title: Precentral gyrus functional connectivity signatures of autism.
abstract: Motor impairments are prevalent in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and are perhaps the earliest symptoms to develop. In addition, motor skills relate to the communicative/social deficits at the core of ASD diagnosis, and these behavioral deficits may reflect abnormal connectivity within brain networks underlying motor control and learning. Despite the fact that motor abnormalities in ASD are well-characterized, there remains a fundamental disconnect between the complexity of the clinical presentation of ASD and the underlying neurobiological mechanisms. In this study, we examined connectivity within and between functional subregions of a key component of the motor control network, the precentral gyrus, using resting state functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging data collected from a large, heterogeneous sample of individuals with ASD as well as neurotypical controls. We found that the strength of connectivity within and between distinct functional subregions of the precentral gyrus was related to ASD diagnosis and to the severity of ASD traits. In particular, connectivity involving the dorsomedial (lower limb/trunk) subregion was abnormal in ASD individuals as predicted by models using a dichotomous variable coding for the presence of ASD, as well as models using symptom severity ratings. These findings provide further support for a link between motor and social/communicative abilities in ASD.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Baltimore, MD, USA ; Laboratory for Neurocognitive and Imaging Research, Kennedy Krieger Institute Baltimore, MD, USA.
authors.forename: Mary Beth
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Nebel
authors.affiliation: Department of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Baltimore, MD, USA.
authors.forename: Ani
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Eloyan
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Baltimore, MD, USA ; Laboratory for Neurocognitive and Imaging Research, Kennedy Krieger Institute Baltimore, MD, USA.
authors.forename: Anita D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Barber
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Baltimore, MD, USA ; Laboratory for Neurocognitive and Imaging Research, Kennedy Krieger Institute Baltimore, MD, USA ; Department of Psychiatry, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Baltimore, MD, USA.
authors.forename: Stewart H
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Mostofsky
keywords: autism; functional connectivity; logistic regression; motor cortex; multi-center studies; resting state fMRI