Amygdala Habituation and Prefrontal Functional Connectivity in Youth With Autism Spectrum Disorders - 27/12/12
, Jillian Lee Wiggins, M.S. a, Melisa Carrasco, Ph.D. b, Catherine Lord, Ph.D. d, Christopher S. Monk, Ph.D. a, b, c
Correspondence to Johnna R. Swartz, M.S., 2221 East Hall, 530 Church Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48109Abstract |
Objective |
Amygdala habituation, the rapid decrease in amygdala responsiveness to the repeated presentation of stimuli, is fundamental to the nervous system. Habituation is important for maintaining adaptive levels of arousal to predictable social stimuli and decreased habituation is associated with heightened anxiety. Input from the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) regulates amygdala activity. Although previous research has shown abnormal amygdala function in youth with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), no study has examined amygdala habituation in a young sample or whether habituation is related to amygdala connectivity with the vmPFC.
Method |
Data were analyzed from 32 children and adolescents with ASD and 56 typically developing controls who underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging while performing a gender identification task for faces that were fearful, happy, sad, or neutral. Habituation was tested by comparing amygdala activation to faces during the first half versus the second half of the session. VmPFC-amygdala connectivity was examined through psychophysiologic interaction analysis.
Results |
Youth with ASD had decreased amygdala habituation to sad and neutral faces compared with controls. Moreover, decreased amygdala habituation correlated with autism severity as measured by the Social Responsiveness Scale. There was a group difference in vmPFC-amygdala connectivity while viewing sad faces, and connectivity predicted amygdala habituation to sad faces in controls.
Conclusions |
Sustained amygdala activation to faces suggests that repeated face presentations are processed differently in individuals with ASD, which could contribute to social impairments. Abnormal modulation of the amygdala by the vmPFC may play a role in decreased habituation.
Le texte complet de cet article est disponible en PDF.Key Words : functional magnetic resonance imaging, habituation, autism, adolescent, emotion
Plan
| This article is discussed in an editorial by Dr. Tonya J.H. White on page 9. |
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| This research was supported by Autism Speaks (C.S.M.) and the National Institutes of Health grants U19 HD035482 and MH066496 (C.L.). |
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| Data from this paper were presented as a poster at the 2012 meeting of the Society of Biological Psychiatry. |
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| The authors thank Jeff Rosen of the University of Michigan for programming assistance. The authors also thank the University of Michigan Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Center for technical support and Nicole Cook and Samantha Ashinoff of the University of Michigan for data collection assistance. The authors thank the families for participation in this study. |
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| Disclosure: Dr. Lord has received royalties from a publisher of diagnostic instruments described in this article. She gives all profits generated by the University of Michigan Autism and Communication Disorders Center to a charity. Drs. Carrasco and Monk, Ms. Swartz, and Ms. Wiggins report no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interest. |
Vol 52 - N° 1
P. 84-93 - janvier 2013 Retour au numéro
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