Functional and Connectivity Neuroimaging of Autism

The goal of this project was to develop over a three-year period new methods that would allow exploration of brain regions that are critical for processing sounds and language. This project utilized brain imaging technologies, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), to map out areas of the brain in control subjects that process sounds and language. This allowed the researchers to locate brain areas in which certain processes take place and to determine how these areas are connected to one another. The project used these technologies and this knowledge on adolescents with autism to shed light on regions of the brain which may not be processing sounds or language efficiently and where connections between critical brain regions may break down in autism.