Functional connectivity among insula, sensory and social brain regions in boys with autism spectrum disorder

LI Xiaoxue; ZHAI Jinhe; HAO Haiying; XU Zihan; CAO Xuan; XIA Wei; WANG Jia

doi:10.16835/j.cnki.1000-9817.2023.03.004

Volume 44 Issue 3

Mar. 2023

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LI Xiaoxue, ZHAI Jinhe, HAO Haiying, XU Zihan, CAO Xuan, XIA Wei, WANG Jia. Functional connectivity among insula, sensory and social brain regions in boys with autism spectrum disorder[J]. CHINESE JOURNAL OF SCHOOL HEALTH, 2023, 44(3): 335-338. doi: 10.16835/j.cnki.1000-9817.2023.03.004

Citation:

LI Xiaoxue, ZHAI Jinhe, HAO Haiying, XU Zihan, CAO Xuan, XIA Wei, WANG Jia. Functional connectivity among insula, sensory and social brain regions in boys with autism spectrum disorder[J]. CHINESE JOURNAL OF SCHOOL HEALTH, 2023, 44(3): 335-338. doi: 10.16835/j.cnki.1000-9817.2023.03.004

Citation:

LI Xiaoxue, ZHAI Jinhe, HAO Haiying, XU Zihan, CAO Xuan, XIA Wei, WANG Jia. Functional connectivity among insula, sensory and social brain regions in boys with autism spectrum disorder[J]. CHINESE JOURNAL OF SCHOOL HEALTH, 2023, 44(3): 335-338. doi: 10.16835/j.cnki.1000-9817.2023.03.004

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Functional connectivity among insula, sensory and social brain regions in boys with autism spectrum disorder

doi: 10.16835/j.cnki.1000-9817.2023.03.004

1.
Department of Children's and Adolescent Health, Public Health College, Harbin Medical University, Harbin(150081), China

Received Date: 2022-08-20
Rev Recd Date: 2022-12-12
Publish Date: 2023-03-25

Abstract

Abstract

Objective To identify the functional connectivity characteristics of insula, sensory and social related brain regions in boys with autism spectrum disorder(ASD), to explore the central nervous basis of sensory abnormality affecting core symptoms in boys with ASD. Methods Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) data were collected from 34 boys with ASD and 29 typical development boys (TD group). Based on functional connectivity analysis, the sensory-related brain regions, insula, and social-related brain regions were taken as regions of interest to calculate the functional connectivity (FC) level between the regions of interest, the differences between the two groups were compared and the results were corrected by FDR. The Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS), Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS) and Autism Spectrum Quotient-Children's Version (AQ-Child) were used to assess the core phenotypes of boys with ASD. Results Compared with the TD group, the levels of FC between tactile brain regions and insula, olfactory brain regions and insula, auditory brain regions and insula in boys with ASD group were significantly increased. The level of FC between the insula and bilateral amygdala, insula and the medial prefrontal cortex(mPFC) were significantly increased(P < 0.05).Pearson correlation analysis showed that the level of FC between auditory brain region(BA42)and left insula in ASD group was negatively correlated with the scores of communication subscale of ADOS(r=-0.44), social interaction subscale of ADOS(r=-0.43), communication & social interaction subscale of ADOS(r=-0.49), attention to details subscale of AQ-Child(r=-0.41). The level of FC between the right insula and right amygdala was positively correlated with the attention switch subscale of AQ-Child(r=0.38), the level of FC between right insula and mPFC was positively correlated with the scores of repetitive behavior subscale of ADOS(r=0.48), the attention switch subscale of AQ-Child(r=0.49), total scale subscale of AQ-Child(r=0.41), total scale of CARS(r=0.41)(P < 0.05). Conclusion The levels of FC between insula and sensory-related, social-related brain regions are abnormal in children with ASD, which have significant correlations with clinical symptoms. In-depth studies can be conducted to explore underlying neutral mechanisms.
- Autistic disorder,
- Brain,
- Sensation,
- Child,
- Male

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References(24)

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