![]() Currently, the neurobiological mechanisms of sensory features in autistic and non-autistic populations are unclear. ) These elevated sensory features are associated with decreased motor performance, increased core autism traits, increased anxiety, decreased adaptive behaviors, and decreased quality of life. (Please note, identity-first language is used in alignment with the majority preference of the autistic community. The brainstem correlates of sensory features underscore the potential reflex-like nature of behavioral responses to sensory stimuli in autism and have implications for how we conceptualize and address sensory features in autistic populations.Īpproximately 90% of autistic children and 5–15% of non-autistic children exhibit elevated sensory features, characterized by enhanced or reduced reactivity to or interest in sensory stimuli. These findings suggest unique brainstem white matter contributions to sensory features in autistic children compared to non-autistic children. LimitationsĪll participants communicated via spoken language and acclimated to the sensory environment of an MRI session, which should be considered when assessing the generalizability of this work to the whole of the autism spectrum. Follow-up voxel-based analyses confirmed that these relationships were more prominent in the brainstem/cerebellum, with additional sensory-brain findings in the autistic group in the white matter of the primary motor and somatosensory cortices, the occipital lobe, the inferior parietal lobe, and the thalamic projections. ![]() Further, in autistic children, sensory hyporesponsiveness and tactile responsivity were strongly associated with white matter microstructure in nearly all brainstem tracts. In autistic children, more prominent sensory features were generally associated with lower MD. Results revealed distinct relationships between brainstem microstructure and sensory features in autistic children compared to non-autistic children. ![]() Follow-up analyses assessed relationships between microstructure and sensory response patterns/modalities and analyzed whole brain white matter using voxel-based analysis. Leveraging novel DWI processing techniques, we investigated the relationship between sensory features and white matter microstructure properties (free-water-elimination-corrected fractional anisotropy and mean diffusivity ) in precisely delineated brainstem white matter tracts. Methodsĭiffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and parent-report of sensory features were acquired from 133 children (61 autistic children with and 72 non-autistic children, 6–11 years-old). However, the brainstem may offer critical insights as it has been associated with both basic sensory processing and core features of autism. Little is known about the neurobiological basis of sensory features in autistic children. ![]() Elevated or reduced responses to sensory stimuli, known as sensory features, are common in autistic individuals and often impact quality of life. ![]()
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