggBOLD‐CSF couplingglymphatic systemnon‐suicidal self‐injurysleep disturbance

Identifiers

PMID42817812
PMCPMC13628287

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
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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 Socratic graph.