TY - JOUR
T1 - Cortico-cerebellar connectivity in Autism Spectrum Disorder
T2 - What do we know so far?
AU - Crippa, Alessandro
AU - Delvecchio, Giuseppe
AU - Busti Ceccarelli, Silvia
AU - Nobile, Maria
AU - Arrigoni, Filippo
AU - Brambilla, Paolo
PY - 2016/2/23
Y1 - 2016/2/23
N2 - Although the Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is renowned to be a connectivity disorder and a condition characterized by cerebellar involvement, the connectivity between the cerebellum and other cortical brain regions is particularly underexamined. Indeed, converging evidence has recently suggested that the cerebellum could play a key role in the etiopathogenesis of ASD, since cerebellar anomalies have been consistently reported in ASD from the molecular to the behavioral level, and damage to the cerebellum early in development has been linked with signs of autistic features. In addition, current data have shown that the cerebellum is a key structure not only for sensory-motor control, but also for "higher functions, "such as social cognition and emotion, through its extensive connections with cortical areas. The disruption of these circuits could be implicated in the wide range of autistic symptoms that the term "spectrum" connotes. In this review, we present and discuss the recent findings from imaging studies that investigated cortico-cerebellar connectivity in people with ASD. The literature is still too limited to allow for definitive conclusions; however, this brief review reveals substantial areas for future studies, underlining currently unmet research perspectives.
AB - Although the Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is renowned to be a connectivity disorder and a condition characterized by cerebellar involvement, the connectivity between the cerebellum and other cortical brain regions is particularly underexamined. Indeed, converging evidence has recently suggested that the cerebellum could play a key role in the etiopathogenesis of ASD, since cerebellar anomalies have been consistently reported in ASD from the molecular to the behavioral level, and damage to the cerebellum early in development has been linked with signs of autistic features. In addition, current data have shown that the cerebellum is a key structure not only for sensory-motor control, but also for "higher functions, "such as social cognition and emotion, through its extensive connections with cortical areas. The disruption of these circuits could be implicated in the wide range of autistic symptoms that the term "spectrum" connotes. In this review, we present and discuss the recent findings from imaging studies that investigated cortico-cerebellar connectivity in people with ASD. The literature is still too limited to allow for definitive conclusions; however, this brief review reveals substantial areas for future studies, underlining currently unmet research perspectives.
KW - Autism
KW - Autism spectrum disorders
KW - Cortico-cerebellar connectivity
KW - DTI
KW - FMRI
KW - Resting-state fMRI
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84964619951&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84964619951&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3389/fpsyt.2016.00020
DO - 10.3389/fpsyt.2016.00020
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84964619951
VL - 7
JO - Frontiers in Psychiatry
JF - Frontiers in Psychiatry
SN - 1664-0640
IS - FEB
M1 - 20
ER -