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Hegarty JP, Gu M, Spielman DM, Cleveland SC, Hallmayer JF, Lazzeroni LC, Raman MM, Frazier TW, Phillips JM, Reiss AL, Hardan AY. A proton MR spectroscopy study of the thalamus in twins with autism spectrum disorder. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2018; 81:153-160. [PMID: 28941767 PMCID: PMC5731458 DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2017.09.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2017] [Revised: 08/17/2017] [Accepted: 09/18/2017] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
Multiple lines of research have reported thalamic abnormalities in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) that are associated with social communication impairments (SCI), restricted and repetitive behaviors (RRB), or sensory processing abnormalities (SPA). Thus, the thalamus may represent a common neurobiological structure that is shared across symptom domains in ASD. Same-sex monozygotic (MZ) and dizygotic (DZ) twin pairs with and without ASD underwent cognitive/behavioral evaluation and magnetic resonance imaging to assess the thalamus. Neurometabolites were measured with 1H magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) utilizing a multi-voxel PRESS sequence and were referenced to creatine+phosphocreatine (tCr). N-acetyl aspartate (NAA), a marker of neuronal integrity, was reduced in twins with ASD (n=47) compared to typically-developing (TD) controls (n=33), and this finding was confirmed in a sub-sample of co-twins discordant for ASD (n=11). NAA in the thalamus was correlated to a similar extent with SCI, RRB, and SPA, such that reduced neuronal integrity was associated with greater symptom severity. Glutamate+glutamine (Glx) was also reduced in affected versus unaffected co-twins. Additionally, NAA and Glx appeared to be primarily genetically-mediated, based on comparisons between MZ and DZ twin pairs. Thus, thalamic abnormalities may be influenced by genetic susceptibility for ASD but are likely not domain-specific.
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Affiliation(s)
- John P Hegarty
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, 401 Quarry Road, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.
| | - Meng Gu
- Department of Radiology, Stanford University, 1201 Welch Road, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Daniel M Spielman
- Department of Radiology, Stanford University, 1201 Welch Road, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Sue C Cleveland
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, 401 Quarry Road, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Joachim F Hallmayer
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, 401 Quarry Road, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Laura C Lazzeroni
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, 401 Quarry Road, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Mira M Raman
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, 401 Quarry Road, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Thomas W Frazier
- Autism Speaks, 29600 Fairmount Blvd, Pepper Pike, OH 44124, USA; Cleveland Clinic Children's, 9500 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44195, USA
| | - Jennifer M Phillips
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, 401 Quarry Road, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Allan L Reiss
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, 401 Quarry Road, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Antonio Y Hardan
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, 401 Quarry Road, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
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