White matter in developmental disorders

The white matter is the main connection between different regions of the brain and helps them to work in a unified, coordinated way. Diffusion tensor imaging is an ideal technique with which to study it in order to detect the degree of integrity of these fibres. Nowadays, they are considered to play a significant role in the development and pathophysiology of different developmental disorders, and the aim of this study was to examine this role. On reviewing disorders such as autism, dyslexia or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, certain fibres were found to be clearly involved. This was especially the case of the (arcuate) superior longitudinal fasciculus and the temporal-parietal network (related with the regulation of motor and attentional behaviour), the corpus callosum (which ensures the efficient and swift exchange of information between the hemispheres of the brain) and cingulate regions (which would be related with social cognition and self-consciousness).