Reasearch on the Brain Functions of Autistic Children

In the late 1990’s, researchers from the University of California, San Diego wanted to know if there was connection between mirror neurons and autism.1 They hypothesized that since these neurons play a role in a person’s ability to feel empathy, they found it sensible to think it might be the cause of autistic symptoms.1 Autism is a disorder found among children where areas of the brain fail to work thus makes it difficult for individuals to communicate.4 A researcher, Giacomo Rizzolatti at the University of Parma Italy, conducted a study in the 1990’s studying Macacas. His group studied the motor command neuron from the premotor cortex. The neuron is part of the frontal lobe that is responsible for voluntary movements. Electrodes were hooked up to the brain and the macacas had to perform goal oriented actions.1 When a macaca reached for a peanut, the same exact neuron from another monkey observing them was fired also. This action surprised Giacomo and his colleagues. They found out the neuron is also found in the same regions as the human cortex1. Further research of the mirror neurons were shown to be located in different parts of the brain such as the insular and cingulate cortices. They found out that the neurons at the anterior cingulate cortex are fired when a person is in pain and the same goes for the person who watches them1. It was concluded that mirror neurons are seen to be performing similar functions that is found in autism meaning that if there was aShow MoreRelatedAutism Essay1317 Words   |  6 PagesGreen Mr. Van Boening English 12 Block 8 6 October 2014 Autism Spectrum Disorder Autistic children experience the world a lot more differently than others. For example, children with autism are not capable of using words, and have a hard time communicating in general by any means. Specific sounds, like loud crashes and yelling, would bother an autistic child that wouldn’t normally bother a child that wasn’t autistic. We need to learn more about autism so we can handle it, as it is the fastest growing