Specific Functional Connectivity Patterns of Middle Temporal Gyrus Subregions in Children and Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 410-422 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jinping Xu ◽  
Chao Wang ◽  
Ziyun Xu ◽  
Tian Li ◽  
Fangfang Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Middle Temporal Gyrus ◽  
Adults With Autism ◽  
Middle Temporal ◽  
Connectivity Patterns

scholarly journals Link-Level Functional Connectivity Neuroalterations in Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Developmental Resting-State fMRI Study

Diagnostics ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 32
Author(s):  
Lluis Borràs-Ferrís ◽  
Úrsula Pérez-Ramírez ◽  
David Moratal
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Resting State ◽  
Data Exchange ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Statistical Dependence ◽  
Middle Temporal Gyrus ◽  
Middle Temporal ◽  
Brain Functions

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurological and developmental disorder whose late diagnosis is based on subjective tests. In seeking for earlier diagnosis, we aimed to find objective biomarkers via analysis of resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) images obtained from the Autism Brain Image Data Exchange (ABIDE) database. Thus, we estimated brain functional connectivity (FC) between pairs of regions as the statistical dependence between their neural-related blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) signals. We compared FC of individuals with ASD and healthy controls, matched by age and intelligence quotient (IQ), and split into three age groups (50 children, 98 adolescents, and 32 adults), from a developmental perspective. After estimating the correlation, we observed hypoconnectivities in children and adolescents with ASD between regions belonging to the default mode network (DMN). Concretely, in children, FC decreased between the left middle temporal gyrus and right frontal pole (p = 0.0080), and between the left orbitofrontal cortex and right superior frontal gyrus (p = 0.0144). In adolescents, this decrease was observed between bilateral postcentral gyri (p = 0.0012), and between the right precuneus and right middle temporal gyrus (p = 0.0236). These results help to gain a better understanding of the involved regions on autism and its connection with the affected superior cognitive brain functions.

Increased Dendritic Orientation Dispersion in the Left Occipital Gyrus is Associated with Atypical Visual Processing in Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (11) ◽  
pp. 5617-5625
Author(s):  
Kiwamu Matsuoka ◽  
Manabu Makinodan ◽  
Soichiro Kitamura ◽  
Masato Takahashi ◽  
Hiroaki Yoshikawa ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Visual Processing ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Sensory Profile ◽  
Middle Temporal Gyrus ◽  
Adults With Autism ◽  
Functional Changes ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Left Middle Temporal Gyrus

Abstract In autism spectrum disorder (ASD), the complexity-specific hypothesis explains that atypical visual processing is attributable to selective functional changes in visual pathways. We investigated dendritic microstructures and their associations with functional connectivity (FC). Participants included 28 individuals with ASD and 29 typically developed persons. We explored changes in neurite orientation dispersion and density imaging (NODDI) and brain areas whose FC was significantly correlated with NODDI parameters in the explored regions of interests. Individuals with ASD showed significantly higher orientation dispersion index (ODI) values in the left occipital gyrus (OG) corresponding to the secondary visual cortex (V2). FC values between the left OG and the left middle temporal gyrus (MTG) were significantly negatively correlated with mean ODI values. The mean ODI values in the left OG were significantly positively associated with low registration of the visual quadrants of the Adolescent/Adult Sensory Profile (AASP), resulting in a significant positive correlation with passive behavioral responses of the AASP visual quadrants; additionally, the FC values between the left OG and the left MTG were significantly negatively associated with reciprocal social interaction. Our results suggest that abnormal V2 dendritic arborization is associated with atypical visual processing by altered intermediation in the ventral visual pathway.

scholarly journals Decreased grey matter volumes in unaffected mothers of individuals with autism spectrum disorder reflect the broader autism endophenotype

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyung-min An ◽  
Takashi Ikeda ◽  
Tetsu Hirosawa ◽  
Ken Yaoi ◽  
Yuko Yoshimura ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Grey Matter ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Parahippocampal Gyrus ◽  
Middle Temporal Gyrus ◽  
Grey Matter Volume ◽  
Temporoparietal Junction ◽  
Middle Temporal ◽  
Matter Volume

AbstractAutism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder with an early onset and a strong genetic origin. Unaffected relatives may present similar but subthreshold characteristics of ASD. This broader autism phenotype is especially prevalent in the parents of individuals with ASD, suggesting that it has heritable factors. Although previous studies have demonstrated brain morphometry differences in ASD, they are poorly understood in parents of individuals with ASD. Here, we estimated grey matter volume in 45 mothers of children with ASD (mASD) and 46 age-, sex-, and handedness-matched controls using whole-brain voxel-based morphometry analysis. The mASD group had smaller grey matter volume in the right middle temporal gyrus, temporoparietal junction, cerebellum, and parahippocampal gyrus compared with the control group. Furthermore, we analysed the correlations of these brain volumes with ASD behavioural characteristics using autism spectrum quotient (AQ) and systemizing quotient (SQ) scores, which measure general autistic traits and the drive to systemize. Smaller volumes in the middle temporal gyrus and temporoparietal junction correlated with higher SQ scores, and smaller volumes in the cerebellum and parahippocampal gyrus correlated with higher AQ scores. Our findings suggest that atypical grey matter volumes in mASD may represent one of the neurostructural endophenotypes of ASD.

scholarly journals Atypical Resting-State Functional Connectivity of Intra/Inter-Sensory Networks Is Related to Symptom Severity in Young Boys With Autism Spectrum Disorder

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jia Wang ◽  
Xiaomin Wang ◽  
Runshi Wang ◽  
Xujun Duan ◽  
Heng Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Resting State ◽  
Symptom Severity ◽  
Interaction Strength ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Resting State Functional Connectivity ◽  
Connectivity Patterns ◽  
Visual Network

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has been reported to have altered brain connectivity patterns in sensory networks, assessed using resting-state functional magnetic imaging (rs-fMRI). However, the results have been inconsistent. Herein, we aimed to systematically explore the interaction between brain sensory networks in 3–7-year-old boys with ASD (N = 29) using independent component analysis (ICA). Participants were matched for age, head motion, and handedness in the MRI scanner. We estimated the between-group differences in spatial patterns of the sensory resting-state networks (RSNs). Subsequently, the time series of each RSN were extracted from each participant’s preprocessed data and associated estimates of interaction strength between intra- and internetwork functional connectivity (FC) and symptom severity in children with ASD. The auditory network (AN), higher visual network (HVN), primary visual network (PVN), and sensorimotor network (SMN) were identified. Relative to TDs, individuals with ASD showed increased FC in the AN and SMN, respectively. Higher positive connectivity between the PVN and HVN in the ASD group was shown. The strength of such connections was associated with symptom severity. The current study might suggest that the abnormal connectivity patterns of the sensory network regions may underlie impaired higher-order multisensory integration in ASD children, and be associated with social impairments.

scholarly journals Altered Thalamocortical Connectivity in Six-Week Old Infants at High Familial Risk for Autism Spectrum Disorder

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aarti Nair ◽  
Rhideeta Jalal ◽  
Janelle Liu ◽  
Tawny Tsang ◽  
Nicole M. McDonald ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Diffusion Tensor ◽  
Familial Risk ◽  
Structural Connectivity ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Structural Level ◽  
Resting State Functional Connectivity ◽  
Adults With Autism

ABSTRACTConverging evidence from neuroimaging studies has revealed altered connectivity in cortical-subcortical networks in youth and adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Comparatively little is known about the development of cortical-subcortical connectivity in infancy, before the emergence of overt ASD symptomatology. Here we examined early functional and structural connectivity of thalamocortical networks in infants at high familial risk for ASD (HR) and lowrisk controls (LR). Resting-state functional connectivity (rs-fcMRI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) data were acquired 52 six-week-old infants. Functional connectivity was examined between six cortical seeds –prefrontal, motor, somatosensory, temporal, parietal, and occipital regions– and bilateral thalamus. We found significant thalamic-prefrontal underconnectivity, as well as thalamic-occipital and thalamic-motor overconnectivity in HR infants, relative to LR infants. Subsequent structural connectivity analyses also revealed atypical white matter integrity in thalamic-occipital tracts in HR infants, compared to LR infants. Notably, aberrant rs-fcMRI and DTI connectivity indices at 6 weeks predicted atypical social development between 6 and 36 months of age, as assessed with eye-tracking and diagnostic measures. These findings indicate that thalamocortical connectivity is disrupted at both the functional and structural level in HR infants as early as six weeks of age, providing a possible early marker of risk for ASD.

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