Researchers suggest a new method to measure and diagnose autism spectrum disorders by directly observing the structure of the brain.
- The diffusion MRI technique helped researchers develop mathematical models of brain microstructures that helped identify structural differences in the brains of people with autism.
- It’s a question of “electrochemical conductivity of neurons”, according to the researchers. “What we see is that in the brains of people with autism there is a difference in the diameter of microstructural components that may cause them to conduct electricity more slowly.”
- While the diagnosis of autism is generally made by observing the person’s unusual behaviors, this method is, depending on who is observing, “somewhat subjective.” However, the new technique offers “greater fidelity in terms of physiological measurements”.
What are the structural differences between the brains of autistic people and those of non-autistic people? While the origin of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) remains a mystery, making diagnosis difficult, a new study published in the journal PLOS ONE highlights an innovative approach to finding answers: the use of diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
Different brain structures in autistic people
Diffusion MRI makes it possible to measure molecular diffusion in biological tissues, in other words to observe how water moves in the brain and interacts with cell membranes. This technique helped researchers at the University of Virginia, in the United States, to develop mathematical models of brain microstructures which made it possible to identify structural differences in the brains of autistic people. Differences which were “directly related to participants’ scores on the Social Communication Questionnaire, a clinical tool for diagnosing autism”can we read in a communicated.
It is, according to researchers, a story of “electrochemical conductivity of neurons” and of “their ability to transport information through the brain”. “What we see is that in the brains of people with autism there is a difference in the diameter of the microstructural components that can cause them to conduct electricity more slowly, explains neuroscientist Benjamin Newman, lead author of the study. It’s the very structure that determines how the brain functions.”
Better diagnose autism but also other neurological disorders
“It is not a question of asking whether there is a particular difference in cognitive functional activation, but of asking how the brain actually conducts information through these dynamic networks, adds Professor John Darrell Van Horn, who participated in the work. And I think we managed to show that there is something particularly different about people diagnosed on the autism spectrum compared to subjects who develop differently.”
While the diagnosis of autism is generally made by observing the person’s unusual behaviors, the problem is that this method is, depending on who is observing, “somewhat subjective”. However, the new technique offers “greater fidelity in terms of physiological measurements” And “an interesting insight into the origins of ASD”. This study could, according to the researchers, have implications for the diagnosis and treatment of autism, but also other neurological disorders such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases.