Institute of Medical Device and Imaging, National Taiwan University College of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan.
The Ph.D. Program for Neural Regenerative Medicine, College of Medical Science and Technology, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan.
J Child Psychol Psychiatry. 2017 May;58(5):576-585. doi: 10.1111/jcpp.12641. Epub 2016 Sep 28.
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder with social communication deficits as one of the core symptoms. Recently, a five-level model for the social communication has been proposed in which white matter tracts corresponding to each level of the model are identified. Given that the model for social communication subserves social language functions, we hypothesized that the tract integrity of the model for social communication may be reduced in ASD, and the reduction may be related to social communication deficits.
Sixty-two right-handed boys with ASD and 55 typically developing (TD) boys received clinical evaluations, intelligence tests, the Social Communication Questionnaire (SCQ), and MRI scans. Generalized fractional anisotropy (GFA) was measured by diffusion spectrum imaging to indicate the microstructural integrity of the tracts for each level of the social communication model. Group difference in the tract integrity and its relationship with the SCQ subscales of social communication and social interaction were investigated.
We found that the GFA values of the superior longitudinal fasciculus III (SLF III, level 1) and the frontal aslant tracts (FAT, level 2) were decreased in ASD compared to TD. Moreover, the GFA values of the SLF III and the FAT were associated with the social interaction subscale in ASD.
The tract integrity of the model for social communication is reduced in ASD, and the reduction is associated with impaired social interaction. Our results support that reduced tract integrity of the model for social communication might be a neural substrate of social communication deficits in ASD.
自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）是一种神经发育障碍，其核心症状之一是社交沟通障碍。最近，提出了一个社交沟通的五级模型，该模型确定了与每个级别相对应的白质束。鉴于社交沟通模型服务于社交语言功能，我们假设 ASD 患者的社交沟通模型的束完整性可能会降低，并且这种降低可能与社交沟通障碍有关。
62 名右利手 ASD 男孩和 55 名典型发育（TD）男孩接受了临床评估、智力测试、社会沟通问卷（SCQ）和 MRI 扫描。弥散光谱成像测量广义分数各向异性（GFA），以指示社交沟通模型各个级别的束的微观结构完整性。研究了束完整性的组间差异及其与 SCQ 社交沟通和社交互动分量表的关系。
我们发现 ASD 组的上纵束 III（SLF III，第 1 级）和额斜束（FAT，第 2 级）的 GFA 值低于 TD 组。此外，SLF III 和 FAT 的 GFA 值与 ASD 中的社交互动分量表相关。
ASD 患者的社交沟通模型的束完整性降低，这种降低与社交互动受损有关。我们的结果支持社交沟通模型的束完整性降低可能是 ASD 中社交沟通障碍的神经基础。
