EEG-Based Assessment of Functional Connectivity in Autism

基于脑电图的自闭症功能连接评估

• 批准号: 8490460
• 负责人: Joshua B Ewen
• 金额: $ 17.52万
• 依托单位: HUGO W. MOSER RES INST KENNEDY KRIEGER
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 财政年份: 2011
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2011-07-01 至 2016-06-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/8490460
• 关键词: Address; Adult; Apraxias; Area; Autistic Disorder; Behavior; Behavioral; Biological Markers; Biomedical Engineering; Biometry; Brain; Brain region; Cerebrum; Child; Clinical; Cognition; Cognitive; Communication; Complex; Data; Detection; Development; Development Plans; Developmental Disabilities; Electroencephalogram; Environment; Event; Experimental Designs; Foundations; Frequencies; Functional disorder; Future; Gestures; Goals; Grant; Impairment; Individual; Inferior; Institutes; Knowledge; Laboratories; Learning; Left; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Measurement; Measures; Metabolic; Methods; Modeling; Monitor; Motor; Neurobiology; Neurodevelopmental Disability; Neurodevelopmental Disorder; Neurologist; Neurosciences; Parietal; Pattern; Performance; Physiological; Premature Birth; Production; Public Health; Recovery; Research; Research Design; Research Personnel; Resolution; Role; Signal Pathway; Signal Transduction; Social Behavior; Social Functioning; Stem cells; System; Targeted Research; Techniques; Testing; Time; Training; Universities; autism spectrum disorder; base; behavior measurement; brain behavior; career; career development; functional disability; improved; insight; interest; neurobehavioral; neurophysiology; public health relevance; repaired; response; skills; social; social cognition; theories; white matter injury

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): There are substantial data to suggest that altered cerebral connectivity is a key aspect of the neurobiology of autism. Nevertheless, the role of altered cerebral connectivity in the production of the core impairments of autism has is not yet fully understood. Of the impairments in autism, motor function is an excellent candidate for neurobiological study. Praxis abnormalities in particular are a robust and replicated finding in autism and have been well characterized behaviorally. Additionally, praxis behavior can be more easily quantified and experimentally controlled than can many aspects of complex communicative and social behavior. Praxis skill has been shown to correlate with clinical measures of communicative and social behavior. Further, the cerebral mechanisms that underlie praxis function are well understood. Specifically, inferior cortical parietal regions, premotor cortical regions and the connectivity between the two are known to be necessary for praxis function. The electroencephalogram (EEG) has been used successfully to study cerebral connectivity associated with praxis in adults with and without apraxia, however it has not yet been employed in children or in individuals with autism. The research proposed in the current application will address the role of altered cerebral connectivity in autism using EEG-based techniques and will relate these neurobiological alterations to impaired motor performance and impaired social and communicative performance. The specific aims are (1) to characterize the functional network subserving praxis in children, (2) to demonstrate alterations of cerebral connectivity in children with autism during performance of praxis tasks, and (3) to assess the relationship between altered cerebral connectivity and motor, social and communicative ability. This project is proposed as part of a career development plan for the PI, a child neurologist, to obtain training in advanced EEG signal analysis, study design and systems neuroscience. The Kennedy Krieger Institute and Johns Hopkins University have world-class Biomedical Engineering, Biostatistics and clinical departments that provide an exceptional environment to enable the PI to become an independent investigator studying brain-behavior relationships in autism and other neurodevelopmental disabilities.

描述（由申请人提供）：有大量数据表明，改变大脑连接是自闭症神经生物学的一个关键方面。然而，改变的大脑连接在自闭症核心障碍的产生中的作用尚未完全理解。在自闭症的损害中，运动功能是神经生物学研究的一个很好的候选者。特别是实践异常是自闭症的一个强大的和重复的发现，并已被很好地表征行为。此外，实践行为比复杂的交际和社会行为的许多方面更容易量化和实验控制。实践技能已被证明与沟通和社会行为的临床措施。此外，作为实践功能基础的大脑机制已经被很好地理解。具体而言，下皮层顶叶区域，运动前皮层区域和两者之间的连接是已知的实践功能所必需的。脑电图（EEG）已被成功地用于研究与实践相关的大脑连接在成年人和无失用症，但它还没有被用于儿童或自闭症患者。本申请中提出的研究将使用基于EEG的技术来解决改变的大脑连接在自闭症中的作用，并将这些神经生物学改变与受损的运动表现以及受损的社交和沟通表现联系起来。具体目的是：（1）表征儿童实践的功能网络，（2）证明自闭症儿童在执行实践任务时大脑连接的改变，（3）评估大脑连接改变与运动，社会和沟通能力之间的关系。该项目是作为PI（儿童神经学家）职业发展计划的一部分提出的，以获得高级EEG信号分析，研究设计和系统神经科学方面的培训。肯尼迪克里格研究所和约翰霍普金斯大学拥有世界一流的生物医学工程，生物统计学和临床部门，提供了一个特殊的环境，使PI成为研究自闭症和其他神经发育障碍的大脑行为关系的独立研究者。