TY - JOUR
T1 - Increased grey matter volume of the right superior temporal gyrus in healthy children with autistic cognitive style
T2 - A VBM study
AU - Kobayashi, Akiko
AU - Yokota, Susumu
AU - Takeuchi, Hikaru
AU - Asano, Kohei
AU - Asano, Michiko
AU - Sassa, Yuko
AU - Taki, Yasuyuki
AU - Kawashima, Ryuta
N1 - Funding Information:
This study was supported by JST/RISTEX , JST/CREST, and a Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B) (KAKENHI 23700306) from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology. We thank Y. Yamada, Y. Kotozaki and R. Nouchi for collecting brain imaging and behavioural data, and K. Okimoto for recruiting participants. We also thank all participants and their parents who co-operated in this project, test examiners for their kind cooperation, and all colleagues at our institute for their useful discussion.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 Elsevier Inc.
PY - 2020/3
Y1 - 2020/3
N2 - The empathizing–systemizing model describes human cognitive style using empathizing (the drive to identify another's mental state and respond appropriately) and systemizing (the drive to assess or construct rule-based systems). ‘Brain type’ was envisioned to explain individual differences in cognitive style based on the discrepancy of the two drives. In this model, individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), a neurodevelopmental disorder, have extremely stronger systemizing. Revealing the underlying mechanisms of individual differences in cognitive style might contribute to elucidation of the pathology of ASD. We used voxel-based morphometry to compare the brain structures among the brain types (those who have stronger empathizing, those who have equally stronger drive to both, and those who have stronger systemizing) in 207 healthy children (age range: 5–15). Results showed that children with stronger systemizing had significantly greater grey matter volume of the right superior temporal gyrus (rSTG) than the others. The brain region, a distinctive brain structure of those with stronger systemizing, was overlapped with that of children with ASD. The rSTG is involved in detailed perceptual processing in social cognition, which is partially related to stronger systemizing. Our results contribute to elucidation of the underlying mechanisms of individual differences in cognitive style.
AB - The empathizing–systemizing model describes human cognitive style using empathizing (the drive to identify another's mental state and respond appropriately) and systemizing (the drive to assess or construct rule-based systems). ‘Brain type’ was envisioned to explain individual differences in cognitive style based on the discrepancy of the two drives. In this model, individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), a neurodevelopmental disorder, have extremely stronger systemizing. Revealing the underlying mechanisms of individual differences in cognitive style might contribute to elucidation of the pathology of ASD. We used voxel-based morphometry to compare the brain structures among the brain types (those who have stronger empathizing, those who have equally stronger drive to both, and those who have stronger systemizing) in 207 healthy children (age range: 5–15). Results showed that children with stronger systemizing had significantly greater grey matter volume of the right superior temporal gyrus (rSTG) than the others. The brain region, a distinctive brain structure of those with stronger systemizing, was overlapped with that of children with ASD. The rSTG is involved in detailed perceptual processing in social cognition, which is partially related to stronger systemizing. Our results contribute to elucidation of the underlying mechanisms of individual differences in cognitive style.
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U2 - 10.1016/j.bandc.2019.105514
DO - 10.1016/j.bandc.2019.105514
M3 - Article
C2 - 31902739
AN - SCOPUS:85077048565
SN - 0278-2626
VL - 139
JO - Brain and Cognition
JF - Brain and Cognition
M1 - 105514
ER -
