Cerebellar Volumes and Sensorimotor Behavior in Autism Spectrum Disorder
BackgroundSensorimotor issues are common in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), though their neural bases are not well understood. The cerebellum is vital to sensorimotor control and reduced cerebellar volumes in ASD have been documented. Our study examined the extent to which cerebellar volumes are ass...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Frontiers Media S.A.
2022-05-01
|
| Series: | Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnint.2022.821109/full |
| _version_ | 1811212054886875136 |
|---|---|
| author | Walker S. McKinney Walker S. McKinney Shannon E. Kelly Shannon E. Kelly Kathryn E. Unruh Robin L. Shafer John A. Sweeney Martin Styner Matthew W. Mosconi Matthew W. Mosconi Matthew W. Mosconi |
| author_facet | Walker S. McKinney Walker S. McKinney Shannon E. Kelly Shannon E. Kelly Kathryn E. Unruh Robin L. Shafer John A. Sweeney Martin Styner Matthew W. Mosconi Matthew W. Mosconi Matthew W. Mosconi |
| author_sort | Walker S. McKinney |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | BackgroundSensorimotor issues are common in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), though their neural bases are not well understood. The cerebellum is vital to sensorimotor control and reduced cerebellar volumes in ASD have been documented. Our study examined the extent to which cerebellar volumes are associated with multiple sensorimotor behaviors in ASD.Materials and MethodsFifty-eight participants with ASD and 34 typically developing (TD) controls (8–30 years) completed a structural MRI scan and precision grip testing, oculomotor testing, or both. Force variability during precision gripping as well as absolute error and trial-to-trial error variability of visually guided saccades were examined. Volumes of cerebellar lobules, vermis, and white matter were quantified. The relationships between each cerebellar region of interest (ROI) and force variability, saccade error, and saccade error variability were examined.ResultsRelative to TD controls, individuals with ASD showed increased force variability. Individuals with ASD showed a reduced volume of cerebellar vermis VI-VII relative to TD controls. Relative to TD females, females with ASD showed a reduced volume of bilateral cerebellar Crus II/lobule VIIB. Increased volume of Crus I was associated with increased force variability. Increased volume of vermal lobules VI-VII was associated with reduced saccade error for TD controls but not individuals with ASD. Increased right lobule VIII and cerebellar white matter volumes as well as reduced right lobule VI and right lobule X volumes were associated with greater ASD symptom severity. Reduced volumes of right Crus II/lobule VIIB were associated with greater ASD symptom severity in only males, while reduced volumes of right Crus I were associated with more severe restricted and repetitive behaviors only in females.ConclusionOur finding that increased force variability in ASD is associated with greater cerebellar Crus I volumes indicates that disruption of sensory feedback processing supported by Crus I may contribute to skeletomotor differences in ASD. Results showing that volumes of vermal lobules VI-VII are associated with saccade precision in TD but not ASD implicates atypical organization of the brain systems supporting oculomotor control in ASD. Associations between volumes of cerebellar subregions and ASD symptom severity suggest cerebellar pathological processes may contribute to multiple developmental challenges in ASD. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-12T05:23:38Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-9464492f9ba9463a90e8bc8af1ba28b3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1662-5145 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-12T05:23:38Z |
| publishDate | 2022-05-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience |
| spelling | doaj.art-9464492f9ba9463a90e8bc8af1ba28b32022-12-22T03:46:22ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience1662-51452022-05-011610.3389/fnint.2022.821109821109Cerebellar Volumes and Sensorimotor Behavior in Autism Spectrum DisorderWalker S. McKinney0Walker S. McKinney1Shannon E. Kelly2Shannon E. Kelly3Kathryn E. Unruh4Robin L. Shafer5John A. Sweeney6Martin Styner7Matthew W. Mosconi8Matthew W. Mosconi9Matthew W. Mosconi10Schiefelbusch Institute for Life Span Studies and Kansas Center for Autism Research and Training (K-CART), University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, United StatesClinical Child Psychology Program, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, United StatesSchiefelbusch Institute for Life Span Studies and Kansas Center for Autism Research and Training (K-CART), University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, United StatesDepartment of Psychology, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, United StatesSchiefelbusch Institute for Life Span Studies and Kansas Center for Autism Research and Training (K-CART), University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, United StatesSchiefelbusch Institute for Life Span Studies and Kansas Center for Autism Research and Training (K-CART), University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, United StatesDepartment of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, United StatesDepartment of Psychiatry and Computer Science, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United StatesSchiefelbusch Institute for Life Span Studies and Kansas Center for Autism Research and Training (K-CART), University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, United StatesClinical Child Psychology Program, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, United StatesDepartment of Psychology, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, United StatesBackgroundSensorimotor issues are common in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), though their neural bases are not well understood. The cerebellum is vital to sensorimotor control and reduced cerebellar volumes in ASD have been documented. Our study examined the extent to which cerebellar volumes are associated with multiple sensorimotor behaviors in ASD.Materials and MethodsFifty-eight participants with ASD and 34 typically developing (TD) controls (8–30 years) completed a structural MRI scan and precision grip testing, oculomotor testing, or both. Force variability during precision gripping as well as absolute error and trial-to-trial error variability of visually guided saccades were examined. Volumes of cerebellar lobules, vermis, and white matter were quantified. The relationships between each cerebellar region of interest (ROI) and force variability, saccade error, and saccade error variability were examined.ResultsRelative to TD controls, individuals with ASD showed increased force variability. Individuals with ASD showed a reduced volume of cerebellar vermis VI-VII relative to TD controls. Relative to TD females, females with ASD showed a reduced volume of bilateral cerebellar Crus II/lobule VIIB. Increased volume of Crus I was associated with increased force variability. Increased volume of vermal lobules VI-VII was associated with reduced saccade error for TD controls but not individuals with ASD. Increased right lobule VIII and cerebellar white matter volumes as well as reduced right lobule VI and right lobule X volumes were associated with greater ASD symptom severity. Reduced volumes of right Crus II/lobule VIIB were associated with greater ASD symptom severity in only males, while reduced volumes of right Crus I were associated with more severe restricted and repetitive behaviors only in females.ConclusionOur finding that increased force variability in ASD is associated with greater cerebellar Crus I volumes indicates that disruption of sensory feedback processing supported by Crus I may contribute to skeletomotor differences in ASD. Results showing that volumes of vermal lobules VI-VII are associated with saccade precision in TD but not ASD implicates atypical organization of the brain systems supporting oculomotor control in ASD. Associations between volumes of cerebellar subregions and ASD symptom severity suggest cerebellar pathological processes may contribute to multiple developmental challenges in ASD.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnint.2022.821109/fullcerebellumvolumetryautism spectrum disorder (ASD)sensorimotoroculomotorMRI |
| spellingShingle | Walker S. McKinney Walker S. McKinney Shannon E. Kelly Shannon E. Kelly Kathryn E. Unruh Robin L. Shafer John A. Sweeney Martin Styner Matthew W. Mosconi Matthew W. Mosconi Matthew W. Mosconi Cerebellar Volumes and Sensorimotor Behavior in Autism Spectrum Disorder Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience cerebellum volumetry autism spectrum disorder (ASD) sensorimotor oculomotor MRI |
| title | Cerebellar Volumes and Sensorimotor Behavior in Autism Spectrum Disorder |
| title_full | Cerebellar Volumes and Sensorimotor Behavior in Autism Spectrum Disorder |
| title_fullStr | Cerebellar Volumes and Sensorimotor Behavior in Autism Spectrum Disorder |
| title_full_unstemmed | Cerebellar Volumes and Sensorimotor Behavior in Autism Spectrum Disorder |
| title_short | Cerebellar Volumes and Sensorimotor Behavior in Autism Spectrum Disorder |
| title_sort | cerebellar volumes and sensorimotor behavior in autism spectrum disorder |
| topic | cerebellum volumetry autism spectrum disorder (ASD) sensorimotor oculomotor MRI |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnint.2022.821109/full |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT walkersmckinney cerebellarvolumesandsensorimotorbehaviorinautismspectrumdisorder AT walkersmckinney cerebellarvolumesandsensorimotorbehaviorinautismspectrumdisorder AT shannonekelly cerebellarvolumesandsensorimotorbehaviorinautismspectrumdisorder AT shannonekelly cerebellarvolumesandsensorimotorbehaviorinautismspectrumdisorder AT kathryneunruh cerebellarvolumesandsensorimotorbehaviorinautismspectrumdisorder AT robinlshafer cerebellarvolumesandsensorimotorbehaviorinautismspectrumdisorder AT johnasweeney cerebellarvolumesandsensorimotorbehaviorinautismspectrumdisorder AT martinstyner cerebellarvolumesandsensorimotorbehaviorinautismspectrumdisorder AT matthewwmosconi cerebellarvolumesandsensorimotorbehaviorinautismspectrumdisorder AT matthewwmosconi cerebellarvolumesandsensorimotorbehaviorinautismspectrumdisorder AT matthewwmosconi cerebellarvolumesandsensorimotorbehaviorinautismspectrumdisorder |