Journal
RESEARCH IN AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDERS
Volume 34, Issue -, Pages 44-51Publisher
ELSEVIER SCI LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.rasd.2016.12.001
Keywords
Autism; Aggression; Imaging; Brainstem; Structural MRI
Funding
- National Institutes of Mental Health [RO1MH080826]
- Poelman Foundation
- BYU's McKay School of Education
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Background: Aggressive behaviors are common in individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and may be phenotypic indicators of different subtypes within ASD. In current research literature for non-ASD samples, aggression has been linked to several brain structures associated with emotion and behavioral control. However, few if any studies exist investigating brain volume differences in individuals with ASD who have comorbid aggression as indicated by standardized diagnostic and behavioral measures. Method: We examined neuroimaging data from individuals rigorously diagnosed with ASD versus typically developing (TD) controls. We began with data from brain volume regions of interest (ROI) taken from previous literature on aggression including the brainstem, amygdala, orbitofrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. We defined aggression status using the Irritability subscale of the Aberrant Behavior Checklist and used lasso logistic regression to select among these predictor variables. Brainstem volume was the only variable shown to be a predictor of aggression status. Results: We found that smaller brainstem volumes are associated with higher odds of being in the high aggression group. Conclusions: Understanding brain differences in individuals with ASD who engage in aggressive behavior from those with ASD who do not can inform treatment approaches. Future research should investigate brainstem structure and function in ASD to identify possible mechanisms related to arousal and aggression. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available