Open AccessAltered Inferior Parietal Functional Connectivity is Correlated with Praxis and Social Skill Performance in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Author(s) -
Nicholas F. Wymbs,
Mary Beth Nebel,
Joshua B. Ewen,
Stewart H. Mostofsky
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
cerebral cortex
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.694
H-Index - 250
eISSN - 1460-2199
pISSN - 1047-3211
DOI - 10.1093/cercor/bhaa380
Subject(s) - psychology , premotor cortex , inferior parietal lobule , intraparietal sulcus , autism , autism spectrum disorder , mirror neuron , neuroscience , superior parietal lobule , praxis , functional magnetic resonance imaging , posterior parietal cortex , parietal lobe , empathy , posterior cingulate , cognitive psychology , dorsum , developmental psychology , anatomy , medicine , philosophy , epistemology , psychiatry
Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have difficulties perceiving and producing skilled gestures, or praxis. The inferior parietal lobule (IPL) is crucial to praxis acquisition and expression, yet how IPL connectivity contributes to autism-associated impairments in praxis as well as social-communicative skill remains unclear. Using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging, we applied independent component analysis to test how IPL connectivity relates to praxis and social-communicative skills in children with and without ASD. Across all children (with/without ASD), praxis positively correlated with connectivity of left posterior-IPL with the left dorsal premotor cortex and with the bilateral posterior/medial parietal cortex. Praxis also correlated with connectivity of right central-IPL connectivity with the left intraparietal sulcus and medial parietal lobe. Further, in children with ASD, poorer praxis and social-communicative skills both correlated with weaker right central-IPL connectivity with the left cerebellum, posterior cingulate, and right dorsal premotor cortex. Our findings suggest that IPL connectivity is linked to praxis development, that contributions arise bilaterally, and that right IPL connectivity is associated with impaired praxis and social-communicative skills in autism. The findings underscore the potential impact of IPL connectivity and impaired skill acquisition on the development of a range of social-communicative and motor functions during childhood, including autism-associated impairments.