Global and Regional Structural Differences and Prediction of Autistic Traits during Adolescence

Publikation: Beitrag in FachzeitschriftForschungsartikelBeigetragenBegutachtung

Beitragende

  • Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel (CAU)
  • Universität Heidelberg
  • King's College London (KCL)
  • Université Paris-Saclay
  • University of Vermont
  • University of Nottingham
  • Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin
  • Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt
  • Georg-August-Universität Göttingen
  • École normale supérieure Paris-Saclay
  • Assistance publique – Hôpitaux de Paris
  • EPS Barthélémy Durand
  • Université de Bordeaux
  • National Institutes of Health (NIH)
  • Hochschule für Gesundheit und Medizin
  • University of Toronto
  • Tampere University Hospital
  • Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
  • Leibniz-Institut für Neurobiologie
  • Fudan University
  • Trinity College Dublin

Abstract

Background: Autistic traits are commonly viewed as dimensional in nature, and as continuously distributed in the general population. In this respect, the identification of predictive values of markers such as subtle autism-related alterations in brain morphology for parameter values of autistic traits could increase our understanding of this dimensional occasion. However, currently, very little is known about how these traits correspond to alterations in brain morphology in typically developing individuals, particularly during a time period where changes due to brain development processes do not provide a bias. Therefore, in the present study, we analyzed brain volume, cortical thickness (CT) and surface area (SA) in a cohort of 14–15-year-old adolescents (N = 285, female: N = 162) and tested their predictive value for autistic traits, assessed with the social responsiveness scale (SRS) two years later at the age of 16–17 years, using a regression-based approach. We found that autistic traits were significantly predicted by volumetric changes in the amygdala (r = 0.181), cerebellum (r = 0.128) and hippocampus (r = −0.181, r = −0.203), both in boys and girls. Moreover, the CT of the superior frontal region was negatively correlated (r = −0.144) with SRS scores. Furthermore, we observed a significant association between the SRS total score and smaller left putamen volume, specifically in boys (r = −0.217), but not in girls. Our findings suggest that neural correlates of autistic traits also seem to lie on a continuum in the general population, are determined by limbic–striatal neuroanatomical brain areas, and are partly dependent on sex. As we imaged adolescents from a large population-based cohort within a small age range, these data may help to increase the understanding of autistic-like occasions in otherwise typically developing individuals.

Details

OriginalspracheEnglisch
Aufsatznummer1187
Seiten (von - bis)1-14
Seitenumfang14
FachzeitschriftBrain sciences
Jahrgang12
Ausgabenummer9
Frühes Online-Datum2 Sept. 2022
PublikationsstatusVeröffentlicht - 2 Sept. 2022
Peer-Review-StatusJa

Externe IDs

ORCID /0000-0001-5398-5569/work/150329529
ORCID /0000-0002-8493-6396/work/150330252
PubMed 36138923

Schlagworte

ASJC Scopus Sachgebiete

Schlagwörter

  • adolescents, autism spectrum disorder, autistic traits, social responsiveness, structural imaging

Bibliotheksschlagworte