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Autism is a neural dysconnectivity syndrome caused by abnormal neural development. Dr. Yi-Ping Hsueh's research team at the Institute of Molecular Biology and Dr. Chien-Yao Wang at the Institute of Informational Science combined artificial intelligence and high-throughput imaging technology to establish a whole-brain imaging and quantification system for analyzing neural connectivity in autism model mice. They investigated the neural connectivity of TBR1+/¬– mice, a well-characterized autism mouse model that exhibits anatomical defects similar to those found in patients carrying TBR1 mutations. The results suggest that TBR1 deficiency impairs whole-brain connectivity and synchronization of the basolateral amygdala. Furthermore, deep brain stimulation at the basolateral amygdala restored connectivity to levels comparable to wild-type mice and improved the social interaction of TBR1+/¬– mice. The study implies a potential beneficial effect of deep brain stimulation at the amygdala for TBR1-linked autism. This work has been published in the PLOS Biology on July 16, 2024.

The first and the second author is Dr. Tsan-Ting Hsu, Project Scientist, and Dr. Tzyy-Nan Huang, Senior Project Scientist, at Dr. Yi-Ping Hsueh’s lab, Academia Sinica. This study was supported by the Thematic Research Program, and an Investigator Award from Academia Sinica. In addition, this work also received a Frontier Research Grant from the National Science and Technology Council.