The authors would like to thank Autumn Alexander, Jeff Killen, Charles Wells, Kathy Pearson, and Vaibhav Paneri for their help with the project at different stages. This work is supported by the UAB Department of Psychology Faculty startup funds, the McNulty-Civitan Scientist Award&amp; the CCTS Pilot Research Grant (5UL1RR025777) to RK.

1. Special Techniques for Scanning Individuals with Developmental Disabilities:
While neuroimaging itself is a complex technique, using MRI to scan the pediatric population and people with developmental disorders can be extremely challenging.The main problems are: 1) Head motion: people with disorders, especially children, may find it difficult to keep still in the fMRI scanner throughout a scanning session. This might result in head motion which in turn may affect the quality of the data; 2) Ch...

<ol>
	<li>Friston, K. J. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Functional+and+effective+connectivity+in+neuroimaging:+A+synthesis.">Functional and effective connectivity in neuroimaging: A synthesis.</a> Human Brain Mapping. 2, 56-78 (1994).</li><li>Just, M. A., Cherkassky, V. L., Keller, T. A., Minshew, N. J. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Cortical+activation+and+synchronization+during+sentence+comprehension+in+high-functioning+autism:+evidence+of+underconnectivity.">Cortical activation and synchronization during sentence comprehension in high-functioning autism: evidence of underconnectivity.</a> Brain: a journal of neurology. 127, 1811-1821 (2004).</li><li>Kana, R. K., Keller, T. A., Cherkassky, V. A., Minshew, N. J., Just, M. A. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Sentence+comprehension+in+autism:+thinking+in+pictures+with+decreased+functional+connectivity.">Sentence comprehension in autism: thinking in pictures with decreased functional connectivity.</a> Brain: a journal of neurology. 129, 2484-2493 (2006).</li><li>Koshino, H., Kana, R. K., Keller, T. A., Cherkassky, V. L., Minshew, N. J., Just, M. A. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=fMRI+Investigation+of+Working+Memory+for+Faces+in+Autism:+Visual+Coding+and+Underconnectivity+with+Frontal+Areas.">fMRI Investigation of Working Memory for Faces in Autism: Visual Coding and Underconnectivity with Frontal Areas.</a> Cerebral Cortex. 18, 289-300 (2007).</li><li>Kana, R. K., Keller, T. A., Minshew, N. J., Just, M. A. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Inhibitory+control+in+high-functioning+autism:+decreased+activation+and+underconnectivity+in+inhibition+networks.">Inhibitory control in high-functioning autism: decreased activation and underconnectivity in inhibition networks.</a> Biological Psychiatry. 62, 196-208 (2007).</li><li>Just, M. A., Cherkassky, V. L., Keller, T. A., Kana, R. K., Minshew, N. J. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Functional+and+Anatomical+Cortical+Underconnectivity+in+Autism:+Evidence+from+an+fMRI+Study+of+an+Executive+Function+Task+and+Corpus+Callosum+Morphometry.">Functional and Anatomical Cortical Underconnectivity in Autism: Evidence from an fMRI Study of an Executive Function Task and Corpus Callosum Morphometry.</a> Cerebral Cortex. 17, 951-961 (2007).</li><li>Castelli, F., Frith, C., Happe, F., Frith, U. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Autism,+Asperger+syndrome+and+brain+mechanisms+for+the+attribution+of+mental+states+to+animated+shapes.">Autism, Asperger syndrome and brain mechanisms for the attribution of mental states to animated shapes.</a> Brain. 125, 1839-1849 (2002).</li><li>Gray, C. A., Garand, J. D. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Social+stories:+Improving+responses+of+students+with+autism+with+accurate+social+information.">Social stories: Improving responses of students with autism with accurate social information.</a> Focus on Autistic Behavior. 8, 1-10 (1993).</li><li>Smith, S. M., Jenkinson, M., Woolrich, M. W., Beckmann, C. F., Behrens, T. E. J., Johansen-Berg, H. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Advances+in+functional+and+structural+MR+image+analysis+and+implementation+as+FSL.">Advances in functional and structural MR image analysis and implementation as FSL.</a> NeuroImage. 23, 208-219 (2004).</li><li>Smith, S. M., Jenkinson, M., Johansen-Berg, H., Rueckert, D., Nichols, T. E., Mackay, C. E., Watkins, K. E., Ciccarelli, O., Cader, M. Z., Matthews, P. M. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Tract-based+spatial+statistics:+Voxelwise+analysis+of+multi-subject+diffusion+data.">Tract-based spatial statistics: Voxelwise analysis of multi-subject diffusion data.</a> NeuroImage. 31, 1487-1505 (2006).</li><li>Li, Q., Sun, J., Guo, L., Zang, Y., Feng, Z., Huang, X., Yang, H., Lv, Y., Huang, M., Gong, Q. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Increased+fractional+anisotropy+in+white+matter+of+the+right+frontal+region+in+children+with+attention-deficit/hyperactivity+disorder:+a+diffusion+tensor+imaging+study.">Increased fractional anisotropy in white matter of the right frontal region in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: a diffusion tensor imaging study.</a> Neuro Endocrinol Lett. 31, 747-753 (2010).</li><li>Jeong, J. W., Sundaram, S. K., Kumar, A., Chugani, D. C., Chugani, H. T. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Aberrant+diffusion+and+geometric+properties+in+the+left+arcuate+fasciculus+of+developmentally+delayed+children:+a+diffusion+tensor+imaging+study.">Aberrant diffusion and geometric properties in the left arcuate fasciculus of developmentally delayed children: a diffusion tensor imaging study.</a> AJNR Am J Neuroradiol. 32, 323-330 (2011).</li><li>Mulder, M. J., van Belle, J., van Engeland, H., Durston, S. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Functional+connectivity+between+cognitive+control+regions+is+sensitive+to+familial+risk+for+ADHD.">Functional connectivity between cognitive control regions is sensitive to familial risk for ADHD.</a> Human Brain Mapping. , (2010).</li><li>Vourkas, M., Micheloyanni, S., Simos, P. G., Rezaie, R., Fletcher, J. M., Cirino, P. T., Papanicolaou, A. C. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Dynamic+task-specific+brain+network+connectivity+in+children+with+severe+reading+difficulties.">Dynamic task-specific brain network connectivity in children with severe reading difficulties.</a> Neurosci Lett. 488, 123-128 (2011).</li></ol>

No conflicts of interest declared.

The methods and procedures described in this paper are grounded in basic principles of cognitive neuroscience and neuroimaging. Taken together, these methods provide a compelling framework for assessing the brain functioning at the systems level in children, adults, and in people with disorders. Studies grounded in these methods have been especially influential in characterizing the discordant brain functioning in individuals with autism. 
Although the techniques presented here are transferrab...

probing the brain in autism using fmri and diffusion tensor imaging

Newly emerging theories suggest that the brain does not function as a cohesive unit in autism, and this discordance is reflected in the behavioral symptoms displayed by individuals with autism. While structural neuroimaging findings have provided some insights into brain abnormalities in autism, the consistency of such findings is questionable. Functional neuroimaging, on the other hand, has been more fruitful in this regard because autism is a disorder of dynamic processing and allows examination of communication between cortical networks, which appears to be where the underlying problem occurs in autism. Functional connectivity is defined as the temporal correlation of spatially separate neurological events1. Findings from a number of recent fMRI studies have supported the idea that there is weaker coordination between different parts of the brain that should be working together to accomplish complex social or language problems2,3,4,5,6. One of the mysteries of autism is the coexistence of deficits in several domains along with relatively intact, sometimes enhanced, abilities. Such complex manifestation of autism calls for a global and comprehensive examination of the disorder at the neural level. A compelling recent account of the brain functioning in autism, the cortical underconnectivity theory,2,7 provides an integrating framework for the neurobiological bases of autism. The cortical underconnectivity theory of autism suggests that any language, social, or psychological function that is dependent on the integration of multiple brain regions is susceptible to disruption as the processing demand increases. In autism, the underfunctioning of integrative circuitry in the brain may cause widespread underconnectivity. In other words, people with autism may interpret information in a piecemeal fashion at the expense of the whole. Since cortical underconnectivity among brain regions, especially the frontal cortex and more posterior areas 3,6, has now been relatively well established, we can begin to further understand brain connectivity as a critical component of autism symptomatology.
A logical next step in this direction is to examine the anatomical connections that may mediate the functional connections mentioned above. Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) is a relatively novel neuroimaging technique that helps probe the diffusion of water in the brain to infer the integrity of white matter fibers. In this technique, water diffusion in the brain is examined in several directions using diffusion gradients. While functional connectivity provides information about the synchronization of brain activation across different brain areas during a task or during rest, DTI helps in understanding the underlying axonal organization which may facilitate the cross-talk among brain areas. This paper will describe these techniques as valuable tools in understanding the brain in autism and the challenges involved in this line of research.

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Probing the Brain in Autism Using fMRI and Diffusion Tensor Imaging at JoVE.com

Probing the Brain in Autism Using fMRI and Diffusion Tensor Imaging

Neuroimaging techniques, such as functional MRI and Diffusion Tensor Imaging have become increasingly useful in characterizing the cognitive and neural deficits in autism. An examination of brain connectivity in autism at a network level along with adaptations for scanning children with developmental disabilities is presented.

Newly emerging theories suggest that the brain does not function as a cohesive unit in autism, and this discordance is reflected in the behavioral ...

probing-the-brain-in-autism-using-fmri-and-diffusion-tensor-imaging

Research

JoVE Journal

Medicine

24.9K Görüntüleme.  University of Alabama at Birmingham. Gibi fonksiyonel MRI ve Difüzyon Tensör Görüntüleme gibi beyin görüntüleme teknikleri, otizmde bilişsel ve nöral açıkları karakterize giderek daha yararlı hale gelmiştir. Otizm, zihinsel özürlü olan çocukların tarama için uyarlamalar ile birlikte bir ağ düzeyinde beyin bağlantısı bir inceleme sunulmaktadır.