Cortical thickness variations and their relation to social and executive dysfunctions in autism spectrum disorder among an East Asian population: A longitudinal MRI study
Journal
Research in Autism
Journal Volume
128
Start Page
202689
ISSN
3050-6565
Date Issued
2025-10
Author(s)
Abstract
Background: The longitudinal brain structural changes and their relationships with clinical features have not been comprehensively established in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and existing analyses have mainly focused on Western samples. This study compared change rates of cortical thickness between participants with ASD and typically developing control (TDC) and their relationships with dynamic clinical features and executive dysfunction in an East Asian sample. Methods: We assessed 86 ASD and 82 TDC participants at two time points with structural MRI and autistic features and executive dysfunction measures. We used surface-based morphometry to identify the differences in developmental patterns between the ASD and TDC groups. We then examined the relationships between specific brain regions that vary developmentally and clinical parameters. Results: Seven clusters were identified, showing accelerating cortical thinning in the ASD participants, including the left inferior temporal, pars orbitalis, inferior parietal, pars opercularis, right middle temporal, and bilateral rostral middle frontal regions. Greater thinning rates in the left inferior parietal and left pars opercularis regions correlated with accelerated increases in autistic features in the ASD group. Greater thinning rates in the left inferior parietal region were associated with greater executive deterioration. These structural changes also predicted social and executive dysfunction in follow-up assessments. Exploratory cross-lagged panel modeling further suggested that baseline cortical thickness in the left pars opercularis predicted social challenges at follow-up, independent of baseline autistic features. Our findings indicate that distinct developmental changes in cortical thickness are associated with social and executive dysfunction, indicating potential pseudonormalization processes that occur from adolescence to early adulthood in this population. Conclusions: Our study elucidates neurodevelopmental correlates and trajectories of clinical deficits in ASD among Asian individuals, extending our understanding of brain-behavior relationships from adolescence to early adulthood.
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Type
journal article