Altered White Matter Structure of the Dentatorubrothalamic Pathway in Children with Autistic Spectrum Disorders
Altered White Matter Structure of the Dentatorubrothalamic Pathway in Children with Autistic Spectrum Disorders
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DOI：
10.1007/s12311-012-0369-3
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发表时间：
2012-12-01
期刊：
影响因子：
3.5
通讯作者：
Chugani, Harry T.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Jeong, Jeong-Won;Chugani, Diane C.;Chugani, Harry T.
神经病理学研究表明，在自闭症谱系障碍(ASD)中，小脑皮质中的浦肯野细胞减少，小脑齿状核(Purkinje细胞的投射靶点)发生变化。齿状下丘脑束是由齿状核发出的传出神经向红核投射，轴突侧支投射到红核，并继续支配丘脑腹侧核和腹前核。在目前的研究中，我们使用Q-ball成像(QBI)来评估ASD患者的齿状丘脑束是否发生了改变。对13例高功能ASD(HFA)、11例低功能ASD(LFA)和14例典型发育儿童(TD)进行了QBI纤维束成像。在双侧齿状核和红核中客观定位感兴趣区，对双侧齿状回-吻侧(DR)、背侧-尾侧(DC)、腹侧-吻侧(VR)和腹侧-尾侧(VC)区进行分类。分析了各通道的分数各向异性(FA)、轴向扩散系数、径向扩散系数和纤维体积的组间差异。与TD组相比，LFA和HFA组儿童右侧齿状核四个亚区的FA均显著减少。脑束形态计量学分析显示，LFA组大鼠右侧尾侧中脑(p<；0.0001)、背侧尾侧齿状核(p=0.0013)和腹尾侧齿状核(p=0.0061)的FA显著减少。HFA/LFA联合组右侧VR、VC径路的FA值与沟通能力显著相关，而右侧DR径路的FA值与日常生活能力显著相关(r=0.76，p=0.004)。齿状下丘脑束背侧白质完整性降低可能与ASD的运动特征有关，而腹侧部分的改变更多地与沟通行为有关。
Neuropathological studies have demonstrated decreased Purkinje cells in cerebellar cortex and changes in the dentate nucleus of the cerebellum, the projection target for the Purkinje cells, in autistic spectrum disorders (ASD). The dentatorubrothalamic tract is formed by efferents from the dentate nucleus projecting toward the red nucleus with axon collaterals to this nucleus and continuing to innervate the ventral lateral and ventral anterior nuclei of the thalamus. In the current study, we assessed whether the dentatorubrothalamic tract is altered in ASD using Q-ball imaging (QBI). The QBI tractography was performed in 13 children with high functioning ASD (HFA), 11 children with low functioning ASD (LFA), and 14 typically developing children (TD). Regions of interest in dentate nucleus and red nucleus in both hemispheres were objectively placed to sort bilateral dorsal-rostral (DR), dorsal-caudal (DC), ventral-rostral (VR), and ventral-caudal (VC) portions of the dentatorubrothalamic pathway. Group differences in fractional anisotropy (FA), axial diffusivity, radial diffusivity, and fiber volume of individual pathways were analyzed. Significantly reduced FA was found in children with LFA and HFA, compared to the TD group in tracts originating in all four subdivisions of the right dentate nucleus. Tract-based morphometry (TBM) analysis demonstrated significant reductions of FA in caudal midbrain (p < 0.0001), dorsal-caudal dentate (p = 0.0013), and ventral-caudal dentate (p = 0.0061) on the right in the LFA group. The FA values in TBM segments of right VR and VC pathways were significantly correlated with communication skills in the combined HFA/LFA group, while there was a significant correlation found between TBM segments of right DR pathway and daily living skills (r = 0.76; p = 0.004). Decreased white matter integrity in dorsal portions of the dentatorubrothalamic tract may be related to motor features in ASD, while changes in the ventral portions are related more to communication behavior.