Citation

Ni HC, Lin HY, Tseng WI, Chiu YN, Wu YY, Tsai WC, Gau SS. Prog. Neuropsychopharmacol. Biol. Psychiatry 2018; 82: 233-241.

Affiliation

Department of Psychiatry, National Taiwan University Hospital and College of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan; Graduate Institute of Clinical Medicine, National Taiwan University College of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan; Graduate Institute of Brain and Mind Sciences, National Taiwan University College of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan. Electronic address: gaushufe@ntu.edu.tw.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.pnpbp.2017.11.008

PMID

29129723

Abstract

Although recent studies revealed impaired self-regulation (dysregulation) in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), neural correlates of dysregulation and its impacts on autistic neuroanatomy remain unclear. Voxel-based morphometry was applied on structural MRI images in 81 ASD and 61 typically developing (TD) boys aged 7-17years. Dysregulation was defined by the sum of T-scores of Attention, Aggression, and Anxiety/Depression subscales in the Child Behavior Checklist>180. There were 53 and 28 boys in the ASD+Dysregulation and ASD-Dysregulation groups, respectively. First, we compared regional gray matter (GM) volume for ASD and TD. Second, we investigated regional GM volumetric differences among the ASD+Dysregulation, ASD-Dysregulation and TD groups. Lastly, shared and distinct neurostructural correlates of dysregulation were investigated in the ASD and TD groups. The ASD-TD difference on neuroanatomy no longer existed after controlling the dysregulation severity. ASD+Dysregulation had larger regional GM volumes in the right fusiform gyrus, and smaller GM volumes in the anterior prefrontal cortex than ASD-Dysregulation and TD, respectively. ASD+Dysregulation had smaller GM volumes in the left lateral occipital/superior parietal cortex than TD boys. No GM difference was identified between ASD-Dysregulation and TD. ASD and TD had a shared association between GM volumes in the orbitofrontal cortex and dysregulation levels. Our findings suggest that atypical neuroanatomy associated with ASD might partially reflect a disproportionate level of impaired self-regulation. Categorical and dimensional considerations of dysregulation should be implemented in future ASD studies.

Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Language: en

Keywords

Autism spectrum disorder; Child behavior checklist; Dysregulation; Structural MRI; Voxel-based morphometry