2021 Volume 49 Issue 1 Pages 22-29
Neurodevelopmental disorders are diagnosed based on a narrative set of specific clinical symptoms, so simple markers that reflect the underlying neurobiological mechanisms would be useful for follow-up. In the present study, we focused on (1) pupil diameter alteration in the face recognition task (Thatcher illusion) in ASD, (2) decreased spontaneous blink frequency in ADHD, and (3) increased non-REM atonia in the sleep EEG in ASD to investigate their relationship to the underlying pathophysiology. The results suggest functional alterations of (1) locus coeruleus-noradrenaline system, (2) brainstem dopamine system, and (3) dorsal raphe nucleus-serotonin system, respectively. All of these parameters were measured under little (or no) cognitive load and were thought to reflect a given innate and implicit condition. Because of these inadequacies, they take a variety of compensatory strategies.
