Neural substrates underlying effortful control deficit in autism spectrum disorder: a meta-analysis of fMRI studies.

This study looked at brain scans from 22 research studies to understand how autistic people's brains work differently during tasks requiring mental control (like paying attention, stopping actions, or switching between tasks). The research found that autistic people show different brain activity patterns in several brain networks during these tasks, with some brain areas becoming less active as people get older.

This meta-analysis of 22 fMRI studies examined brain activation patterns during effortful control tasks (attention, inhibition, cognitive flexibility) in autism spectrum disorder compared to typically developing individuals. Results revealed hypoactivation in the default mode network during inhibitory control tasks, and aberrant activation across multiple brain networks (default mode, dorsal attention, frontoparietal, visual, somatomotor) during attentional control and cognitive flexibility tasks. Meta-regression analyses showed decreasing activation in default mode network regions with increasing age. The findings suggest widespread neural differences underlying effortful control deficits in autism, affecting multiple brain networks rather than isolated regions.

Findings support targeted interventions for executive functioning deficits in autism. Different brain networks may require different therapeutic approaches. Age-related changes suggest timing of interventions may be important for optimal outcomes.

Individual study quality and methodological variations not detailed. Sample sizes for constituent studies not reported. Age range and demographic characteristics unclear. Uncorrected statistical thresholds used for some analyses may increase false positive risk.

Effortful control comprises attentional control, inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility subprocesses. Effortful control is impaired in individuals with autism spectrum disorder, yet its neural underpinnings remain elusive. By conducting a coordinate-based meta-analysis, this study compared the brain activation patterns between autism and typically developing individuals and examined the effect of age on brain activation in each effortful control subprocesses. Meta-analytic results from 22 studies revealed that, individuals with autism showed hypoactivation in the default mode network for tasks tapping inhibitory control functioning (threshold-free cluster enhancement p < 0.001).

When these individuals perform tasks tapping attentional control and cognitive flexibility, they exhibited aberrant activation in various brain networks including default mode network, dorsal attention, frontoparietal, visual and somatomotor networks (uncorrected ps < 0.005). Meta-regression analyses revealed that brain regions within the default mode network showed a significant decreasing trend in activation with increasing age (uncorrected p < 0.05). In summary, individuals with autism showed aberrant activation patterns across multiple brain functional networks during all cognitive tasks supporting effortful control, with some regions showing a decrease in activation with increasing age.