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© 2025 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.

Abstract

Background: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by persistent difficulties in social interaction, communication, and repetitive behaviors. Neuroimaging studies have revealed structural and functional neural changes in individuals with ASD compared to healthy subjects. Objectives: This study aimed to investigate brain network structural connectivity in ASD using Morphometric Similarity Network (MSN) analysis. Methods: Data from the Autism Brain Imaging Data Exchange (ABIDE) were analyzed, comprising 597 individuals with ASD and 644 healthy controls. Structural connectivity was assessed using cortical morphometric features. Global and regional network indices, including the density index, node degree, node strength, and clustering coefficients, were evaluated. Results: Among the global network indices, when using a threshold value of 0.4, ASD patients compared to HCs showed a lower density (p = 0.041) and higher negative clustering (p = 0.0051) coefficients. For regional network indices, ASD patients showed a lower bilateral superior frontal cortices degree (left hemisphere: p = 0.014; right hemisphere: p = 0.0038) and strength (left: p = 0.017; right: p = 0.018). Additionally, they showed higher negative clustering coefficients in the bilateral superior frontal cortices (left, p = 0.0088; right, p = 0.0056) and bilateral pars orbitalis (left, p = 0.016; right, p = 0.0006), as well as lower positive clustering in the bilateral frontal pole (left, p = 0.03; right, p = 0.044). Conclusions: These findings highlight significant alterations in both global and regional brain network organization in ASD, which may contribute to the disorder’s cognitive and behavioral manifestations. Future studies are needed to investigate the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying these structural connectivity changes, to inform the development of more targeted and individualized therapeutic interventions for individuals with ASD.

Details

Title
Multimodal Morphometric Similarity Network Analysis of Autism Spectrum Disorder
Author
Antonio Del Casale 1   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Darvin Shehu 2   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Rossi-Espagnet, Maria Camilla 3   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Zocchi, Clarissa 4 ; Bilotta, Irene 5 ; Arena, Jan Francesco 1   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Alcibiade, Alessandro 6 ; Adriani, Barbara 7   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Longo, Daniela 3 ; Gandolfo, Carlo 3   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Romano, Andrea 8 ; Ferracuti, Stefano 9   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Bozzao, Alessandro 8   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Napolitano, Antonio 3 

 Department of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology and Health Studies, Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00189 Rome, Italy; [email protected] 
 Medical Physics Department, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, 00165 Rome, Italy; [email protected] 
 Functional and Interventional Neuroimaging Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy; [email protected] (M.C.R.-E.); [email protected] (D.L.); [email protected] (C.G.); [email protected] (A.N.) 
 Psychiatric Diagnosis and Treatment Unit, S. Giovanni Evangelista Hospital, Department of Mental Health, Local Health Authority ASL Roma 5, 00019 Tivoli, Italy; [email protected] 
 Psychiatric Diagnosis and Treatment Unit, S. Camillo de Lellis Hospital, Department of Mental Health, Local Health Authority ASL Rieti, 02100 Rieti, Italy; [email protected] 
 Marina Militare Italiana (Italian Navy), Ministry of Defence, Piazza della Marina, 4, 00196 Rome, Italy; [email protected] 
 Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health and Sensory Organs (NESMOS), Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00189 Rome, Italy; [email protected] (B.A.); [email protected] (A.R.); [email protected] (A.B.) 
 Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health and Sensory Organs (NESMOS), Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00189 Rome, Italy; [email protected] (B.A.); [email protected] (A.R.); [email protected] (A.B.); Unit of Neuroradiology, Sant’Andrea University Hospital, 00189 Rome, Italy 
 Department of Human Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy; [email protected]; Unit of Risk Management, Sant’Andrea University Hospital, 00189 Rome, Italy 
First page
247
Publication year
2025
Publication date
2025
Publisher
MDPI AG
e-ISSN
20763425
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
3181357453
Copyright
© 2025 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.