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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Dec 6, 2025

Probing the Brain in Autism Using fMRI and Diffusion Tensor Imaging

Probing the Brain in Autism Using fMRI and Diffusion Tensor Imaging

Published on: September 12, 2011

Frontoparietal Network in Executive Functioning in Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Kaitlyn E May¹, Rajesh K Kana²

¹Department of Educational Studies in Psychology, Research Methodology, and Counseling, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA.

Autism Research : Official Journal of the International Society for Autism Research

|October 5, 2020

Summary

Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) show distinct brain activity during executive function (EF) tasks. While both ASD and typically developing individuals activate the prefrontal cortex, ASD groups exhibit less activation in broader EF networks, potentially explaining EF challenges.

Keywords:

autism spectrum disorder executive functions neuroimaging

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Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Cognitive Neuroscience
Developmental Neuroscience

Background:

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is associated with executive function (EF) impairments.
Existing research presents conflicting findings regarding prefrontal cortex (PFC) over- or under-recruitment in ASD.

Purpose of the Study:

To synthesize neuroimaging findings on EF in ASD using a meta-analysis.
To clarify the consensus on brain activation patterns during EF tasks in individuals with ASD compared to typically developing (TD) individuals.

Main Methods:

Coordinate-based activation likelihood estimation (ALE) meta-analysis.
Included 16 functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies.
Analyzed data from 739 participants (356 ASD, 383 TD).

Main Results:

Both TD and ASD participants showed significant PFC activation during EF tasks.
ASD participants exhibited greater activation in the right middle frontal gyrus and anterior cingulate cortex compared to TD.
ASD participants showed lesser activation in bilateral middle frontal gyrus, left inferior frontal gyrus, right inferior parietal lobule, and precuneus.

Conclusions:

Despite similar PFC activation, ASD participants showed differential recruitment of wider EF networks, notably under-recruitment in parietal regions.
This pattern suggests potential poor frontoparietal connectivity or a restricted executive network in ASD.
Findings support the executive dysfunction hypothesis of ASD, linking frontoparietal network differences to EF difficulties.