Atypical functional connectome hierarchy in autism

TY - JOUR

T1 - Atypical functional connectome hierarchy in autism

AU - Hong, Seok Jun

AU - de Wael, Reinder Vos

AU - Bethlehem, Richard A.I.

AU - Lariviere, Sara

AU - Paquola, Casey

AU - Valk, Sofie L.

AU - Milham, Michael P.

AU - Di Martino, Adriana

AU - Margulies, Daniel S.

AU - Smallwood, Jonathan

AU - Bernhardt, Boris C.

N1 - © The Author(s) 2019.

PY - 2019/3/4

Y1 - 2019/3/4

N2 - One paradox of autism is the co-occurrence of deficits in sensory and higher-order socio-cognitive processing. Here, we examined whether these phenotypical patterns may relate to an overarching system-level imbalance—specifically a disruption in macroscale hierarchy affecting integration and segregation of unimodal and transmodal networks. Combining connectome gradient and stepwise connectivity analysis based on task-free functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we demonstrated atypical connectivity transitions between sensory and higher-order default mode regions in a large cohort of individuals with autism relative to typically-developing controls. Further analyses indicated that reduced differentiation related to perturbed stepwise connectivity from sensory towards transmodal areas, as well as atypical long-range rich-club connectivity. Supervised pattern learning revealed that hierarchical features predicted deficits in social cognition and low-level behavioral symptoms, but not communication-related symptoms. Our findings provide new evidence for imbalances in network hierarchy in autism, which offers a parsimonious reference frame to consolidate its diverse features.

AB - One paradox of autism is the co-occurrence of deficits in sensory and higher-order socio-cognitive processing. Here, we examined whether these phenotypical patterns may relate to an overarching system-level imbalance—specifically a disruption in macroscale hierarchy affecting integration and segregation of unimodal and transmodal networks. Combining connectome gradient and stepwise connectivity analysis based on task-free functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we demonstrated atypical connectivity transitions between sensory and higher-order default mode regions in a large cohort of individuals with autism relative to typically-developing controls. Further analyses indicated that reduced differentiation related to perturbed stepwise connectivity from sensory towards transmodal areas, as well as atypical long-range rich-club connectivity. Supervised pattern learning revealed that hierarchical features predicted deficits in social cognition and low-level behavioral symptoms, but not communication-related symptoms. Our findings provide new evidence for imbalances in network hierarchy in autism, which offers a parsimonious reference frame to consolidate its diverse features.

KW - Adolescent

KW - Adult

KW - Autistic Disorder/diagnostic imaging

KW - Cerebral Cortex/pathology

KW - Connectome

KW - Female

KW - Humans

KW - Magnetic Resonance Imaging/methods

KW - Male

KW - Motion

KW - Nerve Net/pathology

KW - Social Behavior Disorders/pathology

KW - Young Adult

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85062414525&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1038/s41467-019-08944-1

DO - 10.1038/s41467-019-08944-1

M3 - Article

C2 - 30833582

AN - SCOPUS:85062414525

SN - 2041-1723

VL - 10

JO - Nature Communications

JF - Nature Communications

IS - 1

M1 - 1022

ER -