Article

The aim of this article is to review neuroimaging studies of autism spectrum
disorders (ASD) that examine declarative, socio-emotional, and procedural
learning and memory systems. METHOD: We conducted a search of PubMed from 1996 to
2010 using the terms 'autism,''learning,''memory,' and 'neuroimaging.' We limited
our review to studies correlating learning and memory function with neuroimaging
features of the brain. RESULTS: The early literature supports the following
preliminary hypotheses: (1) abnormalities of hippocampal subregions may
contribute to autistic deficits in episodic and relational memory; (2) disturbances to an amygdala-based network (which may include the fusiform gyrus,
superior temporal cortex, and mirror neuron system) may contribute to autistic
deficits in socio-emotional learning and memory; and (3) abnormalities of the
striatum may contribute to developmental dyspraxia in individuals with ASD.
INTERPRETATION: Characterizing the disturbances to learning and memory systems in ASD can inform our understanding of the neural bases of autistic behaviors and
the phenotypic heterogeneity of ASD.
CI - (c) The Authors. Developmental Medicine & Child Neurology (c) 2012 Mac Keith
Press.

Langue : ANGLAIS