Montenegro Julia T P, Seguin Diane, Duerden Emma G
Applied Psychology, Faculty of Education, Western University, Faculty of Education Building 1137 Western Road, London, Ontario N6G1G7, Canada.
Physiology & Pharmacology, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, Medical Science Building, Room 216 1151 Richmond St, London, Ontario N6A5C1, Canada.
Cereb Cortex Commun. 2022 Jul 22;3(3):tgac029. doi: 10.1093/texcom/tgac029. eCollection 2022.
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a heritable neurodevelopmental disorder. Infants diagnosed with ASD can show impairments in spontaneous gaze-following and will seldom engage in joint attention (JA). The ability to initiate JA (IJA) can be more significantly impaired than the ability to respond to JA (RJA). In a longitudinal study, 101 infants who had a familial risk for ASD were enrolled (62% males). Participants completed magnetic resonance imaging scans at 4 or 6 months of age. Subcortical volumes (thalamus, hippocampus, amygdala, basal ganglia, ventral diencephalon, and cerebellum) were automatically extracted. Early gaze and JA behaviors were assessed with standardized measures. The majority of infants were IJA nonresponders ( = 93, 92%), and over half were RJA nonresponders ( = 50, 52%). In the nonresponder groups, models testing the association of subcortical volumes with later ASD diagnosis accounted for age, sex, and cerebral volumes. In the nonresponder IJA group, using regression method, the left hippocampus ( = -0.009, aOR = 0.991, = 0.025), the right thalamus ( = -0.016, aOR = 0.984, = 0.026), as well as the left thalamus ( = 0.015, aOR = 1.015, = 0.019), predicted later ASD diagnosis. Alterations in thalamic and hippocampal macrostructure in at-risk infants who do not engage in IJA may reflect an enhanced vulnerability and may be the key predictors of later ASD development.
自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）是一种遗传性神经发育障碍。被诊断为ASD的婴儿在自发注视跟随方面可能存在缺陷，并且很少参与共同注意（JA）。发起共同注意（IJA）的能力可能比回应共同注意（RJA）的能力受损更严重。在一项纵向研究中，招募了101名有ASD家族风险的婴儿（62%为男性）。参与者在4或6个月大时完成了磁共振成像扫描。自动提取了皮质下体积（丘脑、海马体、杏仁核、基底神经节、腹侧间脑和小脑）。使用标准化测量方法评估早期注视和共同注意行为。大多数婴儿是IJA无反应者（n = 93，92%），超过一半是RJA无反应者（n = 50，52%）。在无反应者组中，测试皮质下体积与后期ASD诊断之间关联的模型考虑了年龄、性别和脑容量。在无反应者IJA组中，使用回归方法，左侧海马体（β = -0.009，调整后比值比[aOR]=0.991，P = 0.025）、右侧丘脑（β = -0.016，aOR = 0.984，P = 0.026）以及左侧丘脑（β = 0.015，aOR = 1.015，P = 0.019）可预测后期ASD诊断。不参与IJA的高危婴儿丘脑和海马体宏观结构的改变可能反映了更高的易感性，并且可能是后期ASD发展的关键预测指标。
