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Regional brain chemical alterations in young children with autism spectrum disorder.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Friedman, SD; Shaw, DW; Artru, AA; Richards, TL; Gardner, J; Dawson, G; Posse, S; Dager, SR
Published in: Neurology
January 14, 2003

OBJECTIVE: The authors evaluated regional brain chemistry for evidence of increased neuronal packing density in autism. METHODS: Forty-five 3- to 4-year-old children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), 13 children with typical development (TD), and 15 children with delayed development (DD) were studied using dual-echo proton echoplanar spectroscopic imaging (32 x 32 matrix-1 cm(3) voxels) to measure brain chemical concentrations and relaxation times. Chemical quantification was corrected for tissue partial volume and relative measures of chemical relaxation (T(2r)) were calculated from the paired echoes. Measures from averaged and individual regions were compared using analysis of variance corrected for multiple comparisons. RESULTS: ASD subjects demonstrated reduced N-acetylaspartate (NAA) (-10%), creatine (Cre) (-8%), and myo-inositol (-13%) concentrations compared to TD controls and prolonged NAA T(2r) relative to TD (7%) and DD (9%) groups. Compared to DD subjects, children with ASD also demonstrated prolonged T(2r) for choline (10%) and Cre (9%). Regional analyses demonstrated subtle patterns of chemical alterations in ASD compared to the TD and DD groups. CONCLUSIONS: Brain chemical abnormalities are present in ASD at 3 to 4 years of age. However, the direction and widespread distribution of these abnormalities do not support hypothesis of diffuse increased neuronal packing density in ASD.

Duke Scholars

Published In

Neurology

DOI

EISSN

1526-632X

Publication Date

January 14, 2003

Volume

60

Issue

1

Start / End Page

100 / 107

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • Sex Distribution
  • Reference Values
  • Neuropsychological Tests
  • Neurons
  • Neurology & Neurosurgery
  • Male
  • Inositol
  • Humans
  • Female
  • Echo-Planar Imaging
 

Citation

APA
Chicago
ICMJE
MLA
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Friedman, S. D., Shaw, D. W., Artru, A. A., Richards, T. L., Gardner, J., Dawson, G., … Dager, S. R. (2003). Regional brain chemical alterations in young children with autism spectrum disorder. Neurology, 60(1), 100–107. https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.60.1.100
Friedman, S. D., D. W. Shaw, A. A. Artru, T. L. Richards, J. Gardner, G. Dawson, S. Posse, and S. R. Dager. “Regional brain chemical alterations in young children with autism spectrum disorder.Neurology 60, no. 1 (January 14, 2003): 100–107. https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.60.1.100.
Friedman SD, Shaw DW, Artru AA, Richards TL, Gardner J, Dawson G, et al. Regional brain chemical alterations in young children with autism spectrum disorder. Neurology. 2003 Jan 14;60(1):100–7.
Friedman, S. D., et al. “Regional brain chemical alterations in young children with autism spectrum disorder.Neurology, vol. 60, no. 1, Jan. 2003, pp. 100–07. Pubmed, doi:10.1212/wnl.60.1.100.
Friedman SD, Shaw DW, Artru AA, Richards TL, Gardner J, Dawson G, Posse S, Dager SR. Regional brain chemical alterations in young children with autism spectrum disorder. Neurology. 2003 Jan 14;60(1):100–107.

Published In

Neurology

DOI

EISSN

1526-632X

Publication Date

January 14, 2003

Volume

60

Issue

1

Start / End Page

100 / 107

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • Sex Distribution
  • Reference Values
  • Neuropsychological Tests
  • Neurons
  • Neurology & Neurosurgery
  • Male
  • Inositol
  • Humans
  • Female
  • Echo-Planar Imaging