The Amygdala and Macrocephaly (a little science and some thoughts)

by Kristina Chew · 2009-05-06 14:24:00 UTC
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Brain and amygdala from http://scienceblogs.com/neurotopia/amygdala.jpg
Another study on the amygdala---an almond-shaped structure of the human brain that is linked with a person's mental and emotional states---and autism is published in the May issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry. You can read the abstract of the study, Longitudinal Study of Amygdala Volume and Joint Attention in 2- to 4-Year-Old Children With Autism. Scientists at the University of North Carolina took MRI scans of 50 children on the autism spectrum and 33 who are not (11 developmentally delayed, 22 typically developing). The children on the spectrum were more likely to have an enlarged amygdala between the ages of 2 and 4, which is when they were also noted to present with features of autism.

I've been curious about studies that look at unusual neurological development and macrocephaly. My son's head has been over-sized since birth (though I'll note that both of his parents also have heads that are on the large side). On the Child Pscyhology Research Blog, Nestor L. Lopez-Duran, PhD., notes that there have been four studies done in which an association between the PTEN gene---which my son was recently tested for---and autism among children with macrocephaly has been documented. We see the neurologist next week----should be an interesting (and long) day, as Charlie also has an EEG scheduled in the morning.

More coverage from the May 4th Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The same issue of the Archives of General Pscyhiatry also has another study on autism, of Neuropsychological Profile of Autism and the Broad Autism Phenotype (full text).

Kristina Chew
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