The neural circuitry of autism

Abstract

Autism is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder, characterized by deficits in social emotional, and language domains, as well as repetitive restrictive behaviors. The vast heterogeneity of the clinical and behavioral symptoms has made it rather difficult to delineate the neural circuitry affiliated with these domains of dysfunction. The current review aims at broadly outlining the latest research into the neurobiology and neural circuitry underlying the core domains of deficits in autism. We further discuss new avenues of research that can further our understanding of the dimensions of this complex disorder.

Figure1

A schematic illustration of research in autism. EEG, electroencephelogram; ERP, event-related potentials; FMRI, functional magnetic resonance imaging; DTI, diffusion tensor imaging; SNP, single-nucleotide polymorphism

Figure 2

Model of autisms: reproduced from Geschwind 2009 (Geschwind 2009)

Figure 3

Dorsal and ventral regions implicated in executive attention (red) and social-affective processing (blue). Green regions interface these circuits.

Figure 4

Association between cingulated and parietal actovation and RRBs Adapted form Shafritz, 2008 (Shafritz et al 2008)

Figure 5

Schematic pathways of executive control (red) and social-affective processing (green). Red-yellow arrows indicate interaction nodes.

Figure 6

Sensory information from the sensory association cortex is sent to the amygdala, where its emotional significance is assessed. If the sensory information is deemed threatening (red pathway), projections from the posterior OFC activate GABAergic neurons. Derived from Barbas 2007 (Barbas 2007).

Figure 7

Frontal activation is attenuated by social context in individuals with Autism. Reprinted with permission from the American Journal of Psychiatry, (Copyright 2009).

Figure 8

Cortical Activation Patterns to social and non-social targets in neurotypical and Autism Spectrum Disorder individuals. Adapted from Dichter et al., 2009.

Figure 9

Adapted from Geschwind and Levitt (Geschwind and Levitt 2007)

Figure 10

Representation of the role of the anterior Insula in task-adaptive response generation. Reprinted with permission from Uddin, 2009.