Reduced prefrontal hemodynamic response in pediatric autism spectrum disorder measured with near-infrared spectroscopy

Abstract

Background Functional neuroimaging studies suggest that prefrontal cortex dysfunction is present in people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Near-infrared spectroscopy is a noninvasive optical tool for examining oxygenation and hemodynamic changes in the cerebral cortex by measuring changes in oxygenated hemoglobin. Methods Twelve drug-naïve male participants, aged 7–15 years and diagnosed with ASD according to DSM-5 criteria, and 12 age- and intelligence quotient (IQ)-matched healthy control males participated in the present study after giving informed consent. Relative concentrations of oxyhemoglobin were measured with frontal probes every 0.1 s during the Stroop color-word task, using 24-channel near-infrared spectroscopy. Results Oxyhemoglobin changes during the Stroop color-word task in the ASD group were significantly smaller than those in the control group at channels 12 and 13, located over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (FDR-corrected P: 0.0021–0.0063). Conclusion The results suggest that male children with ASD have reduced prefrontal hemodynamic responses, measured with near-infrared spectroscopy.

Cortical activation during cooperative joint actions and competition in children with and without an autism spectrum condition (ASC): an fNIRS study

“…In terms of cortical activation, children with an ASC have atypical activation over the regions important for OEMS (including IFG, STS, and IPL), executive functioning (including the prefrontal cortices/MFG), and intention understanding (including temporoparietal junction/STS and prefrontal cortices) that might reflect their difficulties in engaging in different types of dyadic play 17 , 43 , 44 . Most fMRI studies have investigated ASC-related cortical activation when the participants imitated/followed others finger/hand motions and reported atypical activation over OEMS regions 16 , 17 .…”

From Neurodevelopmental to Neurodegenerative Disorders: The Vascular Continuum

“…Neurovascular coupling alterations were also observed in ASD patients. Hemodynamic responses in children with ASD during a color-word task were significantly lower than the control group, especially in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (Uratani et al, 2019). Conversely, children displayed no difference in hemoglobin concentrations in the prefrontal cortex during a letter fluency task, while adults showed reduced responses (Kawakubo et al, 2009).…”

“…For example, various contact-sport players developed TBI-associated dementia or parkinsonism years after retiring. TBI can induce acute BBB disruption through Ohnishi et al, 2000;Zilbovicius et al, 2000;Burroni et al, 2008;Reynell and Harris, 2013;Jann et al, 2015;Ouellette et al, 2020;Uratani et al, 2019 Altered BBB and angiogenesis -Reduced level of adhesion molecules (CD31 and P-selectin).…”

Cortical Activation during Cooperative and Competitive Joint Actions in Children With and Without Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) – An fNIRS Study

“…In terms of cortical activation, children with ASD have atypical activation over the regions important for OEMS (including IFG, STS, and IPL), executive functioning (including the prefrontal cortices/MFG), and intention understanding (including temporoparietal junction/STS and the prefrontal cortices) that might re ect their di culties in performing different types of joint actions 17,41,42 . Most fMRI studies have investigated ASD-related cortical activation that asked participants to imitate/follow others and reported atypical activation over OEMS regions [16][17] .…”

“…Using fNIRS, our research group has also reported hypoactivation in the IFG and STS regions along with hyperactivation in the IPL region when children with ASD engaged in synchronous reaching or whole-body sway motions while following the lead of an adult partner [27][28] . Although activation differences between leading and turn-taking joint actions are not well-studied; studies have found reduced prefrontal activation in individuals with ASD during executive functioning tasks requiring inhibition control and motor planning 41 . Such atypical prefrontal activation might also present in children with ASD during leading and turn-taking because these tasks require signi cant motor planning and response inhibition.…”