Cued motor processing in autism and typical development: A high‐density electrical mapping study of response‐locked neural activity in children and adolescents

Abstract

Motor atypicalities are common in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and are often evident prior to classical ASD symptoms. Despite evidence of differences in neural processing during imitation in autistic individuals, research on the integrity and spatiotemporal dynamics of basic motor processing is surprisingly sparse. To address this need, we analysed electroencephalography (EEG) data recorded from a large sample of autistic (n = 84) and neurotypical (n = 84) children and adolescents while they performed an audiovisual speeded reaction time (RT) task. Analyses focused on RTs and response‐locked motor‐related electrical brain responses over frontoparietal scalp regions: the late Bereitschaftspotential, the motor potential and the reafferent potential. Evaluation of behavioural task performance indicated greater RT variability and lower hit rates in autistic participants compared to typically developing age‐matched neurotypical participants. Overall, the data revealed clear motor‐related neural responses in ASD, but with subtle differences relative to typically developing participants evident over fronto‐central and bilateral parietal scalp sites prior to response onset. Group differences were further parsed as a function of age (6–9, 9–12 and 12–15 years), sensory cue preceding the response (auditory, visual and bi‐sensory audiovisual) and RT quartile. Group differences in motor‐related processing were most prominent in the youngest group of children (age 6–9), with attenuated cortical responses observed for young autistic participants. Future investigations assessing the integrity of such motor processes in younger children, where larger differences may be present, are warranted.

Intact Somatosensory Temporal Sensitivity in Adults on the Autism Spectrum: A High-Density Electrophysiological Mapping Study Using the Mismatch Negativity (MMN) Sensory Memory Paradigm

“…Given that additional somatosensory processes like discrimination (Zetler et al, 2019), as well as general multisensory processing (Beker et al, 2018; Crosse et al, 2022; Foxe et al, 2015; Ross et al, 2015; Wakim et al, 2023), have been shown to be most prominently dysregulated in children, but not adults, with autism, it is worth considering that delayed development of sensory-perceptual processes may be responsible. Prior work by our group in neurotypical cohorts showed a trend toward smaller N1 and larger P2 amplitudes in younger ages that receded with age, reminiscent of the current findings in autistic adults (Uppal et al, 2016).…”

Profiles of women in science: Sophie Molholm, Professor, Albert Einstein School of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA

“…The latest EJN publication from Dr. Molholm's research group is Cued motor processing in autism and typical development: A high-density electrical mapping study of response-locked neural activity in children and adolescents (Wakim et al, 2023). Dr. Molholm also serves as a Section Editor for EJN, in the cognitive neuroscience subject area.…”