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. 2025 Jul 25:16:1590185.
doi: 10.3389/fneur.2025.1590185. eCollection 2025.

Functional near-infrared spectroscopy characteristics in children with autism spectrum disorder under animated video modeling therapy

Chuanhua Zhu #  1 , Hongwei Li #  1 , Lina Zhang  1 , Yonglu Liu  1 , Yangyang Zhang  1 , Binbin Huang  2 , Wei Li  1
Affiliations

Functional near-infrared spectroscopy characteristics in children with autism spectrum disorder under animated video modeling therapy

Chuanhua Zhu et al. Front Neurol. .

Abstract

Objective: To investigate the impact of animated video modeling (AVM) on the brain function of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS).

Methods: Fifteen children with ASD and 15 matched typically developing (TD) controls were enrolled. fNIRS was used to obtain 8-min data in quiet and visually stimulated states, with the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), and bilateral occipital lobe as regions of interest (ROIs). Based on the concentration of oxygenated hemoglobin (HbO2) over time, correlation coefficient analysis was performed to calculate functional connection strength, and the intergroup disparity was compared.

Result: The ASD group showed significantly lower functional connection strength. Comparison of the ROI-ROI functional connectivity strength revealed significant differences in connectivity patterns of the right dorsolateral prefrontal lobe (RDLPFC), left dorsolateral prefrontal lobe (LDLPFC), mPFC, right occipital lobe (ROL), and left occipital lobe (LOL) with other brain regions. Extremely significant differences were found between the RDLPFC/RPMC, ROL/RPMC, LOL/RPMC, and LOL/LIPL. The functional connectivity strength of children with ASD was significantly higher during visual stimulation than during the quiet test. Comparison between the ROI-ROI functional connectivity strengths revealed significant differences in the connectivity strength of the RDLPFC/LOL, LDLPFC/LIPL, mPFC/RPMC, mPFC/LPMC, mPFC/LIPL, ROL/RPM, ROL. RIPL, ROL/LIPL, and LOL/LIPL. Extremely significant differences were observed between the ROL/RPMC and ROL/RIPL.

Conclusion: Animated video modeling can improve visual perception and information processing in children with ASD, by strengthening the functional connectivity between the occipital and inferior parietal cortices.

Keywords: animated video modeling; autism spectrum disorder; brain functional connectivity; functional near-infrared spectroscopy; visual stimulation.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Schematic diagram of experimental data acquisition. (a) Photo obtained from a participant during data collection in the quiet state. (b) Photo obtained from a participant during data collection in the visual stimulation state.
Figure 2
Figure 2
(a) Top view, (b) Frontal view, and (c) Back view of the brain regions covered by 63 fNIRS channels. Color-coded regions: dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC, red), medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC, blue), premotor cortex (PMC, purple), inferior parietal lobe (IPL, yellow), and occipital lobe (OL, gray).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Spatial patterns of functional connectivity in the ASD and TD groups. (a) Functional connectivity maps for the ASD and TD groups. (b) Histograms of the functional connectivity distribution in the ASD and TD groups. TD: typically developing, ASD: autism spectrum disorder.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Spatial patterns of functional connectivity in the ASD group in the quiet and visual stimulation states. (a) Functional connectivity maps for the ASD group. (b) Histograms of the functional connectivity distribution. TD: typically developing, ASD: autism spectrum disorder.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Spatial patterns of functional connectivity in the ASD group during quiet and visual stimulation state. (a) Functional connectivity maps of the ASD group. (b) Histograms of the functional connectivity distribution. TD: typically developing, ASD: autism spectrum disorder.
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