Neural development predicts autism

Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have found promising evidence that suggests a new biomarker for predicting an infant's chances of developing autism. The symptom for what may potentially develop into autism later in an infant's life includes the white matter fiber tract organization in its brain.
The white matter of the brain consists of bundles of nerve cells, which connect various regions of the brain (grey matter) to each other. If you compare the brain to computers, the grey matter is like the computer itself, while the white matter is composed of all of the network cables that connect computer together.
Participants in the study included 92 infants, who were chosen to be a part of the study due to the onset of autism in their siblings. Having siblings with autism puts one at high risk for developing autism as well.
Over a period of 24 months, the infants were monitored via brain imaging scans and behavioral tests. Of the 92 subjects, 28 developed autism.
The study focused on 15 white matter fiber tracts in the brain and discovered significant differences in the tracks of children with autism. Tracks are regions that connect brain pathways to one another, and the researchers found that 12 out of 15 tracks contained differences.
Researchers used a scale called fractional anisotropy (FA) to measure white matter tract development. FA indicates the restriction of the movement of molecules and operates on a scale between zero and one.
A value of zero means that the tested molecule is moving around with no restriction in any direction. A value of one means that the molecule is fully restricted along all directions except one.
Coupled with diffusion MRI's, FA values can tell researchers the structure of white matter fibers by tracking the movement of water molecules in the brain.
Infants who later developed autism had high FA values at six months after birth. By 24 months, they had lower FA values compared to infants without autism, who had slowly developed their white matter tracts. There was a clear disparity between the development of white matter tracts in the brains of infants who later developed autism and those who didn't.
The aberration of fiber pathway development can be a clear biomarker for predicting the onset of autism in infants, especially for those whose siblings have already been diagnosed.
This study not only suggests that autism is a whole-brain disorder, but also that the development of autism may be prevented by target intervention during the key periods of brain development in infants.