In an autism spectrum disorder, changes in neurotransmitters can be seen in the brain

The autism spectrum in the disorder, the brain shows important changes in brain neurotransmitters, shows a recent Finnish study. These substances are involved in the regulation of motivation, pleasure and social interaction.

“The connection between the dopamine system and the opioid system in the brain does not work in autism spectrum disorders in the same way as in controls. This may explain why social interaction does not seem as rewarding to individuals on the autism spectrum,” doctoral researcher Tuomo Noppari says.

Research investigated the function of dopamine and opioid receptors in adult males with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. The study was created as a collaboration between the University of Helsinki and the Turku PET Center, which specializes in brain imaging.

Brain activity was studied with positron emission tomography (PET). 16 subjects on the autism spectrum and 24 controls participated in the study.

“The differences are significant. What is new compared to previous studies is that, for the first time, we are investigating the functioning of the opioid system and its connection to the dopamine system using PET imaging,” says Noppari.

“These two systems don’t seem to talk to each other in autism spectrum disorder.”

Noppari is a neurologist specializing in psychiatry. The study was published European Journal of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging in the journal.

Dopamine is an important neurotransmitter in the regulation of pleasure, motivation, learning and movements. It is called the pleasure hormone.

Opioid receptors, on the other hand, are not only related to the regulation of pleasure, but also emotions and pain. Receptors are binding sites for neurotransmitters in the brain.

“Dopamine and opioid concentrations in the brain are connected to each other in neurotypical people, but no similar connection was observed in autism spectrum disorder,” says Noppari.

In autism spectrum disorder individuals may have difficulties in social interactions. Behavior and objects of interest can be repetitive and limited, described for example Good treatment on the site.

However, the attitude towards autism has changed, and the inherent variation in the characteristics of the central nervous system is seen more and more often as a neurophysicist. The concept describes the natural diversity of brain function and behavior, which does not necessarily cause disorder-level symptoms.

The autism spectrum in subjects with the disorder, changes were most clearly observed in the parts of the brain related to sociality and motivational regulation.

The connection of the opioid system to sociality and autism has already been observed in animal experiments from the 1970s and also in more recent genetic mouse models of autism. When the opioid system was blocked, the mice’s behavior became evasive.

The importance of the dopamine system to sociability has been established, for example, with less sociability, empathy and perception of emotions associated with the use of stimulants.

The autism spectrum disorder and psychopathy have perhaps surprisingly the same features. Noppari will find out about them in his upcoming dissertation.

“They are in a way opposite to each other, but there are also a lot of interesting similarities. Both involve problems of social cognition, which we have tried to examine through imaging,” Noppari says.

Both groups have challenges in understanding social situations and the ability to empathize, but from different starting points.

“The actual cause of the autism spectrum is not yet known, and I don’t think it will be found out right away, but genetics plays a big role in it. The increased number of diagnoses is explained by the increase in general awareness, but on the other hand, the loosening of the diagnosis criteria,” Noppari reflects.