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This position paper explores the needs of rural families of children, adolescents, and adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to COVID-19, literature portrays elevated stress in families of individuals with ASD and health and socioeconomic disparities for rural and underserved populations. These disparities were exacerbated due to COVID-19 and subsequent lockdowns and economic turmoil. Academic and adaptive skills training were particularly impacted due to school closures, with parents tasked with taking some responsibility for training these skills. Our goals for this article focus on special considerations for rural families regarding: (1) neurobiological and developmental impacts of stressful experiences like COVID-19; (2) delineation of the impacts on individuals with ASD and other comorbid and related conditions; and (3) education and intervention needs during these times. Finally, we offer suggestions for future care during pandemic events, including recommendations for improving service delivery under such conditions.

There is growing evidence of altered connectivity in autism spectrum disorders (ASD) between the cerebellum and cortex. Three intrinsic connectivity networks (ICNs) are especially important to cognitive processing in ASD: the default mode network (DMN), executive control network (ECN), and salience networks (SNs). The goal of this study was to compare resting-state functional connectivity between the cerebellum and the DMN, ECN, and SN in ASD and typically developing children (n = 74, ages 7-12 years). Children with ASD showed stronger connectivity between the ventral DMN and left cerebellar lobules I-IV. No meaningful relationships were observed between ICN-cerebellar functional connectivity and ASD symptoms. These results suggest that the cerebellum contributes to altered network connectivity in ASD.

There is growing evidence of altered connectivity in autism spectrum disorders (ASD) between the cerebellum and cortex. Three intrinsic connectivity networks (ICNs) are especially important to cognitive processing in ASD: the default mode network (DMN), executive control network (ECN), and salience networks (SNs). The goal of this study was to compare resting-state functional connectivity between the cerebellum and the DMN, ECN, and SN in ASD and typically developing children (n = 74, ages 7-12 years). Children with ASD showed stronger connectivity between the ventral DMN and left cerebellar lobules I-IV. No meaningful relationships were observed between ICN-cerebellar functional connectivity and ASD symptoms. These results suggest that the cerebellum contributes to altered network connectivity in ASD., Author(s): Haley M. Bednarz [sup.1] , Rajesh K. Kana [sup.1] Author Affiliations: (Aff1) grid.265892.2, 0000000106344187, Department of Psychology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, , CIRC 235G, 1719 6th Ave South, [...]

Language, believed to have originated from actions, not only functions as a medium to access other minds, but it also helps us commit actions and enriches our social life. This fMRI study investigated the semantic and neural representations of actions and mental states. We focused mainly on language semantics (comprehending sentences with "action" words versus those with "mental state" words). While in an fMRI scanner, twenty-four healthy, right-handed adult volunteers read a series of sentences with a verb depicting either a "mental state" (e.g., deceive, persuade) or an "action" (e.g., punch, kick), and answered a comprehension question that followed. Overall, this task showed brain activation in the left inferior frontal gyrus and in the left posterior superior temporal sulci. While comprehending sentences with mental state terms, participants showed greater activation in left orbitofrontal, and in left precuneus areas. On the other hand, the action sentences recruited more primary motor, left inferior parietal, bilateral occipital, right superior temporal, and right inferior frontal areas. The findings of this study underscore the role of motor and visuospatial involvement in action word representation in the human brain. (Contains 1 table and 3 figures.)

The intersection of Theory of Mind (ToM) processing and complex narrative comprehension in high functioning autism was examined by comparing cortical activation during the reading of passages that required inferences based on either intentions, emotional states, or physical causality. Right hemisphere activation was substantially greater for all sentences in the autism group than in a matched control group suggesting decreased LH capacity in autism resulting in a "spillover of processing" to RH homologs. Moreover, the ToM network was disrupted. The autism group showed similar activation for all inference types in the right temporo-parietal component of the ToM network whereas the control participants selectively activated this network only when appropriate. The autism group had lower functional connectivity within the ToM network and also between the ToM and a left hemisphere language network. Furthermore, the within-network functional connectivity in autism was correlated with the size of the anterior portion of the corpus callosum.

Comprehending high-imagery sentences like "The number eight when rotated 90 degrees looks like a pair of eyeglasses" involves the participation and integration of several cortical regions. The linguistic content must be processed to determine what is to be mentally imaged, and then the mental image must be evaluated and related to the sentence. A theory of cortical underconnectivity in autism predicts that the interregional collaboration required between linguistic and imaginal processing in this task would be underserved in autism. This functional MRI study examined brain activation in 12 participants with autism and 13 age- and IQ-matched control participants while they processed sentences with either high- or low-imagery content. The analysis of functional connectivity among cortical regions showed that the language and spatial centres in the participants with autism were not as well synchronized as in controls. In addition to the functional connectivity differences, there was also a group difference in activation. In the processing of low-imagery sentences (e.g. "Addition, subtraction and multiplication are all math skills"), the use of imagery is not essential to comprehension. Nevertheless, the autism group activated parietal and occipital brain regions associated with imagery for comprehending both the low and high-imagery sentences, suggesting that they were using mental imagery in both conditions. In contrast, the control group showed imagery-related activation primarily in the high-imagery condition. The findings provide further evidence of underintegration of language and imagery in autism (and hence expand the understanding of underconnectivity) but also show that people with autism are more reliant on visualization to support language comprehension.