Research Links Smaller Brainstems With More Aggressive Behavior In Those Diagnosed With Autism
New research published in the journal Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders titled "Relationship between brain stem volume and aggression in children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder." Has identified a inverse proportional relationship between the size of an autistic child's brain stem and aggressive behavior.
Brain Stem
The brain stem is the portion of the brain which is responsible for joining the brain to the spinal chord, it is composed of a few parts which are labeled in the image below, the midbrain, medula oblongata, and the pons.
Each of these sections of the brain are heavily involved in involuntary bodily control. For instance the midbrain is responsible for regulating your body temperature, your alertness, the sleep/wake cycle among other things. The pons is responsible for regulating things such as swallowing, breathing, and bladder control. While the medula oblongata...
it controls things like your heart rate, blood pressure, and even your sneezing.
The Paper
The results were determined from a joint study between workers from Brigham Young University and The University of Utah, and only involved a small sample size (150 children). The intention of the study was more to be exploratory rather than to present conclusive irrefutable results so take the information with a grain of salt.
The children were scored for aggressive behavior based on The aberrant behavior checklist with about half being characterized as aggressive and the other half non aggressive. Then through use of MRI imaging of the brains of the children researchers quantified the volume of various aspects of the brain. They found no statistical correlation between the sizes of any portion of the brain except the brain stem.
Here the researchers noticed that the autistic children who displayed the more aggressive behaviors all had smaller brain stem volumes. This may seem surprising, however it is consistent with some prior research. Previously researchers have showed a link between the brain stem and autism. In addition to that link, a separate study has shown an interaction between oxytosin and aggression (despite the fact that oxytocin is the "love hormone") and the amygdala (another portion of the brain which directly contacts the brain stem).
So their is some precedence for this sort of data, still this could be more a case of correlation not equaling causation, and it is clear that significantly more study is necessary before any strong conclusions can be determined. That said, it's still (at least for me) a surprising and interesting result. I did not expect to see a correlation between this particular portion of the brain, so involved in various involuntary bodily functions and an aggressive response. Still the data is what it is, and for me at least this is just an illustration of how much more we have to learn about how the brain functions.
If you are interested in reading more into this, check out this science daily article:
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/02/170209142651.htm
Or Dive Into The Primary Literature (if you can get around the paywall):
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1750946716301556
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Hi there @justtryme90, I have to say that this kind of research is well outside my understanding. I do love learning about everything and anything. Though I understand the research methodology, the actual causation of behavioural anomalies seems to be down to a genetic/enzyme confluence ... or am I off the mark? As a casual observer, it seems that aggressive behaviour is some kind of self-defence mechanism - survival!
I shall try to make sense of the papers you suggested ... there is so much that we don't understand about these things. Much respect to you, Doctor!
Namaste.
Well hormonal at least, the result presented here is sort of murky IMO, I am not entirely certain what to make of it. They certainly don't postulate an answer to why smaller brain stems result in more aggressive behavior in those with ASD. Previous work points to, as I briefly brought up, oxytosin as a contributor, but I don't really see the connection between that and the size of the brain stem.
Basically I have to leave you with I do not know. I am interested, the result was interesting, and gets me thinking. Much of the time I enjoy science that makes me scratch my head and go... hmm.. wonder why that might be.
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So true!
I hope our knowledge on the brain will improve soon (with the brain project in Lausanne, for instance)
When ever I hear the name Medula Oblongata I start singing that Lion King song in my head.
🎵 it means no worries... for the rest of your dayssss....🎵
This project?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Brain_Project
I had not heard of it, will have to look into what they are up to!
Very very interesting indeed! I also love science. One of my favorite subjects to teach. 😀
Thanks for reading @giantbear!
Really interesting post!
I would think a follow up study examining criminals would be interesting. Would we see larger brainstems in people who had committed murder vs. theft? or perhaps the association only applies to children with autism?
This is an interesting question, and certainly seems like it would be a fascinating study!