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Examining the Boundary Sharpness Coefficient as an Index of Cortical Microstructure in Autism Spectrum Disorder
- Source :
- Cerebral Cortex, 31, 7, pp. 3338-3352, Cerebral Cortex, 31, 3338-3352, Cereb Cortex
- Publication Year :
- 2021
-
Abstract
- Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is associated with atypical brain development. However, the phenotype of regionally specific increased cortical thickness observed in ASD may be driven by several independent biological processes that influence the gray/white matter boundary, such as synaptic pruning, myelination, or atypical migration. Here, we propose to use the boundary sharpness coefficient (BSC), a proxy for alterations in microstructure at the cortical gray/white matter boundary, to investigate brain differences in individuals with ASD, including factors that may influence ASD-related heterogeneity (age, sex, and intelligence quotient). Using a vertex-based meta-analysis and a large multicenter structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) dataset, with a total of 1136 individuals, 415 with ASD (112 female; 303 male), and 721 controls (283 female; 438 male), we observed that individuals with ASD had significantly greater BSC in the bilateral superior temporal gyrus and left inferior frontal gyrus indicating an abrupt transition (high contrast) between white matter and cortical intensities. Individuals with ASD under 18 had significantly greater BSC in the bilateral superior temporal gyrus and right postcentral gyrus; individuals with ASD over 18 had significantly increased BSC in the bilateral precuneus and superior temporal gyrus. Increases were observed in different brain regions in males and females, with larger effect sizes in females. BSC correlated with ADOS-2 Calibrated Severity Score in individuals with ASD in the right medial temporal pole. Importantly, there was a significant spatial overlap between maps of the effect of diagnosis on BSC when compared with cortical thickness. These results invite studies to use BSC as a possible new measure of cortical development in ASD and to further examine the microstructural underpinnings of BSC-related differences and their impact on measures of cortical morphology.
- Subjects :
- Adult
Male
medicine.medical_specialty
Adolescent
Databases, Factual
Autism Spectrum Disorder
Cognitive Neuroscience
Synaptic pruning
Cortical morphology
Precuneus
Audiology
Biology
behavioral disciplines and activities
White matter
03 medical and health sciences
Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience
Superior temporal gyrus
Young Adult
0302 clinical medicine
All institutes and research themes of the Radboud University Medical Center
mental disorders
medicine
Humans
Gray Matter
10. No inequality
Child
030304 developmental biology
Aged
Cerebral Cortex
0303 health sciences
Brain Mapping
Neurodevelopmental disorders Donders Center for Medical Neuroscience [Radboudumc 7]
Intelligence quotient
220 Statistical Imaging Neuroscience
Middle Aged
medicine.disease
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
White Matter
medicine.anatomical_structure
Cerebral cortex
Autism spectrum disorder
Child, Preschool
Female
Original Article
030217 neurology & neurosurgery
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 10473211
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Cerebral Cortex, 31, 7, pp. 3338-3352, Cerebral Cortex, 31, 3338-3352, Cereb Cortex
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....bb36dca3414b2818f774940112f6e468