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Atypical Amygdala-Neocortex Interaction During Dynamic Facial Expression Processing in Autism Spectrum Disorder
Wataru Sato1, Takanori Kochiyama2, Shota Uono3
1Kokoro Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
|November 5, 2019
Summary
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) involves atypical social interactions. This study found weaker communication from the amygdala to the neocortex in individuals with ASD when processing facial emotions, impacting social functioning.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Psychology
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is characterized by social interaction deficits, particularly in processing emotional facial expressions.
- Previous fMRI studies show reduced activation in social brain regions (amygdala, fusiform gyrus) in individuals with ASD during facial emotion processing.
- The functional connectivity between subcortical and cortical brain regions in response to emotional faces in ASD remains unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the functional networking patterns between the amygdala and neocortical regions during emotional facial expression processing in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
- To compare effective connectivity models between ASD and typically developing (TD) individuals using fMRI and dynamic causal modeling (DCM).
Main Methods:
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to study 31 individuals with ASD and 31 TD individuals.
- Participants viewed dynamic facial expressions (anger, happiness) and mosaic images.
- Dynamic causal modeling (DCM) analyzed effective connectivity between the amygdala and neocortical networks.
Main Results:
- Reduced activation in social brain regions, including the amygdala, was observed in the ASD group compared to the TD group.
- A model with effective connectivity from the amygdala to the neocortex best explained the data for both groups.
- The modulatory effect from the amygdala to the neocortex was significantly weaker in individuals with ASD.
Conclusions:
- Atypical amygdala-to-neocortex modulation is implicated in impaired social interaction related to dynamic facial expression processing in ASD.
- These findings highlight the importance of subcortical-cortical network dynamics in the social deficits associated with autism spectrum disorder.
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