Correlation between traditional Chinese medicine Constitution types, fluid intelligence, and functional connectivity in brain regions among 96 college students

To explore the relationship between traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) constitution, functional connectivity (FC) of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), and fluid intelligence in university students to elucidate the mind-body relationship from a modern perspective of TCM.

From October 2023 to December 2023, a total of 96 college students of Jiangxi University of Chinese Medicine were included, and Classification and Identification of Constitution in Traditional Chinese Medicine: ZYYXH/T 157—2009, Raven′s Advanced Progressive Matrices (RAPM) and resting-state functional near-infrared spectroscopy were used to evaluate TCM constitution, fluid intelligence, and FC of DLPFC. The differences in fluid intelligence between individuals with biased and balanced constitutions were compared using t-tests, and the associations among the TCM Constitution, RAPM score, and the FC between the left and right DLPFC were explored using partial correlation analysis.

The tendency toward blood-stasis type and a dampness-heat type were positively correlated with the RAPM scores. College students with a tendency toward blood-stasis type exhibited significantly higher RAPM scores than those with a balanced constitution (P < 0.05). Additionally, significant negative correlations were observed between the tendencies toward blood-stasis and yin-deficiency types and the FC of the bilateral DLPFC. In contrast, a significant positive correlation was observed in individuals with balanced constitution tendencies.

The tendency toward blood-stasis type is associated with fluid intelligence levels and DLPFC functional activity in college students. This finding suggests that students with higher intelligence levels are more likely to exhibit blood-stasis type, highlighting the need for appropriate adjustments and interventions.