http://www.dore.co.uk/research/aspergers.aspx
原文如下:
US National Library of MedicineNational Institutes of Health 美國國家圖書館醫學 國立衛生研究院
Decreased connectivity and cerebellar activity in autism during motor task performance.
Source
Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA. mostofsky@kennedykrieger.org
Abstract
Although motor deficits are common in autism, the neural correlates underlying the disruption of even basic motor execution are unknown. Motor deficits may be some of the earliest identifiable signs of abnormal development and increased understanding of their neural underpinnings may provide insight into autism-associated differences in parallel systems critical for control of more complex behaviour necessary for social and communicative development. Functional magnetic resonance imaging was used to examine neural activation and connectivity during sequential, appositional finger tapping in 13 children, ages 8-12 years, with high-functioning autism (HFA) and 13 typically developing (TD), age- and sex-matched peers. Both groups showed expected primary activations in cortical and subcortical regions associated with motor execution [contralateral primary sensorimotor cortex, contralateral thalamus, ipsilateral cerebellum, supplementary motor area (SMA)]; however, the TD group showed greater activation in the ipsilateral anterior cerebellum, while the HFA group showed greater activation in the SMA. Although activation differences were limited to a subset of regions, children with HFA demonstrated diffusely decreased connectivity across the motor execution network relative to control children. The between-group dissociation of cerebral and cerebellar motor activation represents the first neuroimaging data of motor dysfunction in children with autism, providing insight into potentially abnormal circuits impacting development. Decreased cerebellar activation in the HFA group may reflect difficulty shifting motor execution from cortical regions associated with effortful control to regions associated with habitual execution. Additionally, diffusely decreased connectivity may reflect poor coordination within the circuit necessary for automating patterned motor behaviour. The findings might explain impairments in motor development in autism, as well as abnormal and delayed acquisition of gestures important for socialization and communication.
這篇的中文大意大概是說： 雖然運動障礙的情況在自閉症的個案中很常見，但其背後的神經生理基礎的了解仍很薄弱，此實驗採取核磁共振掃描技術，來觀察自閉症兒童的腦部活動和一般兒童有無不同。
實驗發現，高功能自閉症的兒童在做基本的運動測試時，小腦區域的活性較一般兒童要低，反而在大腦的輔助運動區有比較大的活性。 很可能是因為小腦的活動太低，導致這些兒童需要更去刺激其他的輔助運動區，才能完成運動要求。
這個發現或許可以解釋自閉症兒童的運動障礙，以及他們在社交手勢上相對較差的情況。
