Two clusters of brain regions with distinct age-related profiles of functional connectivity in autism spectrum disorder.

Two distinct age-related profiles of functional connectivity differences in ASD involve stable hypoconnectivity in sensory cortices and diminishing hypoconnectivity in association cortices across ages 5 to 64 years.

• Why it matters: Understanding how brain connectivity changes over development in ASD can clarify neurobiological mechanisms and inform targeted interventions, addressing gaps in knowledge about developmental trajectories.
• What they did: Using large multisite resting-state fMRI datasets, a data-driven analysis identified two clusters of cortical regions with different age-related ASD-TD connectivity profiles, involving 5,000 participants aged 5 to 64 years.
• The result: The findings show that one cluster exhibits consistent hypoconnectivity, linked to greater ASD symptom associations, while the other shows hypoconnectivity that diminishes with age, highlighting developmentally heterogeneous neurobiological alterations in ASD.