19 research outputs found
Characteristics of Abnormal Diffusivity in Normal-Appearing White Matter Investigated with Diffusion Tensor MR Imaging in Tuberous Sclerosis Complex
Increased expression of multidrug resistance related proteins Pgp, MRP1, and LRP/MVP occurs early in colorectal carcinogenesis
Aberrant Diffusion and Geometric Properties in the Left Arcuate Fasciculus of Developmentally Delayed Children: A Diffusion Tensor Imaging Study
Evolution of cortical metabolic abnormalities and their clinical correlates in Sturge-Weber syndrome
Application of an Objective Method for Localizing Bilateral Cortical FDG PET Abnormalities to Guide the Resection of Epileptic Foci
Diffusion Tensor Imaging Study of the Cortical Origin and Course of the Corticospinal Tract in Healthy Children
Neuroreceptor Assay with Positron Emission Tomography: Equilibrium versus Dynamic Approaches
Significance of abnormalities in developmental trajectory and asymmetry of cortical serotonin synthesis in autism
The role of serotonin in prenatal and postnatal brain development is well documented in the animal literature. In earlier studies using positron emission tomography (PET) with the tracer alpha[11C]methylâlâtryptophan (AMT), we reported global and focal abnormalities of serotonin synthesis in children with autism. In the present study, we measured brain serotonin synthesis in a large group of autistic children (n = 117) with AMT PET and related these neuroimaging data to handedness and language function. Cortical AMT uptake abnormalities were objectively derived from small homotopic cortical regions using a predefined cutoff asymmetry threshold (>2 S.D. of normal asymmetry). Autistic children demonstrated several patterns of abnormal cortical involvement, including right cortical, left cortical, and absence of abnormal asymmetry. Global brain values for serotonin synthesis capacity (unidirectional uptake rate constant, Kâcomplex) values were plotted as a function of age. Kâcomplex values of autistic children with asymmetry or no asymmetry in cortical AMT uptake followed different developmental patterns, compared to that of a control group of nonâautistic children. The autism groups, defined by presence or absence and side of cortical asymmetry, differed on a measure of language as well as handedness. Autistic children with left cortical AMT decreases showed a higher prevalence of severe language impairment, whereas those with right cortical decreases showed a higher prevalence of left and mixed handedness. Global as well as focal abnormally asymmetric development in the serotonergic system could lead to miswiring of the neural circuits specifying hemispheric specialization.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/152797/1/jdnjijdevneu200408002.pd