Department of Psychology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA.
Department of Educational Studies in Psychology, Research Methodology, and Counseling, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA.
Autism Res. 2021 Jan;14(1):53-64. doi: 10.1002/aur.2425. Epub 2020 Nov 10.
Despite decades of research, the brain basis of aberrant face processing in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) remains a topic of debate. The mid-fusiform sulcus (MFS), a minor feature of the ventral occipitotemporal cortex, provides new directions for studying face processing. The MFS closely aligns with face-selective cortical patches and other structural and functional divisions of the fusiform gyrus; however, it has received little attention in clinical populations. We collected structural MRI data from 54 individuals with ASD and 61 age-and-IQ-matched controls ages 8 to 40 years. The MFS was identified on cortical surface reconstructions via 4 trained raters and classified into known surface patterns. Mean MFS gray matter volume (GMV), cortical surface area (SA), cortical thickness (CT), and standard deviation of CT (CT SD) were extracted. Effects of diagnosis, age, and hemisphere on MFS surface presentation and morphometry were assessed via multinomial logistic regression and mixed effects general linear modeling, respectively. The MFS was reliably identified in 97% of hemispheres examined. Macroanatomical patterns and age-related decreases in MFS GMV and CT were similar between groups. CT SD was greater in the left hemisphere in ASD. Participants' ability to interpret emotions and mental states from facial features was significantly negatively correlated with MFS CT and CT SD. Overall, the MFS is a stable feature of the fusiform gyrus in ASD and CT related measures appear to be sensitive to diagnosis and behavior. These results can inform future investigations of face processing and structure-function relationships in populations with social deficits. LAY SUMMARY: A small structural feature of the brain related to seeing faces (the mid-fusiform sulcus; MFS) appears similar in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and neurotypical development; however, the thickness of this structure on the left side of the brain is more variable in ASD. People who are better at judging mental states from another person's eyes tend to have thinner and less variable MFS. This feature may teach us more about face processing and how brain structure influences function in ASD.
尽管已经进行了数十年的研究，但自闭症谱系障碍 (ASD) 中异常面部处理的大脑基础仍然是一个争论的话题。中梭状回 (MFS) 是腹侧枕颞皮质的一个次要特征，为研究面部处理提供了新的方向。MFS 与选择性面部皮质斑块以及梭状回的其他结构和功能分区紧密对齐；然而，它在临床人群中受到的关注较少。我们从 54 名 ASD 患者和 61 名年龄和智商匹配的对照组（年龄 8 至 40 岁）中收集了结构 MRI 数据。通过 4 名经过培训的评估员在皮质表面重建上识别 MFS，并将其分类为已知的表面模式。提取 MFS 灰质体积 (GMV)、皮质表面积 (SA)、皮质厚度 (CT) 和 CT 标准差 (CT SD)。通过多项逻辑回归和混合效应广义线性建模分别评估诊断、年龄和半球对面部呈现和形态测量的影响。在检查的 97%的半球中可靠地识别出 MFS。两组之间 MFS 的宏观解剖模式和与年龄相关的 GMV 和 CT 减少相似。ASD 中左半球的 CT SD 较大。参与者从面部特征解释情绪和心理状态的能力与 MFS CT 和 CT SD 呈显著负相关。总体而言，MFS 是 ASD 中梭状回的稳定特征，与 CT 相关的测量值似乎对诊断和行为敏感。这些结果可以为具有社交缺陷的人群对面部处理和结构-功能关系的未来研究提供信息。
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