Shared atypical default mode and salience network functional connectivity between autism and schizophrenia.
Heng Chen, Lucina Q Uddin, Xujun Duan and 7 others
PMID 28730732WHAT IT FOUND
Resting brain scans showed overlapping connectivity differences in the default mode and salience networks between adolescents with autism and schizophrenia.
These shared network patterns correlated with social deficits in autism but not with symptom scores in schizophrenia.
Key findings
01Shared atypical functional connectivity between autism and schizophrenia was concentrated in the default mode and salience networks.
02In the autism group, these shared connectivity patterns were significantly related to social deficits measured by ADOS scores.
03No significant relationship was found between these shared connectivity patterns and PANSS symptom scores in the schizophrenia group.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they found
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What it does not show
The two datasets came from different imaging platforms with different scan parameters, which affects signal-to-noise ratio and may explain why few subcortical connections were found. The schizophrenia dataset lacked specific measures of social deficits, so the relationship between the shared brain patterns and social function in that group could not be determined. The study used cross-sectional data from different sites, limiting the ability to draw causal conclusions or generalize to all patients. Sample sizes were small, particularly for the autism group after exclusions for head motion.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the shared brain network patterns as a diagnostic tool or a cause of symptoms. The study found correlations in a small sample from different sites, and the link to social deficits was only significant in the autism group, not the schizophrenia group.