Thursday, May 20, 2010
Franklin Hall B Level 4 (Philadelphia Marriott Downtown)
2:00 PM
Background: Recent evidence in adults and children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) has documented a relationship between restricted, repetitive behaviors and interests (RRBI) and standard neuropsychological measures of cognitive flexibility (Kenworthy, Black, Harrison, della Rosa, & Wallace, 2009; Lopez, Lincoln, Ozononff, & Lai, 2005; South, Ozonoff, & MacMahon, 2007). Furthermore, recent functional neuroimaging (fMRI) studies have shown a relationship between RRBI symptoms and brain regions active during cognitive flexibility tasks (Shafritz, Dichter, Baranek, & Belger, 2008). However, there is limited evidence of this relationship at the behavioral or brain level of analysis in children with ASD.
Conclusions: This collection of studies suggests that neuropsychological and cognitive neuroscientific measures of cognitive flexibility may provide an endophenotype into an understudied, core symptom cluster of ASDs: RRBI. Furthermore, additional studies in functional neuroimaging can be conducted with a high degree of success, and continuing this work will allow us to leverage both behavior and neural information in the parsing of heterogeneity that is characteristic of ASD.
Objectives: Examine the relationship between RRBI and cognitive flexibility at the behavioral and neural level of analysis in children with ASD.
Methods: Two studies will be presented: i) a neuropsychological study of 126 children (42 ASD; 84 Typically Developing controls (controls)) completing the Intradimensional/Extradimensional Shift task from the CANTAB; ii) preliminary data from an fMRI study of the simplest levels of set-shifting using a 3T Siemens Trio scanner with the Total Imaging Matrix (Tim) upgrade. Both studies recruited high-functioning children with and without ASD (FSIQ>70).
Results: Study i: The ASD group completed as many stages as controls but made significantly more errors in the Extradimensional reversal stage (Stage 9) than controls. In the ASD group, Stage 9 errors correlated significantly with RRBI symptoms from the ADI, rho(78)=0.44, p<0.05 Study ii: Preliminary data suggests that both groups activate expected frontal-parietal networks while completing a simple motor shifting task; qualitatively, controls have more numerous and bilateral clusters of activation in frontal regions relative to the ASD group.
Conclusions: This collection of studies suggests that neuropsychological and cognitive neuroscientific measures of cognitive flexibility may provide an endophenotype into an understudied, core symptom cluster of ASDs: RRBI. Furthermore, additional studies in functional neuroimaging can be conducted with a high degree of success, and continuing this work will allow us to leverage both behavior and neural information in the parsing of heterogeneity that is characteristic of ASD.
Conclusions: This collection of studies suggests that neuropsychological and cognitive neuroscientific measures of cognitive flexibility may provide an endophenotype into an understudied, core symptom cluster of ASDs: RRBI. Furthermore, additional studies in functional neuroimaging can be conducted with a high degree of success, and continuing this work will allow us to leverage both behavior and neural information in the parsing of heterogeneity that is characteristic of ASD.
Objectives: Examine the relationship between RRBI and cognitive flexibility at the behavioral and neural level of analysis in children with ASD.
Methods: Two studies will be presented: i) a neuropsychological study of 126 children (42 ASD; 84 Typically Developing controls (controls)) completing the Intradimensional/Extradimensional Shift task from the CANTAB; ii) preliminary data from an fMRI study of the simplest levels of set-shifting using a 3T Siemens Trio scanner with the Total Imaging Matrix (Tim) upgrade. Both studies recruited high-functioning children with and without ASD (FSIQ>70).
Results: Study i: The ASD group completed as many stages as controls but made significantly more errors in the Extradimensional reversal stage (Stage 9) than controls. In the ASD group, Stage 9 errors correlated significantly with RRBI symptoms from the ADI, rho(78)=0.44, p<0.05 Study ii: Preliminary data suggests that both groups activate expected frontal-parietal networks while completing a simple motor shifting task; qualitatively, controls have more numerous and bilateral clusters of activation in frontal regions relative to the ASD group.
Conclusions: This collection of studies suggests that neuropsychological and cognitive neuroscientific measures of cognitive flexibility may provide an endophenotype into an understudied, core symptom cluster of ASDs: RRBI. Furthermore, additional studies in functional neuroimaging can be conducted with a high degree of success, and continuing this work will allow us to leverage both behavior and neural information in the parsing of heterogeneity that is characteristic of ASD.