Maryam Boutrus1,2,3, Syed Zulqarnain Gilani4,5, Gail A Alvares1,2, Murray T Maybery3, Diana Weiting Tan1,3, Ajmal Mian4, Andrew J O Whitehouse1,2. 1. Telethon Kids Institute, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia. 2. Cooperative Research Centre for Living with Autism (Autism CRC), Brisbane, Australia. 3. School of Psychological Science, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia. 4. Computer Sciences and Software Engineering, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia. 5. School of Science, Edith Cowan University, Perth, Australia.
Abstract
A key research priority in the study of autism spectrum conditions (ASC) is the discovery of biological markers that may help to identify and elucidate etiologically distinct subgroups. One physical marker that has received increasing research attention is facial structure. Although there remains little consensus in the field, findings relating to greater facial asymmetry (FA) in ASC exhibit some consistency. As there is growing recognition of the importance of replicatory studies in ASC research, the aim of this study was to investigate the replicability of increased FA in autistic children compared to nonautistic peers. Using three-dimensional photogrammetry, this study examined FA in 84 autistic children, 110 typically developing children with no family history of the condition, and 49 full siblings of autistic children. In support of previous literature, significantly greater depth-wise FA was identified in autistic children relative to the two comparison groups. As a further investigation, increased lateral FA in autistic children was found to be associated with greater severity of ASC symptoms on the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, second edition, specifically related to repetitive and restrictive behaviors. These outcomes provide an important and independent replication of increased FA in ASC, as well as a novel contribution to the field. Having confirmed the direction and areas of increased FA in ASC, these findings could motivate a search for potential underlying brain dysmorphogenesis. Autism Res 2019, 12: 1774-1783.
A key research priority in the study of autism spectrum conditions (ASC) is the discovery of biological markers that may help to identify and elucidate etiologically distinct subgroups. One physical marker that has received increasing research attention is facial structure. Although there remains little consensus in the field, findings relating to greater facial asymmetry (FA) in ASC exhibit some consistency. As there is growing recognition of the importance of replicatory studies in ASC research, the aim of this study was to investigate the replicability of increased FA in autisticchildren compared to nonautistic peers. Using three-dimensional photogrammetry, this study examined FA in 84 autisticchildren, 110 typically developing children with no family history of the condition, and 49 full siblings of autisticchildren. In support of previous literature, significantly greater depth-wise FA was identified in autisticchildren relative to the two comparison groups. As a further investigation, increased lateral FA in autisticchildren was found to be associated with greater severity of ASC symptoms on the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, second edition, specifically related to repetitive and restrictive behaviors. These outcomes provide an important and independent replication of increased FA in ASC, as well as a novel contribution to the field. Having confirmed the direction and areas of increased FA in ASC, these findings could motivate a search for potential underlying brain dysmorphogenesis. Autism Res 2019, 12: 1774-1783.
Authors: Maryam Boutrus; Zulqarnain Gilani; Murray T Maybery; Gail A Alvares; Diana W Tan; Peter R Eastwood; Ajmal Mian; Andrew J O Whitehouse Journal: J Autism Dev Disord Date: 2021-06