Abnormalities in both stimulus-induced and baseline MEG alpha oscillations in the auditory cortex of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

• Published in: Brain Structure and Function 2024-06, Vol.229 (5), p.1225-1242
• Main Authors: Arutiunian, Vardan, Arcara, Giorgio, Buyanova, Irina, Fedorov, Makar, Davydova, Elizaveta, Pereverzeva, Darya, Sorokin, Alexander, Tyushkevich, Svetlana, Mamokhina, Uliana, Danilina, Kamilla, Dragoy, Olga
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Acoustic Stimulation; Alpha Rhythm - physiology; Auditory Cortex - physiopathology; Auditory Perception - physiology; Auditory stimuli; Autism; Autism Spectrum Disorder - physiopathology; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Cell Biology; Child; Children; Cortex (auditory); EEG; Electroencephalography; Evoked Potentials, Auditory - physiology; Female; Hearing; Humans; Language; Magnetoencephalography; Male; Neurology; Neurosciences; Original Article; Oscillations; Synchronization
• ISSN: 1863-2661; 1863-2653; 1863-2661; 0340-2061
• DOI: 10.1007/s00429-024-02802-7

The neurobiology of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is hypothetically related to the imbalance between neural excitation (E) and inhibition (I). Different studies have revealed that alpha-band (8–12 Hz) activity in magneto- and electroencephalography (MEG and EEG) may reflect E and I processes and, thus, can be of particular interest in ASD research. Previous findings indicated alterations in event-related and baseline alpha activity in different cortical systems in individuals with ASD, and these abnormalities were associated with core and co-occurring conditions of ASD. However, the knowledge on auditory alpha oscillations in this population is limited. This MEG study investigated stimulus-induced (Event-Related Desynchronization, ERD) and baseline alpha-band activity (both periodic and aperiodic) in the auditory cortex and also the relationships between these neural activities and behavioral measures of children with ASD. Ninety amplitude-modulated tones were presented to two groups of children: 20 children with ASD (5 girls, M age = 10.03, SD  = 1.7) and 20 typically developing controls (9 girls, M age = 9.11, SD  = 1.3). Children with ASD had a bilateral reduction of alpha-band ERD, reduced baseline aperiodic-adjusted alpha power, and flattened aperiodic exponent in comparison to TD children. Moreover, lower raw baseline alpha power and aperiodic offset in the language-dominant left auditory cortex were associated with better language skills of children with ASD measured in formal assessment. The findings highlighted the alterations of E / I balance metrics in response to basic auditory stimuli in children with ASD and also provided evidence for the contribution of low-level processing to language difficulties in ASD.