Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Comparative Study
. 2017 Apr 11;7(4):e1090.
doi: 10.1038/tp.2017.9.

Sex differences in frontal lobe connectivity in adults with autism spectrum conditions

E A Zeestraten  1 , M C Gudbrandsen  1 , E Daly  1 , M T de Schotten  1 , M Catani  1 , F Dell'Acqua  1 , M-C Lai  2   3   4 , A N V Ruigrok  2 , M V Lombardo  2   5 , B Chakrabarti  2   6 , S Baron-Cohen  2   7 , C Ecker  1 ; MRC AIMS Consortium; D G M Murphy  1   8 , M C Craig  1   9
Collaborators, Affiliations
Comparative Study

Sex differences in frontal lobe connectivity in adults with autism spectrum conditions

E A Zeestraten et al. Transl Psychiatry. .

Abstract

Autism spectrum conditions (ASC) are more prevalent in males than females. The biological basis of this difference remains unclear. It has been postulated that one of the primary causes of ASC is a partial disconnection of the frontal lobe from higher-order association areas during development (that is, a frontal 'disconnection syndrome'). Therefore, in the current study we investigated whether frontal connectivity differs between males and females with ASC. We recruited 98 adults with a confirmed high-functioning ASC diagnosis (61 males: aged 18-41 years; 37 females: aged 18-37 years) and 115 neurotypical controls (61 males: aged 18-45 years; 54 females: aged 18-52 years). Current ASC symptoms were evaluated using the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS). Diffusion tensor imaging was performed and fractional anisotropy (FA) maps were created. Mean FA values were determined for five frontal fiber bundles and two non-frontal fiber tracts. Between-group differences in mean tract FA, as well as sex-by-diagnosis interactions were assessed. Additional analyses including ADOS scores informed us on the influence of current ASC symptom severity on frontal connectivity. We found that males with ASC had higher scores of current symptom severity than females, and had significantly lower mean FA values for all but one tract compared to controls. No differences were found between females with or without ASC. Significant sex-by-diagnosis effects were limited to the frontal tracts. Taking current ASC symptom severity scores into account did not alter the findings, although the observed power for these analyses varied. We suggest these findings of frontal connectivity abnormalities in males with ASC, but not in females with ASC, have the potential to inform us on some of the sex differences reported in the behavioral phenotype of ASC.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Visualizations of investigated tracts and mean fractional anisotropy graphs showing significant sex-by-diagnosis interaction effects. (a). Left anterior segment of the AF; (b) right segment of the AF; (c) left UF; (d) right UF. Bars indicate s.e. AF, arcuate fasciculus; ASC, autism spectrum condition; UF, uncinate fasciculus.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Baird G, Simonoff E, Pickles A, Chandler S, Loucas T, Meldrum D et al. Prevalence of disorders of the autism spectrum in a population cohort of children in South Thames: The Special Needs and Autism Project (SNAP). Lancet 2006; 368: 210–215. - PubMed
    1. Lai M-C, Lombardo MV, Auyeung B, Chakrabarti B, Baron-Cohen S. Sex/gender differences and autism: setting the scene for future research. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 2015; 54: 11–24. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Baron-Cohen S, Lombardo MV, Auyeung B, Ashwin E, Chakrabarti B, Knickmeyer R. Why are autism spectrum conditions more prevalent in males? PLoS Biol 2011; 9: e1001081. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Kopp S, Gillberg C. The Autism Spectrum Screening Questionnaire (ASSQ)-Revised Extended Version (ASSQ-REV): an instrument for better capturing the autism phenotype in girls? A preliminary study involving 191 clinical cases and community controls. Res Dev Disabil 2011; 32: 2875–2888. - PubMed
    1. Dworzynski K, Ronald A, Bolton P, Happé F. How different are girls and boys above and below the diagnostic threshold for autism spectrum disorders? J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 2012; 51: 788–797. - PubMed

Publication types