Anterior prefrontal hemodynamic connectivity in conscious 3- to 7-year-old children with typical development and autism spectrum disorder

PLoS One. 2013;8(2):e56087. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0056087. Epub 2013 Feb 13.

Abstract

Socio-communicative impairments are salient features of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) from a young age. The anterior prefrontal cortex (aPFC), or Brodmann area 10, is a key processing area for social function, and atypical development of this area is thought to play a role in the social deficits in ASD. It is important to understand these brain functions in developing children with ASD. However, these brain functions have not yet been well described under conscious conditions in young children with ASD. In the present study, we focused on the brain hemodynamic functional connectivity between the right and the left aPFC in children with ASD and typically developing (TD) children and investigated whether there was a correlation between this connectivity and social ability. Brain hemodynamic fluctuations were measured non-invasively by near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) in 3- to 7-year-old children with ASD (n = 15) and gender- and age-matched TD children (n = 15). The functional connectivity between the right and the left aPFC was assessed by measuring the coherence for low-frequency spontaneous fluctuations (0.01-0.10 Hz) during a narrated picture-card show. Coherence analysis demonstrated that children with ASD had a significantly higher inter-hemispheric connectivity with 0.02-Hz fluctuations, whereas a power analysis did not demonstrate significant differences between the two groups in terms of low frequency fluctuations (0.01-0.10 Hz). This aberrant higher connectivity in children with ASD was positively correlated with the severity of social deficit, as scored with the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule. This is the first study to demonstrate aberrant brain functional connectivity between the right and the left aPFC under conscious conditions in young children with ASD.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Child
  • Child Development / physiology*
  • Child Development Disorders, Pervasive / physiopathology*
  • Child, Preschool
  • Consciousness
  • Female
  • Functional Laterality / physiology
  • Hemodynamics*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Prefrontal Cortex / physiopathology*
  • Spectroscopy, Near-Infrared
  • Visual Perception / physiology

Grants and funding

This study was supported by the Hokuriku Innovation Cluster for Health Science (MEXT Program for Fostering Regional Innovation) and the Strategic Research Program for Brain Sciences from MEXT, Japan. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.