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Eye Tracking Young Children with Autism
09:03

Eye Tracking Young Children with Autism

Published on: March 27, 2012

Neural correlates of familiar and unfamiliar face processing in infants at risk for autism spectrum disorders

Rhiannon J Luyster1, Jennifer B Wagner, Vanessa Vogel-Farley

  • 1Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience, Division of Developmental Medicine, Children's Hospital Boston, 1 Autumn Street, Boston, MA 02215, USA. rhiannon.luyster@childrens.harvard.edu

Brain Topography
|March 29, 2011
PubMed

Insights

This study explored neural responses to faces in infants at high risk for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). While most neural responses were similar, high-risk infants showed a potential developmental lag in attention-related brain activity.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Autism Spectrum Disorder Research

Background:

  • Studying early social processing in infants at high risk for autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) is challenging.
  • Neural correlates of social stimuli processing offer a viable approach.
  • Infant brain development and social cognition are key areas of research.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate neural correlates of face processing in 12-month-old infants at high risk for ASD compared to low-risk controls.
  • To explore developmental effects and familiarity effects on specific neural components.
  • To identify potential early neural markers for ASD endophenotypes.

Main Methods:

  • Electroencephalography (EEG) was used to record neural responses in 32 high-risk and 24 low-risk infants.
  • Infants were presented with familiar and unfamiliar faces.
  • Amplitude and latency differences in N290, P400, and Nc components were analyzed.

Main Results:

  • Developmental effects of emerging hemispheric asymmetry were observed for face-sensitive components (N290 and P400).
  • Familiarity effects were noted for the attention-related Nc component.
  • No striking group differences were found, but a developmental lag in the Nc component was suggested for the high-risk group.

Conclusions:

  • Early social processing in infants at high risk for ASD may show subtle developmental differences.
  • The infant ASD endophenotype might be better defined by studying changes over time and with varied stimuli.
  • Further research with expanded age ranges and longitudinal designs is warranted.

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