Common and distinct cortical thickness alterations in youth with autism spectrum disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

John A Sweeney, Melissa P DelBello, Robert K McNamara, Yaxuan Wang, Ning He, Yuanyuan Li, Fei Li, Yufei Chen, Qian Li, Wanfang You, Lizhou Chen, Fenghua Long, Qiyong Gong

Journal: BMC medicine 2024;22(1):92

PMID: 38433204

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Abstract

BACKGROUND

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are neurodevelopmental disorders with overlapping behavioral features and genetic etiology. While brain cortical thickness (CTh) alterations have been reported in ASD and ADHD separately, the degree to which ASD and ADHD are associated with common and distinct patterns of CTh changes is unclear.

METHODS

We searched PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and Science Direct from inception to 8 December 2023 and included studies of cortical thickness comparing youth (age less than 18) with ASD or ADHD with typically developing controls (TDC). We conducted a comparative meta-analysis of vertex-based studies to identify common and distinct CTh alterations in ASD and ADHD.

RESULTS

Twelve ASD datasets involving 458 individuals with ASD and 10 ADHD datasets involving 383 individuals with ADHD were included in the analysis. Compared to TDC, ASD showed increased CTh in bilateral superior frontal gyrus, left middle temporal gyrus, and right superior parietal lobule (SPL) and decreased CTh in right temporoparietal junction (TPJ). ADHD showed decreased CTh in bilateral precentral gyri, right postcentral gyrus, and right TPJ relative to TDC. Conjunction analysis showed both disorders shared reduced TPJ CTh located in default mode network (DMN). Comparative analyses indicated ASD had greater CTh in right SPL and TPJ located in dorsal attention network and thinner CTh in right TPJ located in ventral attention network than ADHD.

CONCLUSIONS

These results suggest shared thinner TPJ located in DMN is an overlapping neurobiological feature of ASD and ADHD. This alteration together with SPL alterations might be related to altered biological motion processing in ASD, while abnormalities in sensorimotor systems may contribute to behavioral control problems in ADHD. The disorder-specific thinner TPJ located in disparate attention networks provides novel insight into distinct symptoms of attentional deficits associated with the two neurodevelopmental disorders.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

PROSPERO CRD42022370620. Registered on November 9, 2022.

Address: Department of Radiology and Huaxi MR Research Center (HMRRC), Functional and Molecular Lmaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, People's Republic of China.; Research Unit of Psychoradiology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, People's Republic of China.; Department of Radiology, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, 310016, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China.; Department of Radiology and Huaxi MR Research Center (HMRRC), Functional and Molecular Lmaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, People's Republic of China.; Research Unit of Psychoradiology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, People's Republic of China.; Department of Psychiatry, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, People's Republic of China.; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, 45219, USA.; Department of Radiology and Huaxi MR Research Center (HMRRC), Functional and Molecular Lmaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, People's Republic of China.; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, 45219, USA.; Department of Radiology and Huaxi MR Research Center (HMRRC), Functional and Molecular Lmaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, People's Republic of China. [email protected].; Research Unit of Psychoradiology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, People's Republic of China. [email protected].

DOI: 10.1186/s12916-024-03313-2

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https://medlineplus.gov/autismspectrumdisorder.htm...

MeSH Terms: Humans, Adolescent, Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Neurobiology, Neurodevelopmental Disorders