Migration abnormality in the left cingulate gyrus presenting with autistic disorder

Abstract

Autism, characterized by an impairment in communication, including language, narrowly focused interests, and poor sociability, is a neurodevelopmental disorder of still largely unknown pathogenesis. In children with autistic symptomatology, the most consistent functional or anatomic abnormalities are found in the cingulate gyrus, particularly in the anterior regions. Neuronal migration malformations caused by incomplete neuronal migration and characterized by loss of the normal gyral patterns in the cerebral hemispheres and prominent disorganization of the cerebral cortical cytoarchitecture are generally associated with profound neurologic deficits, epilepsy, and autism. In this report, we present a case with an isolated migration abnormality located in the anterior part of the left cingulate gyrus who was admitted with the complaints of epileptic seizures and autism. In addition, the role of the localization of the migration abnormality in the Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by an impairment in communication, including language, a lack of imagination, poor sociability, narrowly focused interests, and stereotypies.(1) Although the pathogenesis of the disorder is still largely unknown, various pathologic abnormalities have been shown in many different areas of the brain, including the cerebellum, limbic system, and brain stem,(2) as well as changes in brain weight,(3) increased brain size,(4-6) minicolunmar pathology in various parts of the cerebral cortex,(7) changes in white- and gray-matter volume,(8,9) and aberrations in brain metabolism and blood flow(10) in different parts of the brain. Increased cell impact, decreased neuron size, and aberrant dendritic branching are reported in different structures of the limbic system.(11) In children with autistic symptomatology, the most consistent functional or anatomic abnormalities are found in the cingulate gyrus, particularly in the anterior regions. 10 Many of the above-mentioned pathologic abnormalities in autism might have started at an earlier stage of neural development, possibly before the third gestational month 3 at a time when neuronal migration prevails. Indeed, neuronal migration problems, not an infrequent cause of intractable epilepsy and mental retardation, have also been reported in autistic cases(2,3).