Altered white matter fractional anisotropy and social impairment in children with autism spectrum disorder
Altered white matter fractional anisotropy and social impairment in children with autism spectrum disorder
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DOI：
10.1016/j.brainres.2010.09.051
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发表时间：
2010-11-29
期刊：
影响因子：
2.9
通讯作者：
Kamio, Yoko
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Noriuchi, Madoka;Kikuchi, Yoshiaki;Kamio, Yoko
患有自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）的个体在社交和沟通方面存在严重困难，以及受限和/或刻板的行为模式。先前的研究表明，异常的神经连接可能与涉及社会损害的更高的信息处理功能障碍有关。然而，ASD中的白色物质结构知之甚少。为了探索这一点，我们进行了基于体素的全脑弥散张量成像（DTI）分析，以确定高功能ASD儿童与年龄、性别和利手匹配的健康对照参与者相比的各向异性分数（FA）、λ（1）、λ（2）和λ（3）。然后，我们调查是否DTI参数与行为测量的社会功能。我们发现，在左背外侧前额叶皮质（DLPFC）、后上级颞沟/颞顶交界处、右颞极、杏仁核、上级纵束、枕额束、中前部胼胝体和左前部胼胝体以及中前部扣带皮质和右前部扣带皮质周围的白色物质中，ASD组的FA和lambda（1）显著低于对照组。ASD儿童左侧DLPFC的FA值与其社会功能受损程度呈负相关。在ASD组的小脑蚓部小叶中观察到更高的值。ASD儿童的白色改变位于在社会认知和信息整合中起重要作用的皮质区域周围。这些DTI结果及其与社交障碍的关系为ASD患者大脑和小脑白色物质结构异常提供了证据。(C)2010爱思唯尔有限公司版权所有。
Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have severe difficulties in social interaction and communication, as well as restricted and/or stereotyped patterns of behavior. Previous studies have suggested that abnormal neural connectivity might be associated with higher information processing dysfunction involving social impairment. However, the white matter structure in ASD is poorly understood. To explore this, we conducted a voxel-based, whole-brain diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) analysis to determine fractional anisotropy (FA), lambda(1), lambda(2) and lambda(3) in high-functioning children with ASD compared with age-, gender-, and handedness-matched healthy control participants. We then investigated whether DTI parameters were associated with behaviorally measured social function. We found that FA and lambda(1) were significantly lower in the ASD group than in the control group in the white matter around left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), posterior superior temporal sulcus/temporo-parietal junction, right temporal pole, amygdala, superior longitudinal fasciculus, occipitofrontal fasciculus, mid- and left anterior corpus callosum, and mid- and right anterior cingulate cortex. The FA value in the left DLPFC was negatively correlated with the degree of social impairment in children with ASD. Higher values were observed in the cerebellar vermis lobules in the ASD group. The white matter alterations in children with ASD were around cortical regions that play important roles in social cognition and information integration. These DTI results and their relationship to social impairment add to evidence of cerebral and cerebellar white matter structural abnormalities in ASD. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.