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Updated: May 12, 2026

Conscious and Non-conscious Representations of Emotional Faces in Asperger's Syndrome
08:31

Conscious and Non-conscious Representations of Emotional Faces in Asperger's Syndrome

Published on: July 31, 2016

Neural processing of facial identity and emotion in infants at high-risk for autism spectrum disorders

Sharon E Fox1, Jennifer B Wagner, Christine L Shrock

  • 1Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA, USA ; Children's Hospital Boston Boston, MA, USA.

Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
|April 12, 2013
PubMed

Insights

Early differences in brain responses to faces were observed in infants at high risk for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). These neural distinctions in face processing may contribute to later social impairments in ASD.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Autism Spectrum Disorder Research

Background:

  • Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is characterized by social impairments and difficulties with face processing.
  • Early identification of neural markers for ASD is crucial for timely intervention.
  • Infant face perception is a key area for understanding early ASD-related neural differences.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate neural responses to face identity and emotion processing in high-risk infants.
  • To identify early differences in brain activity related to face perception in infants who may develop ASD.
  • To explore the relationship between early hemodynamic responses and potential functional connectivity patterns.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) to measure brain activity in 7-month-old infants.
  • Employed a face perception task differentiating identity and emotion processing.
  • Applied independent component analysis and novel classification methods to analyze hemodynamic waveforms and response distributions.

Main Results:

  • Identified similarities in hemodynamic waveforms between high-risk and low-risk infants.
  • Observed significant group differences in the magnitude, spatial distribution, and timing of neural responses to faces.
  • These differences were noted in local cortical regions involved in face processing.

Conclusions:

  • Early differences in neural processing of faces exist in infants at high risk for ASD.
  • These early cortical and hemodynamic response variations may precede social impairments.
  • Findings suggest potential alterations in functional connectivity patterns contributing to ASD development.

Keywords:
autismcognitive developmentfNIRSface processingnear-infrared spectroscopy

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