Thalamocortical Hyperconnectivity and Amygdala-Cortical Hypoconnectivity in Male Patients With Autism Spectrum Disorder

Conclusions: These results demonstrate that pathophysiological changes associated with ASD are more likely related to thalamocortical hyperconnectivity than to amygdala-cortical hypoconnectivity. Future studies should examine full sets of clinical and behavioral symptoms in combination with functional connectivity to explore possible biomarkers for ASD.IntroductionAutism spectrum disorder (ASD) is characterized by atypical social communication and restricted patterns of behavior, interest, or activities, both of which must be present in the early developmental period (1). Hyper- or hyporeactivity to sensory stimuli and unusual interest in sensory aspects of the environment are highly significant symptoms that are directly associated with subjective distress in daily life in affected patients (2). The distress caused by particular sensory stimuli can cause maladaptive behaviors in those who are unable to communicate appropriately in social situations. Although sensory hyper- and hyporesponsiveness are not unique to ASD, they appear to be more prevalent in this population than among individuals with other developmental disabilities or schizophrenia. Previous studies have investigated the neurophysiological basis of such disturbances in unimodal and multimodal sensory processing among patients with ASD, as well as disturbances in shifting attention to and from sensory stimuli (3, 4).Extensive structural and functional neuroimaging studies have investigated alterations in pattern...
Source: Frontiers in Psychiatry - Category: Psychiatry Source Type: research