Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33693614›Full record

ArticleCerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991)2021

Examining the Boundary Sharpness Coefficient as an Index of Cortical Microstructure in Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Emily Olafson, Saashi A Bedford, Gabriel A Devenyi, Raihaan Patel, Stephanie Tullo, Min Tae M Park, Olivier Parent, Evdokia Anagnostou, Simon Baron-Cohen, Edward T Bullmore and 17 more

Open access · greenAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Cerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991), 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
7citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
1.7field-weighted citation impact, top 18% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

7 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 16 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Review
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Sex and gender in neurodevelopmental conditions.Nature reviews. Neurology · 2023
    Review
  6. Article
  7. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

27 authors at 14 institutions in 8 countries.

Emily OlafsonCerebral Imaging Centre, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, Montreal H4H 1R3, Canada.
Saashi A BedfordCerebral Imaging Centre, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, Montreal H4H 1R3, Canada.
Gabriel A DevenyiCerebral Imaging Centre, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, Montreal H4H 1R3, Canada.
Raihaan PatelCerebral Imaging Centre, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, Montreal H4H 1R3, Canada.
Stephanie TulloCerebral Imaging Centre, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, Montreal H4H 1R3, Canada.
Min Tae M ParkDepartment of Psychiatry, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, London N6A 3K7, ON, Canada.
Olivier ParentCerebral Imaging Centre, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, Montreal H4H 1R3, Canada.
Evdokia AnagnostouHolland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital, Toronto M4G 1R8, Canada.
Simon Baron-CohenAutism Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 8AH, UK.
Edward T BullmoreBrain Mapping Unit, Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0SZ, UK.
Lindsay R ChuraAutism Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 8AH, UK.
Michael C CraigInstitute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London SE5 8AF, UK.
Christine EckerDepartment of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University Hospital of the Goethe University, Frankfurt am Main 60528, Germany.
Dorothea L FlorisDonders Center for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen 6525 HR, The Netherlands.
Rosemary J HoltAutism Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 8AH, UK.
Rhoshel LenrootDepartment of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia.
Jason P LerchDepartment of Medical Biophysics, The University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5G 1L7, Canada.
Michael V LombardoAutism Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 8AH, UK.
Declan G M MurphyInstitute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London SE5 8AF, UK.
Armin RaznahanSection on Developmental Neurogenomics, Human Genetics Branch, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-9663, USA.
Amber N V RuigrokAutism Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 8AH, UK.
Michael D SpencerAutism Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 8AH, UK.
John SucklingAutism Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 8AH, UK.
Margot J TaylorDiagnostic Imaging, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto M5G 1X8, Canada.
MRC AIMS Consortium
Meng-Chuan LaiAutism Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 8AH, UK.
M Mallar ChakravartyCerebral Imaging Centre, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, Montreal H4H 1R3, Canada.
University of Cambridge · GBDouglas Mental Health University Institute · CABethlem Royal Hospital · GBCenter for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems · ITCornell University · USGoethe University Frankfurt · DEHolland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital · CAHospital for Sick Children · CAKing's College London · GBNational Institute of Mental Health · USRadboud University Nijmegen · NLUniversity of Oxford · GBUNSW Sydney · AUWestern University · CA

Funding

Section on Developmental NeurogenomicsZIAMH002949 · NIMH · NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MENTAL HEALTH · PI RAZNAHAN, ARMIN · 2016 to 2025
$30.0M
Intramural NIH HHS ZIA MH002949Medical Research Council 400061Medical Research Council G0701919Medical Research Council MC_G0802534
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is associated with atypical brain development. However, the phenotype of regionally specific increased cortical thickness observed in ASD may be driven by several independent biological processes that influence the gray/white matter boundary, such as synaptic pruning, myelination, or atypical migration. Here, we propose to use the boundary sharpness coefficient (BSC), a proxy for alterations in microstructure at the cortical gray/white matter boundary, to investigate brain differences in individuals with ASD, including factors that may influence ASD-related heterogeneity (age, sex, and intelligence quotient). Using a vertex-based meta-analysis and a large multicenter structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) dataset, with a total of 1136 individuals, 415 with ASD (112 female; 303 male), and 721 controls (283 female; 438 male), we observed that individuals with ASD had significantly greater BSC in the bilateral superior temporal gyrus and left inferior frontal gyrus indicating an abrupt transition (high contrast) between white matter and cortical intensities. Individuals with ASD under 18 had significantly greater BSC in the bilateral superior temporal gyrus and right postcentral gyrus; individuals with ASD over 18 had significantly increased BSC in the bilateral precuneus and superior temporal gyrus. Increases were observed in different brain regions in males and females, with larger effect sizes in females. BSC correlated with ADOS-2 Calibrated Severity Score in individuals with ASD in the right medial temporal pole. Importantly, there was a significant spatial overlap between maps of the effect of diagnosis on BSC when compared with cortical thickness. These results invite studies to use BSC as a possible new measure of cortical development in ASD and to further examine the microstructural underpinnings of BSC-related differences and their impact on measures of cortical morphology.

Indexed as

AdolescentAdultAgedAutism Spectrum DisorderBrain MappingCerebral CortexChildChild, PreschoolDatabases, FactualFemaleGray MatterHumansMagnetic Resonance ImagingMaleMiddle AgedWhite Matterautism spectrum disordercerebral cortexmicrostructuremyelintissue contrast

Identifiers

PMID33693614
PMCPMC8196259
OpenAlexW3133808826

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.