The first 1000 days of the autistic brain: a systematic review of diffusion imaging studies

Conti, Eugenia; Calderoni, Sara; Marchi, Viviana; Muratori, Filippo; Cioni, Giovanni; Guzzetta, Andrea

doi:10.3389/fnhum.2015.00159

Cited by 48 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 46 publications

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“…This is in accordance with the existing literature exploring brain structural connectivity in toddlers with ASD, showing an overall tendency to brain over-connectivity in ASD versus typically developing peers, observed at around 30 months of age, when autistic features start to be clinically detected, or even before [Conti et al, 2015]. This is in accordance with the existing literature exploring brain structural connectivity in toddlers with ASD, showing an overall tendency to brain over-connectivity in ASD versus typically developing peers, observed at around 30 months of age, when autistic features start to be clinically detected, or even before [Conti et al, 2015].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…Advanced connectivity studies are emerging in the literature reporting disrupted connectivity in toddlers with ASD, detectable even before the full phenotypic expression of the disorder [Conti et al, 2015]. At such a young age, head circumference has been consistently reported to show abnormal growth patterns in ASD Specifically, normal brain size at birth is probably followed by a rapid rate of growth in the first 2-4 years of life with a later normalization of head circumference [Courchesne et al, 2011a;Sacco et al, 2015].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Network over‐connectivity differentiates autism spectrum disorder from other developmental disorders in toddlers: A diffusion MRI study

Conti

Mitra

Calderoni

et al. 2017

Human Brain Mapping

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Advanced connectivity studies in toddlers with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are increasing and consistently reporting a disruption of brain connectivity. However, most of these studies compare ASD and typically developing subjects, thus providing little information on the specificity of the abnormalities detected in comparison with other developmental disorders (other-DD). We recruited subjects aged below 36 months who received a clinical diagnosis of Neurodevelopmental Disorder (32 ASD and 16 other-DD including intellectual disability and language disorder) according to DSM-IV TR. Structural and diffusion MRI were acquired to perform whole brain probabilistic and anatomically constrained tractography. Network connectivity matrices were built encoding the number of streamlines (D ) and the tract-averaged fractional anisotropy (D ) values connecting each pair of cortical and subcortical regions. Network Based Statistics (NBS) was finally applied on the connectivity matrices to evaluate the network differences between the ASD and other-DD groups. The network differences resulted in an over-connectivity pattern (i.e., higher D and D values) in the ASD group with a significance of P < 0.05. No contra-comparison results were found. The over-connectivity pattern in ASD occurred in networks primarily involving the fronto-temporal nodes, known to be crucial for social-skill development and basal ganglia, related to restricted and repetitive behaviours in ASD. To our knowledge, this is the first network-based diffusion study comparing toddlers with ASD and those with other-DD. Results indicate the detection of different connectivity patterns in ASD and other-DD at an age when clinical differential diagnosis is often challenging. Hum Brain Mapp 38:2333-2344, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Network over‐connectivity differentiates autism spectrum disorder from other developmental disorders in toddlers: A diffusion MRI study

Conti

Mitra

Calderoni

et al. 2017

Human Brain Mapping

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“…19 More recent work further suggests that the “autistic brain” is characterized by hypo-connectivity rather than focal cortical abnormalities. 20 …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Social Responsiveness Scale Assessment of the Preterm Behavioral Phenotype in 10-Year-Olds Born Extremely Preterm

Korzeniewski

Joseph

Kim

et al. 2017

J Dev Behav Pediatr

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Objectives To evaluate the correlates of a clinically significant high score on the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS) in 10-year-old children who were born extremely preterm and who did not meet criteria for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Methods After excluding 61 participants diagnosed with ASD, we grouped children by IQ < or ≥ 85 and then compared the prevalence of neurocognitive and other deficits between those who had SRS total and component scores ≥ 65 and their peers who had lower scores. Results Among children who had IQ ≥ 85, the prevalence of SRS total scores ≥ 65 was 16% (n=103/628), and among children who had IQ < 85 it was 27% (n=40/148), higher than the 4% prevalence expected based on normative population data. Among children who had IQ ≥ 85, those who had high SRS scores more often than their peers had deficits in attention and executive function, and language and communication, and they were more often rated by their parents and teachers as having behavioral (e.g., ADHD) and emotional (e.g., anxiety, depression) problems. Conclusions SRS-defined social impairment was much more common in our cohort of 10-year-old children born extremely preterm than was expected based on general population norms. High SRS scores were characteristic of children who had intellectual, neurocognitive, language and communication limitations, as well as deficits in behavior and emotion regulation.

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“…Emerging findings from DTI studies in particular suggest that there are age-dependent atypicalities in the microstructural organization of white matter tracts in infants who later meet criteria for ASD [37]. Specifically, Wolff et al [38] identified higher fractional anisotropy (FA) at 6 months of age in high-risk infant siblings with later emerging ASD compared to infants without ASD; this increased in FA was followed by a slower rate of development in ASD infants such that by 24 months, ASD infants had lower values than infants without ASD.…”

Section: Early Markers Of Asd: What Have We Learned From Studies Of Tmentioning

confidence: 99%

The emergence of autism spectrum disorder

Varcin

Jeste

2017

Current Opinion in Psychiatry

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Purpose of review We review studies of infants at risk for autism spectrum disorder (ASD), proposing that the earliest manifestations of disrupted brain development can shed light on pre-behavioural markers of risk and mechanisms underlying the heterogeneity of ASD. Recent findings Prospective, longitudinal studies of infants at-risk for ASD have revealed that behavioural signs of ASD are generally not observed until the second year of life. The developmental signs within the first year are often subtle and rooted in processes outside the core diagnostic domains of ASD, such as motor and visual-perceptual function. However, studies examining early brain development and function have identified a myriad of atypicalities within the first year that are associated with risk for ASD. Summary Longitudinal studies of high risk infants provide a unique opportunity to identify and quantify the sources of the atypical development and developmental heterogeneity of ASD. Integration of assays of behaviour and brain in the first year of life, expansion of the definition of high-risk, and coordinated efforts in multi-site investigations to adequately power integrative studies will lead to new insights into mechanisms of atypical development and, ultimately, the ideal timing and target for interventions that aim to attenuate delays or impairments.

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The first 1000 days of the autistic brain: a systematic review of diffusion imaging studies

Cited by 48 publications

References 46 publications

Network over‐connectivity differentiates autism spectrum disorder from other developmental disorders in toddlers: A diffusion MRI study

Network over‐connectivity differentiates autism spectrum disorder from other developmental disorders in toddlers: A diffusion MRI study

Social Responsiveness Scale Assessment of the Preterm Behavioral Phenotype in 10-Year-Olds Born Extremely Preterm

The emergence of autism spectrum disorder

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