GABA is the primary inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain, and is essential to the balance of cortical excitation and inhibition. Reductions in GABA are proposed to result in an overly excitatory cortex that may cause, or contribute to, symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This study employed a cross‐sectional design to explore GABA+ differences in ASD and the impact of age, comparing 4–12 year olds with ASD (N = 24) to typically developing children (N = 35). GABA+ concentration was measured using edited magnetic resonance spectroscopy in the left parietal lobe. This study used a mixed model to investigate group differences between children with ASD and typically developing children. There was a significant difference in GABA+ levels between the groups, a significant effect of age and interaction between age and diagnostic group. The ASD group showed an association between GABA+ and age, with GABA+ levels gradually increasing with age (r = 0.59, p = 0.003). Typically developing children did not show age‐related change in GABA+ concentration (r = 0.09, p = 0.60). By the age of 9, children with ASD showed GABA+ levels that were comparable to their typically developing peers. This study suggests that children with ASD have initially lower levels of GABA+ in the left parietal lobe compared to typically developing children, and that these initially lower levels of GABA+ increase with age in ASD within this region. It is suggested that this developmental shift of GABA+ levels within the left parietal lobe provides a possible explanation for the previously found reductions in childhood that does not persist in adults.

中文翻译：

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自闭症谱系障碍患儿的年龄相关壁顶GABA改变

GABA是大脑中主要的抑制性神经递质，对皮层兴奋和抑制的平衡至关重要。有人提出减少GABA会导致过度的兴奋性皮层，该皮层可能引起自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）症状或导致自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）症状。这项研究采用横断面设计来探讨ASD中GABA +的差异和年龄的影响，将4-12岁的ASD（N  = 24）与正常发育的儿童（N = 35）。使用编辑的磁共振波谱法测量左顶叶中的GABA +浓度。这项研究使用混合模型来研究ASD儿童与典型发育儿童之间的群体差异。两组之间的GABA +水平存在显着差异，年龄和年龄与诊断组之间的相互作用具有显着影响。ASD组显示GABA +与年龄之间存在关联，随着年龄的增长，GABA +水平逐渐升高（r  = 0.59，p  = 0.003）。通常，发育中的儿童并未显示出与年龄相关的GABA +浓度变化（r  = 0.09，p = 0.60）。到9岁时，患有ASD的儿童显示出的GABA +水平与他们通常发育的同龄人相当。这项研究表明，与典型发育中的儿童相比，患有ASD的儿童最初在左顶叶中的GABA +水平较低，并且该区域中最初这些较低的GABA +水平随着年龄的增长而增加。提示左顶叶内GABA +水平的这种发展变化为以前发现的成年人减少并不存在的儿童期减少提供了可能的解释。