Changes in the Sulcal Size Associated With Autism Spectrum Disorder Revealed by Sulcal Morphometry

Mahsa Shokouhi, Justin H G Williams, Gordon D Waiter, Barrie Condon

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

19 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex, neurodevelopmental disorder with various structural abnormalities for different patient groups. Because of the heterogeneity of the disorder, several biomarkers have been suggested so far. Here, we explore the potential of sulcal surface and length as biomarkers. Three-dimensional T1-weighted images of 15 adolescents of normal intelligence with ASD and 15 age-, sex-, and intelligence quotient-matched control adolescents were analysed using Brainvisa 4.0 (http://www.brainvisa.info), which automatically extracts the cortical folds and labels them as 59 sulcal pieces. For each sulcus, the surface, length, and mean geodesic depth were computed using morphometry analysis within this software package. General linear model was conducted to compare the estimated values for the two groups, ASD and control. In the ASD group, the left insula and the right intraparietal sulcus (IPS) had significantly higher values for surface and length, respectively. Nonetheless for all sulcal pieces, the mean geodesic depth was not significantly different between the two groups. Our results suggest that sulcal surface and length can have correlation with morphological changes of cortex in ASD. Greater surface area and length in insula and IPS, respectively, may reflect greater folding. This could result in greater separation of functions with an impact upon the integrative functions of these regions.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)245-252
Number of pages8
JournalAutism Research
Volume5
Issue number4
Early online date1 Jun 2012
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Aug 2012

Bibliographical note

© 2012 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Keywords

  • adolescent
  • age factors
  • biological markers
  • cerebral cortex
  • child
  • child development disorders, pervasive
  • dominance, cerebral
  • humans
  • image interpretation, computer-assisted
  • imaging, three-dimensional
  • linear models
  • magnetic resonance imaging
  • male
  • parietal lobe
  • reference values
  • software
  • statistics as topic
  • young adult
  • autism
  • sulcal morphometry
  • MRI
  • Brainvisa

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Changes in the Sulcal Size Associated With Autism Spectrum Disorder Revealed by Sulcal Morphometry'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this