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Conducting Hyperscanning Experiments with Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy
Published on: January 19, 2019
Resting-state coupling between HbO and Hb measured by fNIRS in autism spectrum disorder
Fang Lin1, Ying Hu1, Weihao Huang1
1South China Academy of Advanced Optoelectronics, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.
Insights
Researchers found weaker hemoglobin coupling in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) compared to typically developing children. This discovery may offer a new way to screen for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) using brain imaging.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Psychology
- Biomedical Engineering
Background:
- Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis relies on behavioral observation.
- Objective biomarkers for ASD are needed for early detection and intervention.
- Cerebral hemodynamic alterations are increasingly investigated in ASD.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify a novel cerebral hemodynamic feature distinguishing children with ASD from typically developing (TD) children.
- To investigate hemoglobin coupling as a potential biomarker for ASD.
Main Methods:
- Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) measured resting-state hemodynamic fluctuations in temporal lobes.
- Pearson correlation coefficient assessed coupling between oxygenated hemoglobin (HbO) and deoxygenated hemoglobin (Hb) fluctuations.
- A balloon model simulation explored parameters influencing hemoglobin coupling.
Main Results:
- Children with ASD exhibited significantly weaker hemoglobin coupling in bilateral temporal lobes compared to TD children.
- This weak coupling was observed across the entire temporal cortex.
- Simulation identified four parameters affecting hemoglobin coupling.
Conclusions:
- Hemoglobin coupling is a distinct cerebral hemodynamic characteristic in children with ASD.
- This finding suggests hemoglobin coupling's potential utility in ASD screening and diagnostics.
- fNIRS-based hemoglobin coupling analysis offers a promising avenue for objective ASD assessment.
Abstract:
To distinguish between children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and typically developing (TD) children, we have uncovered a new discriminative feature, hemoglobin coupling. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) was used to record resting-state hemodynamic fluctuations in the bilateral temporal lobes in 25 children with ASD and 22 TD children, in which the coupling between low frequency oxygenated hemoglobin (HbO) and deoxygenated hemoglobin (Hb) fluctuations was evaluated by Pearson correlation coefficient. The results showed significantly weak coupling in children with ASD in both the left and right, and throughout the whole temporal cortex. To explain this observation, a simulation study was performed using a balloon model, in which we found four related parameters could impact the coupling. This study suggested that hemoglobin coupling might be applied as a new cerebral hemodynamic characteristic for ASD screening or diagnostics.
