Social-cognitive brain function and connectivity during visual perspective-taking in autism and schizophrenia

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychiatry
• Developmental Disorders

Background:

• Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and schizophrenia are neurodevelopmental conditions with significant social impairments.
• Genomic and neurobiological evidence suggests shared pathophysiologic mechanisms.
• Social impairment overlap may indicate similar neural dysfunction in social-cognitive networks, but direct comparisons are limited.

Purpose of the Study:

• To directly compare brain function and communication in individuals with ASD and schizophrenia during social-cognitive processing.
• To identify similarities and differences in neural underpinnings of social impairment in these two disorders.

Main Methods:

• Functional neuroimaging (3T fMRI) was used during a visual perspective-taking task.
• Participants included outpatients with schizophrenia (n=36), ASD (n=33), and healthy volunteers (n=37).
• Analyses assessed differences in BOLD-signal response and functional connectivity within social cognition networks.

Main Results:

• Despite similar behavioral impairments, ASD and schizophrenia groups showed distinct neural abnormalities.
• ASD participants exhibited reduced temporo-parietal junction and medial prefrontal activity compared to schizophrenia.
• Functional connectivity revealed greater local orbitofrontal connectivity in ASD than schizophrenia, independent of medication.

Conclusions:

• Autism and schizophrenia share social-cognitive deficits but arise from different underlying neural abnormalities.
• Distinct functional organization and communication within the social brain differentiate ASD and schizophrenia.
• These findings highlight divergent neurobiological pathways despite overlapping clinical presentations.