China Autism Brain Imaging Consortium: Charting Brain Growth in Chinese Children with Autism

Li, L.; Bai, M.; Cai, K.; Cao, D.; Cao, X.; Chen, J.; Fan, X.-R.; Gao, P.; Gao, W.; He, D.; Meng, F.; Jiang, X.; Ni, L.; Li, X.; Lin, L.; Liu, Y.; Liu, Z.; Pan, N.; Qi, Q.; Qin, B.; Shan, X.; Shou, X.; Wang, L.; Wang, M.; Wang, X.; Xu, D.; Xu, Y.; Xue, Y.; Yang, T.; Zhang, Y.; Cai, J.; Chen, H.; Chen, A.; Jia, F.; Jiang, H.; Jing, J.; Li, T.; Li, S.; Wang, W.; Wang, J.; Wu, L.; Yin, X.; Zhang, R.; Zuo, X.-N.; China Autism Brain Imaging Consortium,; Duan, X.

doi:10.1101/2025.02.20.639044

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bioRxiv · 10.1101/2025.02.20.639044

China Autism Brain Imaging Consortium: Charting Brain Growth in Chinese Children with Autism

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Abstract

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a lifelong neurodevelopmental condition characterized by atypical brain growth. While advances in neuroimaging and openly sharing large-sample datasets such as the Autism Brain Imaging Data Exchange (ABIDE) have improved understanding of ASD, most studies focus on adolescents and adults, with early brain development-critical for diagnosis and intervention-remaining underexplored. Existing research predominantly involves Western samples, offering limited insight and generalizability into non-Caucasian populations. We introduce the China Autism Brain Imaging Consortium (CABIC) (https://php.bdnilab.com/resources/), a grassroots effort by researchers across the country to aggregate previously collected multi-site structural MRI datasets and phenotypic information from 1,451 autistic children and 1,119 typically developing children, covering an age range from early childhood to school age (1.0 - 12.92 years). Here, we present this resource and depict brain growth charts to push forward a more comprehensive understanding of the brain development in Chinese autism children. We constructed brain growth charts that reveal a developmental shift in autistic children, transitioning from early overgrowth to delayed maturation. Regional analyses identified distinct atypical trajectories across specific brain regions. Individual deviation scores quantified inter-subject variability, characterizing the heterogeneity of brain development in ASD. Comparative analyses between CABIC and ABIDE highlighted differences potentially attributable to ethnicity and culture, advancing our understanding of cross-population neurodevelopmental diversity. CABIC MRI datasets will be shared publicly to foster investigation of the potential neural mechanisms underlying ASD in non-Western populations and support efforts toward precision medicine for autistic individuals across diverse backgrounds.

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Li, L., Bai, M., Cai, K., Cao, D., Cao, X., Chen, J., Fan, X.-R., Gao, P., Gao, W., He, D., Meng, F., Jiang, X., Ni, L., Li, X., Lin, L., Liu, Y., Liu, Z., Pan, N., Qi, Q., Qin, B., Shan, X., Shou, X., Wang, L., Wang, M., Wang, X., Xu, D., Xu, Y., Xue, Y., Yang, T., Zhang, Y., Cai, J., Chen, H., Chen, A., Jia, F., Jiang, H., Jing, J., Li, T., Li, S., Wang, W., Wang, J., Wu, L., Yin, X., Zhang, R., Zuo, X.-N., China Autism Brain Imaging Consortium,, Duan, X.. 2025-02-21. China Autism Brain Imaging Consortium: Charting Brain Growth in Chinese Children with Autism. https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.02.20.639044

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