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
. 2002 Oct;59(10):885-91.
doi: 10.1001/archpsyc.59.10.885.

Asperger syndrome: a proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy study of brain

Declan G M Murphy  1 , Hugo D Critchley, Nicole Schmitz, Grainne McAlonan, Therese Van Amelsvoort, Dene Robertson, Eileen Daly, Andrea Rowe, Ailsa Russell, Andrew Simmons, Kieran C Murphy, Patricia Howlin
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Asperger syndrome: a proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy study of brain

Declan G M Murphy et al. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2002 Oct.

Abstract

Background: Asperger syndrome (AS; an autistic disorder) is associated with impaired social skills and obsessional/repetitive behavior. Patients with autism have significant abnormalities in the frontal lobe and frontoparietal connectivity. Nobody has examined the relationship between abnormalities in the frontal and parietal lobes and clinical symptoms in people with AS.

Methods: We used in vivo proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy to examine neuronal integrity of the medial prefrontal and parietal lobes in 14 non-learning-disabled adults with AS and 18 control subjects (of similar sex, age, and IQ). We obtained measures of the prefrontal lobe in 11, the parietal lobe in 13, and both lobes in 10 subjects with AS. We measured concentrations and ratios of N-acetylaspartate (NAA), creatine and phosphocreatine (Cr + PCr), and choline (Cho). Levels of NAA, Cr + PCr, and Cho are indicators of neuronal density and mitochondrial metabolism, phosphate metabolism, and membrane turnover. Frontal metabolite levels were correlated with scores on the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale and the Autism Diagnostic Interview.

Results: Subjects with AS had a significantly higher prefrontal lobe concentration of NAA (z = -3.1; P =.002), Cr + PCr (z = -2.2; P =.03), and Cho (z = -2.9; P =.003). Increased prefrontal NAA concentration was significantly correlated with obsessional behavior (tau = 0.67; P =.005); increased prefrontal concentration of Cho, with social function (tau = 0.72; P =.02). We found no significant differences in parietal lobe metabolite concentrations.

Conclusion: Subjects with AS have abnormalities in neuronal integrity of the prefrontal lobe, which is related to severity of clinical symptoms.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

Publication types

MeSH terms