Wednesday, 11 Jun 2025
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
  • DMCA
logo logo
  • World
  • Politics
  • Crime
  • Economy
  • Tech & Science
  • Sports
  • Entertainment
  • More
    • Education
    • Celebrities
    • Culture and Arts
    • Environment
    • Health and Wellness
    • Lifestyle
  • đŸ”„
  • Trump
  • House
  • VIDEO
  • White
  • ScienceAlert
  • Trumps
  • Watch
  • man
  • Health
  • Colossal
Font ResizerAa
American FocusAmerican Focus
Search
  • World
  • Politics
  • Crime
  • Economy
  • Tech & Science
  • Sports
  • Entertainment
  • More
    • Education
    • Celebrities
    • Culture and Arts
    • Environment
    • Health and Wellness
    • Lifestyle
Follow US
© 2024 americanfocus.online – All Rights Reserved.
American Focus > Blog > Health and Wellness > New Autism Research Finds That Autistic Brains Are Differently Wired
Health and Wellness

New Autism Research Finds That Autistic Brains Are Differently Wired

Last updated: October 12, 2024 12:50 am
Share
New Autism Research Finds That Autistic Brains Are Differently Wired
SHARE

Neurodiversity advocates have long argued that autistic brains are differently wired. Now, new evidence shows they are right. Researchers have found atypical numbers of brain cells in two key areas of the brain in autistic children, according to a new study published in the journal Autism Research. These findings contribute to our understanding of how the brain works in autism, continuing a shift away from seeing autism as a group of undesirable behaviors to a uniquely structured brain that provides a unique experience. The researchers hope that investigations like theirs could generate new diagnostic insights and therapies for autism.

Autistic brains show differences in neuron density

Past research into brain structure in autism has faced limitations because it relied on post-mortem investigations. In contrast, for this study researchers at the Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience at the University of Rochester made use of recent advances in processing magnetic resonance diffusion weighted images (DWI). By drawing on the DWI imaging data from the brains of children ages 9-11 collected by the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCDÂź) study, the researchers were able to gain a more accurate view of the brain. They compared images from 142 children with an autism diagnosis to those of 8971 controls in order to study neuron architecture in living children.

The researchers found that certain regions of the cerebral cortex showed lower neuron density in autistic children than in controls. That means there were fewer brain cells in regions associated with memory, learning, reasoning, and problem-solving.

On the other hand, the study found that the brains of autistic children had higher neuron density in the amygdala. A part of the brain’s limbic system, the amygdala is a small but critical structure with multiple functions. The amygdala processes emotions and connects those emotions to tasks like learning, memory formation, and sensory processing. It’s also the home of the fight or flight response.

See also  RFK Jr. on autism, Salvation Army, cat bird flu

The neuron density differences are unique to autism

Next, the researchers wanted to find out whether the differences in neuron density they were finding were unique to autism or a shared feature of other neurodevelopmental or psychiatric diagnoses. The researchers pulled images from 1404 individuals out of the original 8971 who had other non-autism psychiatric conditions. When they compared these images to those from the autistic children, the researchers found that their results were the same. They had confirmed that the variations in neuron densities were specific to autism.

Future directions for research and therapies

“These findings mean we now have a new set of measurements that have shown unique promise in characterizing individuals with autism,” said Zachary Christensen, MD/PhD candidate at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, and first author of the paper in a press release. “If characterizing unique deviations in neuron structure in those with autism can be done reliably and with relative ease, that opens a lot of opportunities to characterize how autism develops, and these measures may be used to identify individuals with autism that could benefit from more specific therapeutic interventions.”

Neuron density and brain function

Neuron density, or the number of brain cells in a given volume of the brain, has long been considered a proxy for brain function. Dense clusters of neurons are thought to reflect the connectivity of the brain, and more is thought to be better.

Given this assumption, we might conclude that the lower neuron density this paper found in cortical areas involved with memory, learning, reasoning, and problem-solving means those areas don’t work as well in autistic brains. Or we might think that increased neuronal density in the amygdala means that this brain area works better or more strongly. Indeed, many autistic people have more easily triggered and stronger fight or flight responses than the general population.

See also  Western Energy Markets Could Soon Be Governed Differently. Here’s Why That Matters.

However, neuron density does not tell the whole story. How the brain functions also has a lot to do with how many connections there are between neurons, among other factors. A key process in the development of a child’s brain is synaptic pruning, where the brain actually prunes away connections between neuronal cells at the synapse. Too little pruning means too many connections, which means the brain can’t function efficiently. In the brains of children with autism, the process of synaptic pruning slows down during development, leaving their brains with many more synaptic connections than neurotypical peers. This also occurs in the brains of children with ADHD, who have differences in synaptic pruning and connectivity as compared to neurotypical peers.

In addition, neuroscientists increasingly view models of the brain that rely on specific brain areas as outdated. Instead, what drives brain function is how those areas work together, in systems. But rather than simply looking at which brain areas are connected to each other at a structural level, the new field of neural connectonomics seeks to map out the individual connections of every neuron to every other neuron in the brain. Understanding brain function at that level will surely generate findings that surprise us.

Autistic brains are wired differently

In context, neuronal density helps us explore the autistic brain but does not give us obvious conclusions. Consider the low neuron density found in problem-solving regions of the cortex. Now juxtapose that finding with the fact that many autistic people show superior problem-solving abilities. In one Harvard study, autistics were 40% faster at problem-solving than non-autistics. This tells us that the story of brain function in autism is far more complex than simply assuming that lower or higher neuronal density equates to quality of function.

See also  FDA layoffs expected to slow down crucial drug reviews

This study’s findings of unique patterns in neuronal density specific to the autistic brain are still exciting, for the simple reason that every increase in our understanding of autism brings opportunities to better support our autistic community.

TAGGED:AutismAutisticBrainsDifferentlyfindsResearchWired
Share This Article
Twitter Email Copy Link Print
Previous Article Former WWE employee addresses rumors regarding The Rock’s return (Exclusive) Former WWE employee addresses rumors regarding The Rock’s return (Exclusive)
Next Article Museum Workers Have Rescued an Artwork From the Trash After a Mechanic Mistook It for Garbage Museum Workers Have Rescued an Artwork From the Trash After a Mechanic Mistook It for Garbage
Leave a comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Popular Posts

Real Madrid vs. Arsenal predicted lineups: Projected XI as Mikel Arteta, Carlo Ancelotti deal with issues

Real Madrid faced a daunting task after suffering a 3-0 defeat at the hands of…

April 15, 2025

Dems set to ‘throw a punch’: Top takeaways from the DNC election

Ken Martin was elected as the new chair of the Democratic National Committee, despite facing…

February 1, 2025

RHONY Cancellation Rumors: Jessel Taank Responds

Bravo fans can breathe a sigh of relief as rumors swirling about the fate of…

May 10, 2025

‘The Simpsons’ Series Finale Wasn’t Really Its Last Episode

The Season 36 premiere of "The Simpsons" started off with a bang, as the show…

September 30, 2024

Deal of the Day: Save 15% on New Balance

Finding the perfect balance between comfort and affordability in the classroom can be a daunting…

December 12, 2024

You Might Also Like

Daily almond snack improves health of people with metabolic syndrome
Health and Wellness

Daily almond snack improves health of people with metabolic syndrome

June 11, 2025
Nvidia Announces Massive New Initiatives in Pharma And Clinical Research
Health and Wellness

Nvidia Announces Massive New Initiatives in Pharma And Clinical Research

June 11, 2025
Texas considers MAHA-style warning labels on popular foods
Health and Wellness

Texas considers MAHA-style warning labels on popular foods

June 11, 2025
Emperor Penguins Disappearing Faster Than Worst Estimates, Study Finds : ScienceAlert
Tech and Science

Emperor Penguins Disappearing Faster Than Worst Estimates, Study Finds : ScienceAlert

June 11, 2025
logo logo
Facebook Twitter Youtube

About US


Explore global affairs, political insights, and linguistic origins. Stay informed with our comprehensive coverage of world news, politics, and Lifestyle.

Top Categories
  • Crime
  • Environment
  • Sports
  • Tech and Science
Usefull Links
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
  • DMCA

© 2024 americanfocus.online –  All Rights Reserved.

Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?