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Updated: May 20, 2025
12:21
Probing the Brain in Autism Using fMRI and Diffusion Tensor Imaging
Published on: September 12, 2011
25.1K
Abnormal Functional Connectivity of the Primary Sensory Network in Autism Spectrum Disorder: Sex Differences, Early
Yanan Zhang1, Quan Zhou2, Limei Gao1
1School of Mental Health and Psychological Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China.
Brain and Behavior
|March 24, 2025
Summary
Primary sensory network connectivity is atypical in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), impacting daily function. These differences correlate with clinical symptoms and show unique developmental patterns in males and females.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Psychology
- Clinical Psychology
Background:
- Primary sensory processing is atypical in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), affecting daily functioning.
- Functional connectivity (FC) patterns in primary neural networks in ASD remain under-investigated.
Purpose of the Study:
- To systematically investigate functional connectivity (FC) patterns in primary sensory networks in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
- To explore the correlation between abnormal FC and clinical symptoms in ASD.
- To validate findings and assess the influence of sex and age on FC consistency in ASD.
Main Methods:
- Analyzed ROI-wise FC in 105 individuals with ASD and 132 typically developing (TD) participants using the Autism Brain Imaging Data Exchange I dataset.
- Calculated correlations between abnormal FC and clinical scores.
- Validated results with a two-site dataset (53 individuals with ASD) to assess sex and age effects on FC consistency.
Main Results:
- Significant group differences in FC were observed, particularly in primary auditory and somatosensory regions.
- Abnormal brain regions showed correlations with clinical symptoms.
- Abnormal FC exhibited a developmental trend influenced by age and sex, with higher prevalence in females than males.
Conclusions:
- Abnormal FC in the primary sensory cortex is present in ASD and correlates with clinical outcomes, potentially impairing advanced cognitive functions.
- The primary sensory cortex in ASD may exhibit excessive early growth and sex-imbalanced development.
- These findings may contribute to identifying novel biomarkers for ASD.
Keywords:
autism spectrum disorder (ASD)early overdevelopmentfunctional connectivity (FC)primary sensory cortexMore Related Videos
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