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Published on: October 3, 2018
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Brain Morphometry in Infants Later Diagnosed With Autism is Related to Later Language Skills
Luke E Moraglia1, Bernadette Weigman1, Hervé Abdi1
1Department of Psychology, The University of Texas at Dallas, Richardson, Texas, USA.
Human Brain Mapping
|May 10, 2025
Summary
Infant brain structure, specifically surface area in the left inferior frontal gyrus, is linked to later language abilities in children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This finding supports a whole-brain approach to understanding early neurodevelopment in ASD.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Psychology
- Genetics
Background:
- Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is characterized by early social and language differences.
- Infant brain development is critical for understanding neurodevelopmental disorders.
- The infant-sibling design is valuable for studying genetic and environmental influences on ASD.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between infant brain morphometry and language abilities in the first two years of life.
- To explore differences in brain-language associations between infants later diagnosed with ASD and control groups.
- To examine early neurodevelopmental trajectories using a whole-brain approach.
Main Methods:
- Utilized an infant-sibling design with high-likelihood (HL) and low-likelihood (LL) groups.
- Measured cortical thickness and surface area at 6 and 12 months of age via MRI.
- Assessed expressive and receptive language at 24 months using standardized tests.
- Employed partial least squares correlation analyses to examine brain-behavior relationships.
Main Results:
- Negative associations were found between left inferior frontal gyrus surface area and 24-month language abilities in the high-likelihood autism spectrum disorder (HL-ASD) group.
- Brain regions beyond the typical adult language network showed associations with language development in HL-ASD infants.
- Surface area and cortical thickness exhibited distinct developmental associations, with negative correlations for surface area and positive for thickness at 6 months.
Conclusions:
- Early brain morphometry, particularly in the inferior frontal gyrus, is associated with language development in infants who later receive an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis.
- The findings support the theory of interactive specialization, emphasizing the dynamic nature of infant brain development.
- A whole-brain approach is crucial for a comprehensive understanding of early brain-behavior associations in ASD.
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