Hypersensitivity to low intensity fearful faces in autism when fixation is constrained to the eyes.

ABSTRACT: Previous studies that showed decreased brain activation in people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) viewing expressive faces did not control that participants looked in the eyes. This is problematic because ASD is characterized by abnormal attention to the eyes. Here, we collected fMRI data from 48 participants (27 ASD) viewing pictures of neutral faces and faces expressing anger, happiness, and fear at low and high intensity, with a fixation cross between the eyes. Group differences in whole brain activity were examined for expressive faces at high and low intensity versus neutral faces. Group differences in neural activity were also investigated in regions of interest within the social brain, including the amygdala and the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC). In response to low inte

SUBMITTER: Lassalle A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6866739 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature