We intend to study the role of fronto-striatal circuitry and cognitive control in the inflexible behaviour that is a defining feature of autism.
ID
Source
Brief title
Condition
- Developmental disorders NEC
Synonym
Research involving
Sponsors and support
Intervention
Outcome measures
Primary outcome
The primary outcome measure in the fMRI studies will be MR signal. This signal
represents the activation level (compared to a control condition) and is
hypothesized to differ in fronto-striatal regions between children with autism
and control children. A second, behavioral outcome measure is performance
(reaction times and accuracy) on the cognitive controls tasks. The primary
outcome measure for the DTI-scans will be anisotropy (representing the unequal
regional diffusion of water), which is a measure of regional white matter
regularity. Finally the primary outcome measure of the exploratory genetic
studies will also be MR signal, which we hypothesize will differ in
fronto-striatal regions between groups with different genetic profiles.
Secondary outcome
n/a
Background summary
Autism is a heritable and disabling child-psychiatric disorder. Autism is
characterized by three clusters of symptoms: 1) social deficits, 2) deficits in
communication and 3) repetitive and stereotyped behaviour. The current proposal
intends to investigate the neuroanatomical correlates of rigid behaviour in
autism. This cluster of symptoms can be conceptualized as cognitive
inflexibility and may be related to deficits in cognitive control and
associated neural circuitry.
Cognitive control refers to the ability to flexibly adapt behaviour in a
continuously changing environment. Fronto-striatal loops are involved in many
aspects of controlling behaviour, and recent evidence indicates that a shift
from diffuse to more focal activity in fronto-striatal areas supports the
development of cognitive control in typically developing children. Animal
studies and neuropsychiatric studies in humans have further implicated the
basal ganglia in repetitive and stereotyped behaviour. Taken together, this
potentially implicates fronto-striatal circuitry in the development of rigid
and stereotyped behaviour in autism.
Study objective
We intend to study the role of fronto-striatal circuitry and cognitive control
in the inflexible behaviour that is a defining feature of autism.
Study design
We propose a series of three fMRI studies to address the role of the
fronto-striatal circuitry in different aspects of cognitive control in autism.
The first study involves an implicit learning paradigm to test the capability
of the fronto-striatal system to learn patterns present in the environment. By
means of a classic Go/Nogo paradigm (second study) and a novel behavioural
adaptation paradigm (third study), we will assess fronto-striatal involvement
in the ability to flexibly adapt behavior. In addition, we will acquire
diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) scans and perform functional connectivity
analyses to assess fronto-striatal connectivity in autism. Finally we will
perform an exploratory investigation of the influence of candidate-genes
involved in brain development on fronto-striatal function in autism.
Study burden and risks
Subjects will take part in IQ-testing, which will last up to 2.5 hrs. Their
parents will take part in a standardized interview, as well as fill in
questionnaires. Subjects will also take part in a MRI-scanning session lasting
up to an hour. As there are no known risks associated with MR-scanning this
procedure is considered completely safe. Anxiety will be minimized by means of
a practice session in a MR-simulator. In addition subjects will be asked to
provide a sample of saliva or a cheekswab. The complete visit will last a
maximum of half a day, and will be spread over two days if possible.
Heidelberglaan 100
3584 CX Utrecht
NL
Heidelberglaan 100
3584 CX Utrecht
NL
Listed location countries
Age
Inclusion criteria
General inclusion criteria:
- 6-16 years ;Inclusion criteria for subjects with autism:
- DSM-IV diagnosis of autism, according to diagnostic interview (ADI-R);Inclusion criteria for controls:
- no DSM-IV diagnosis according to diagnostic interview (DISC)
- no scores in the clinical range on the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and Teacher Rating Form (TRF)
- IQ>70
Exclusion criteria
- history or presence of major illness of the cardiovascular, the endocrine, the pulmonal or the gastrointestinal system
- presence of metal objects in or around the body (pacemaker, dental braces)
- history or presence of neurological illness
Design
Recruitment
Followed up by the following (possibly more current) registration
No registrations found.
Other (possibly less up-to-date) registrations in this register
No registrations found.
In other registers
| Register | ID |
|---|---|
| CCMO | NL13107.041.06 |