Communications Biology (Jan 2024)

Sex modulation of faces prediction error in the autistic brain

  • Adeline Lacroix,
  • Sylvain Harquel,
  • Martial Mermillod,
  • Marta Garrido,
  • Leonardo Barbosa,
  • Laurent Vercueil,
  • David Aleysson,
  • Frédéric Dutheil,
  • Klara Kovarski,
  • Marie Gomot

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-024-05807-4
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 7, no. 1
pp. 1 – 12

Abstract

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Abstract Recent research suggests that autistic females may have superior socio-cognitive abilities compared to autistic males, potentially contributing to underdiagnosis in females. However, it remains unclear whether these differences arise from distinct neurophysiological functioning in autistic males and females. This study addresses this question by presenting 41 autistic and 48 non-autistic adults with a spatially filtered faces oddball paradigm. Analysis of event-related potentials from scalp electroencephalography reveal a neurophysiological profile in autistic females that fell between those of autistic males and non-autistic females, highlighting sex differences in autism from the initial stages of face processing. This finding underscores the urgent need to explore neurophysiological sex differences in autism and encourages efforts toward a better comprehension of compensation mechanism and a clearer definition of what is meant by camouflaging.