Distinct Modes of Functional Neural Organization in Autism: Insights from Dynamical Systems Analysis of Resting-State EEG

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Ahn, Sungwoo, Rubchinsky, Leonid L, Malaia, Evie A
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Ahn, Sungwoo
Rubchinsky, Leonid L
Malaia, Evie A
author_facet Ahn, Sungwoo
Rubchinsky, Leonid L
Malaia, Evie A
contents While differences in patterns of functional connectivity and neural synchronization have been reported between individuals on the autism spectrum and neurotypical peers at various age stages, these differences appear to be subtle and may not be captured by typical quantitative measures of EEG. We used the dynamical systems approach to analyze resting-state EEG to investigate fine-grained spatiotemporal organization of brain networks in autistic and neurotypical young adults. While power spectra showed minimal group differences, autistic participants exhibited higher Lyapunov exponents (indicating less stable neural dynamics), weaker phase synchronization, and lower clustering/efficiency of functional networks during eyes-open resting state, suggesting more random and less stably connected neural dynamics in comparison to those of neurotypical peers. Closing the eyes regularized neural dynamics in autistic but not neurotypical participants, with increases in synchrony strength, transient desynchronization patterning, and functional connectivity observed in the autistic group. The results point to the distinct modes of neural dynamics organization likely reflecting cumulative developmental adaptations to sensory inputs that shape both resting-state neural activity and cognitive processing strategies.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2506_23013
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Distinct Modes of Functional Neural Organization in Autism: Insights from Dynamical Systems Analysis of Resting-State EEG
Ahn, Sungwoo
Rubchinsky, Leonid L
Malaia, Evie A
Neurons and Cognition
While differences in patterns of functional connectivity and neural synchronization have been reported between individuals on the autism spectrum and neurotypical peers at various age stages, these differences appear to be subtle and may not be captured by typical quantitative measures of EEG. We used the dynamical systems approach to analyze resting-state EEG to investigate fine-grained spatiotemporal organization of brain networks in autistic and neurotypical young adults. While power spectra showed minimal group differences, autistic participants exhibited higher Lyapunov exponents (indicating less stable neural dynamics), weaker phase synchronization, and lower clustering/efficiency of functional networks during eyes-open resting state, suggesting more random and less stably connected neural dynamics in comparison to those of neurotypical peers. Closing the eyes regularized neural dynamics in autistic but not neurotypical participants, with increases in synchrony strength, transient desynchronization patterning, and functional connectivity observed in the autistic group. The results point to the distinct modes of neural dynamics organization likely reflecting cumulative developmental adaptations to sensory inputs that shape both resting-state neural activity and cognitive processing strategies.
title Distinct Modes of Functional Neural Organization in Autism: Insights from Dynamical Systems Analysis of Resting-State EEG
topic Neurons and Cognition
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.23013