Atypical Visually Guided Precision Grip Control in Middle-Aged and Older Autistic Adults / Zheng WANG in Autism Research, 19-2 (February 2026)  

Public ISBD [article]  inAutism Research > 19-2 (February 2026) . - e70154 Titre : Atypical Visually Guided Precision Grip Control in Middle-Aged and Older Autistic Adults Type de document : texte imprimé Auteurs : Zheng WANG, Auteur ; Hang QU, Auteur ; Danielle CHRISTENSEN, Auteur ; Hanna M. GEMMELL, Auteur ; Ellen M. PARKS, Auteur ; Kyla E. WETHERINGTON, Auteur ; Ann-Marie ORLANDO, Auteur ; Regilda A. ROMERO, Auteur ; Bikram KARMAKAR, Auteur ; David E. VAILLANCOURT, Auteur Article en page(s) : e70154 Langues : Anglais (eng) Mots-clés : aging  autism spectrum disorder  fine motor control  middle-aged and older adults  precision grip Index. décimale : PER Périodiques Résumé : ABSTRACT Sensorimotor impairments are well documented in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, little is known about how these difficulties present in middle-aged and older autistic adults or how they relate to demographic factors and autistic traits. In this study, 52 autistic and 56 age- and sex-matched non-autistic adults (aged 30?73?years) completed a visually guided precision grip task designed to assess temporal (reaction time, duration), spatial (force accuracy, variability), and dynamic (rate of force change) features of grip control under two conditions: varying motor output demands (target force test) and visual feedback (visual gain test). Autistic adults showed prolonged duration, delayed reaction time, and greater target overshooting at lower force levels during the rise phase. During the sustained phase, they exhibited increased grip force variability across both tasks. In contrast, autistic adults demonstrated shorter reaction times during the relaxation phase. Subgroup analyses revealed that the middle-aged autistic subgroup displayed elevated grip force variability, whereas the older autistic subgroup showed broader impairments affecting both spatial and temporal aspects of precision gripping. Within the autistic group, temporal grip force variables under the low target force condition were significantly associated with age and repetitive behaviors. These findings demonstrate that manual motor impairments persist into adulthood in ASD, and suggest shared neurobiological networks that underlie both motor dysfunction and core autistic traits. En ligne : https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.70154 Permalink : https://www.cra-rhone-alpes.org/cid/opac_css/index.php?lvl=notice_display&id=582 [article] Atypical Visually Guided Precision Grip Control in Middle-Aged and Older Autistic Adults [texte imprimé] / Zheng WANG, Auteur ; Hang QU, Auteur ; Danielle CHRISTENSEN, Auteur ; Hanna M. GEMMELL, Auteur ; Ellen M. PARKS, Auteur ; Kyla E. WETHERINGTON, Auteur ; Ann-Marie ORLANDO, Auteur ; Regilda A. ROMERO, Auteur ; Bikram KARMAKAR, Auteur ; David E. VAILLANCOURT, Auteur . - e70154. Langues : Anglais (eng) in Autism Research > 19-2 (February 2026) . - e70154 Mots-clés : aging  autism spectrum disorder  fine motor control  middle-aged and older adults  precision grip Index. décimale : PER Périodiques Résumé : ABSTRACT Sensorimotor impairments are well documented in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, little is known about how these difficulties present in middle-aged and older autistic adults or how they relate to demographic factors and autistic traits. In this study, 52 autistic and 56 age- and sex-matched non-autistic adults (aged 30?73?years) completed a visually guided precision grip task designed to assess temporal (reaction time, duration), spatial (force accuracy, variability), and dynamic (rate of force change) features of grip control under two conditions: varying motor output demands (target force test) and visual feedback (visual gain test). Autistic adults showed prolonged duration, delayed reaction time, and greater target overshooting at lower force levels during the rise phase. During the sustained phase, they exhibited increased grip force variability across both tasks. In contrast, autistic adults demonstrated shorter reaction times during the relaxation phase. Subgroup analyses revealed that the middle-aged autistic subgroup displayed elevated grip force variability, whereas the older autistic subgroup showed broader impairments affecting both spatial and temporal aspects of precision gripping. Within the autistic group, temporal grip force variables under the low target force condition were significantly associated with age and repetitive behaviors. These findings demonstrate that manual motor impairments persist into adulthood in ASD, and suggest shared neurobiological networks that underlie both motor dysfunction and core autistic traits. En ligne : https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.70154 Permalink : https://www.cra-rhone-alpes.org/cid/opac_css/index.php?lvl=notice_display&id=582

Cortico-basal ganglia white matter microstructure is linked to restricted repetitive behavior in autism spectrum disorder / Bradley J. WILKES in Molecular Autism, 15 (2024)  

Public ISBD [article]  inMolecular Autism > 15 (2024) . - 6p. Titre : Cortico-basal ganglia white matter microstructure is linked to restricted repetitive behavior in autism spectrum disorder Type de document : texte imprimé Auteurs : Bradley J. WILKES, Auteur ; Derek B. ARCHER, Auteur ; Anna L. FARMER, Auteur ; Carly BASS, Auteur ; Hannah KORAH, Auteur ; David E. VAILLANCOURT, Auteur ; Mark H. LEWIS, Auteur Article en page(s) : 6p. Langues : Anglais (eng) Mots-clés : United States  Adolescent  Child  Humans  White Matter/diagnostic imaging  Autism Spectrum Disorder/diagnostic imaging  Basal Ganglia/diagnostic imaging  Brain  Water  Autism spectrum disorder  Basal ganglia  Cerebellum  Cortico-basal ganglia  Diffusion tensor imaging  Free-water  Gray matter  Restricted repetitive behavior  White matter Index. décimale : PER Périodiques Résumé : BACKGROUND: Restricted repetitive behavior (RRB) is one of two behavioral domains required for the diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Neuroimaging is widely used to study brain alterations associated with ASD and the domain of social and communication deficits, but there has been less work regarding brain alterations linked to RRB. METHODS: We utilized neuroimaging data from the National Institute of Mental Health Data Archive to assess basal ganglia and cerebellum structure in a cohort of children and adolescents with ASD compared to typically developing (TD) controls. We evaluated regional gray matter volumes from T1-weighted anatomical scans and assessed diffusion-weighted scans to quantify white matter microstructure with free-water imaging. We also investigated the interaction of biological sex and ASD diagnosis on these measures, and their correlation with clinical scales of RRB. RESULTS: Individuals with ASD had significantly lower free-water corrected fractional anisotropy (FA(T)) and higher free-water (FW) in cortico-basal ganglia white matter tracts. These microstructural differences did not interact with biological sex. Moreover, both FA(T) and FW in basal ganglia white matter tracts significantly correlated with measures of RRB. In contrast, we found no significant difference in basal ganglia or cerebellar gray matter volumes. LIMITATIONS: The basal ganglia and cerebellar regions in this study were selected due to their hypothesized relevance to RRB. Differences between ASD and TD individuals that may occur outside the basal ganglia and cerebellum, and their potential relationship to RRB, were not evaluated. CONCLUSIONS: These new findings demonstrate that cortico-basal ganglia white matter microstructure is altered in ASD and linked to RRB. FW in cortico-basal ganglia and intra-basal ganglia white matter was more sensitive to group differences in ASD, whereas cortico-basal ganglia FA(T) was more closely linked to RRB. In contrast, basal ganglia and cerebellar volumes did not differ in ASD. There was no interaction between ASD diagnosis and sex-related differences in brain structure. Future diffusion imaging investigations in ASD may benefit from free-water estimation and correction in order to better understand how white matter is affected in ASD, and how such measures are linked to RRB. En ligne : https://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s13229-023-00581-2 Permalink : https://www.cra-rhone-alpes.org/cid/opac_css/index.php?lvl=notice_display&id=538 [article] Cortico-basal ganglia white matter microstructure is linked to restricted repetitive behavior in autism spectrum disorder [texte imprimé] / Bradley J. WILKES, Auteur ; Derek B. ARCHER, Auteur ; Anna L. FARMER, Auteur ; Carly BASS, Auteur ; Hannah KORAH, Auteur ; David E. VAILLANCOURT, Auteur ; Mark H. LEWIS, Auteur . - 6p. Langues : Anglais (eng) in Molecular Autism > 15 (2024) . - 6p. Mots-clés : United States  Adolescent  Child  Humans  White Matter/diagnostic imaging  Autism Spectrum Disorder/diagnostic imaging  Basal Ganglia/diagnostic imaging  Brain  Water  Autism spectrum disorder  Basal ganglia  Cerebellum  Cortico-basal ganglia  Diffusion tensor imaging  Free-water  Gray matter  Restricted repetitive behavior  White matter Index. décimale : PER Périodiques Résumé : BACKGROUND: Restricted repetitive behavior (RRB) is one of two behavioral domains required for the diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Neuroimaging is widely used to study brain alterations associated with ASD and the domain of social and communication deficits, but there has been less work regarding brain alterations linked to RRB. METHODS: We utilized neuroimaging data from the National Institute of Mental Health Data Archive to assess basal ganglia and cerebellum structure in a cohort of children and adolescents with ASD compared to typically developing (TD) controls. We evaluated regional gray matter volumes from T1-weighted anatomical scans and assessed diffusion-weighted scans to quantify white matter microstructure with free-water imaging. We also investigated the interaction of biological sex and ASD diagnosis on these measures, and their correlation with clinical scales of RRB. RESULTS: Individuals with ASD had significantly lower free-water corrected fractional anisotropy (FA(T)) and higher free-water (FW) in cortico-basal ganglia white matter tracts. These microstructural differences did not interact with biological sex. Moreover, both FA(T) and FW in basal ganglia white matter tracts significantly correlated with measures of RRB. In contrast, we found no significant difference in basal ganglia or cerebellar gray matter volumes. LIMITATIONS: The basal ganglia and cerebellar regions in this study were selected due to their hypothesized relevance to RRB. Differences between ASD and TD individuals that may occur outside the basal ganglia and cerebellum, and their potential relationship to RRB, were not evaluated. CONCLUSIONS: These new findings demonstrate that cortico-basal ganglia white matter microstructure is altered in ASD and linked to RRB. FW in cortico-basal ganglia and intra-basal ganglia white matter was more sensitive to group differences in ASD, whereas cortico-basal ganglia FA(T) was more closely linked to RRB. In contrast, basal ganglia and cerebellar volumes did not differ in ASD. There was no interaction between ASD diagnosis and sex-related differences in brain structure. Future diffusion imaging investigations in ASD may benefit from free-water estimation and correction in order to better understand how white matter is affected in ASD, and how such measures are linked to RRB. En ligne : https://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s13229-023-00581-2 Permalink : https://www.cra-rhone-alpes.org/cid/opac_css/index.php?lvl=notice_display&id=538

Transcallosal white matter and cortical gray matter variations in autistic adults aged 30-73 years / Danielle CHRISTENSEN ; Jingying WANG ; Desirae J. SHIRLEY ; Ann-Marie ORLANDO ; Regilda A. ROMERO ; David E. VAILLANCOURT ; Bradley J. WILKES ; Stephen A. COOMBES ; Zheng WANG in Molecular Autism, 16 (2025)  

Public ISBD [article]  inMolecular Autism > 16 (2025) . - 16 Titre : Transcallosal white matter and cortical gray matter variations in autistic adults aged 30-73 years Type de document : texte imprimé Auteurs : Danielle CHRISTENSEN, Auteur ; Jingying WANG, Auteur ; Desirae J. SHIRLEY, Auteur ; Ann-Marie ORLANDO, Auteur ; Regilda A. ROMERO, Auteur ; David E. VAILLANCOURT, Auteur ; Bradley J. WILKES, Auteur ; Stephen A. COOMBES, Auteur ; Zheng WANG, Auteur Article en page(s) : 16 Langues : Anglais (eng) Mots-clés : Humans  Male  Gray Matter/diagnostic imaging/pathology  White Matter/diagnostic imaging/pathology  Female  Adult  Middle Aged  Aged  Case-Control Studies  Autistic Disorder/diagnostic imaging/pathology  Corpus Callosum/diagnostic imaging/pathology  Autism Spectrum Disorder/diagnostic imaging/pathology  Anisotropy  Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging  Aging  Autism spectrum disorder  Autistic adults  Diffusion MRI  Free water  Free water corrected fractional anisotropy  Free water corrected mean diffusivity  Gray matter  Transcallosal tracts  White matter  in this study were approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) at the  University of Florida following the Declaration of Helsinki. The IRB number is  202100659, with an approval date of July 26, 2022. Consent for publication: All  authors have read and approved the submission. Competing interests: The authors  declare no competing interests. Index. décimale : PER Périodiques Résumé : BACKGROUND: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a lifelong condition that profoundly impacts health, independence, and quality of life. However, research on brain aging in autistic adults is limited, and microstructural variations in white and gray matter remain poorly understood. To address this critical gap, we assessed novel diffusion MRI (dMRI) biomarkers, free water, and free water corrected fractional anisotropy (fwcFA), and mean diffusivity (fwcMD) across 32 transcallosal tracts and their corresponding homotopic grey matter origin/endpoint regions of interest (ROIs) in middle and old aged autistic adults. METHODS: Forty-three autistic adults aged 30-73 and 43 age-, sex-, and IQ-matched neurotypical controls underwent dMRI scans. We examined free water, fwcFA, fwcMD differences between the two groups and age-related pattern of each dMRI metric across the whole brain for each group. The relationships between clinical measures of ASD and free water in regions that significantly differentiated autistic adults from neurotypical controls were also explored. In supplementary analyses, we also assessed free water uncorrected FA and MD using conventional single tensor modeling. RESULTS: Autistic adults exhibited significantly elevated free water in seven frontal transcallosal tracts compared to controls. In controls, age-related increases in free water and decreases in fwcFA were observed across most transcallosal tracts. However, these age-associated patterns were entirely absent in autistic adults. In gray matter, autistic adults showed elevated free water in the calcarine cortices and lower fwcMD in the dorsal premotor cortices compared to controls. Lastly, age-related increases in free water were found across all white matter and gray matter ROIs in neurotypical controls, whereas no age-related associations were detected in any dMRI metrics for autistic adults. LIMITATIONS: We only recruited cognitively capable autistic adults, which limits the generalizability of our findings across the full autism spectrum. The cross-sectional design precludes inferences about microstructural changes over time in middle and old aged autistic adults. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings revealed increased free water load in frontal white matter in autistic adults and identified distinct age-associated microstructural variations between the two groups. These findings highlight more heterogeneous brain aging profiles in autistic adults. Our study also demonstrated the importance of quantifying free water in dMRI studies of ASD. En ligne : https://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s13229-025-00652-6 Permalink : https://www.cra-rhone-alpes.org/cid/opac_css/index.php?lvl=notice_display&id=555 [article] Transcallosal white matter and cortical gray matter variations in autistic adults aged 30-73 years [texte imprimé] / Danielle CHRISTENSEN, Auteur ; Jingying WANG, Auteur ; Desirae J. SHIRLEY, Auteur ; Ann-Marie ORLANDO, Auteur ; Regilda A. ROMERO, Auteur ; David E. VAILLANCOURT, Auteur ; Bradley J. WILKES, Auteur ; Stephen A. COOMBES, Auteur ; Zheng WANG, Auteur . - 16. Langues : Anglais (eng) in Molecular Autism > 16 (2025) . - 16 Mots-clés : Humans  Male  Gray Matter/diagnostic imaging/pathology  White Matter/diagnostic imaging/pathology  Female  Adult  Middle Aged  Aged  Case-Control Studies  Autistic Disorder/diagnostic imaging/pathology  Corpus Callosum/diagnostic imaging/pathology  Autism Spectrum Disorder/diagnostic imaging/pathology  Anisotropy  Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging  Aging  Autism spectrum disorder  Autistic adults  Diffusion MRI  Free water  Free water corrected fractional anisotropy  Free water corrected mean diffusivity  Gray matter  Transcallosal tracts  White matter  in this study were approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) at the  University of Florida following the Declaration of Helsinki. The IRB number is  202100659, with an approval date of July 26, 2022. Consent for publication: All  authors have read and approved the submission. Competing interests: The authors  declare no competing interests. Index. décimale : PER Périodiques Résumé : BACKGROUND: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a lifelong condition that profoundly impacts health, independence, and quality of life. However, research on brain aging in autistic adults is limited, and microstructural variations in white and gray matter remain poorly understood. To address this critical gap, we assessed novel diffusion MRI (dMRI) biomarkers, free water, and free water corrected fractional anisotropy (fwcFA), and mean diffusivity (fwcMD) across 32 transcallosal tracts and their corresponding homotopic grey matter origin/endpoint regions of interest (ROIs) in middle and old aged autistic adults. METHODS: Forty-three autistic adults aged 30-73 and 43 age-, sex-, and IQ-matched neurotypical controls underwent dMRI scans. We examined free water, fwcFA, fwcMD differences between the two groups and age-related pattern of each dMRI metric across the whole brain for each group. The relationships between clinical measures of ASD and free water in regions that significantly differentiated autistic adults from neurotypical controls were also explored. In supplementary analyses, we also assessed free water uncorrected FA and MD using conventional single tensor modeling. RESULTS: Autistic adults exhibited significantly elevated free water in seven frontal transcallosal tracts compared to controls. In controls, age-related increases in free water and decreases in fwcFA were observed across most transcallosal tracts. However, these age-associated patterns were entirely absent in autistic adults. In gray matter, autistic adults showed elevated free water in the calcarine cortices and lower fwcMD in the dorsal premotor cortices compared to controls. Lastly, age-related increases in free water were found across all white matter and gray matter ROIs in neurotypical controls, whereas no age-related associations were detected in any dMRI metrics for autistic adults. LIMITATIONS: We only recruited cognitively capable autistic adults, which limits the generalizability of our findings across the full autism spectrum. The cross-sectional design precludes inferences about microstructural changes over time in middle and old aged autistic adults. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings revealed increased free water load in frontal white matter in autistic adults and identified distinct age-associated microstructural variations between the two groups. These findings highlight more heterogeneous brain aging profiles in autistic adults. Our study also demonstrated the importance of quantifying free water in dMRI studies of ASD. En ligne : https://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s13229-025-00652-6 Permalink : https://www.cra-rhone-alpes.org/cid/opac_css/index.php?lvl=notice_display&id=555

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