Mini-Basketball Training Program Improves Executive Function And Regional Homogeneity In Preschool Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders

Autism Spectrum Disorder(ASD)is a lifelong neurodevelopmental Disorder.Existing studies showed that long-term physical exercise interventions had positive effects on executive functions in school-aged children who were diagnosed with ASD.However,there is currently no neuroscientific evidence supporting its benefits.Here we evaluated the outcomes of a mini-basketball training program(MBTP)on executive function and regional homogeneity(ReHo)in preschool children with ASD.Thirty-two preschool children aged 3-6 years with ASD were assigned to either experimental group(n=17)or control group(n=15).The experimental group received a scheduled mini-basketball training program(5 sessions per week,forty minutes per session)for twelve consecutive weeks;while the control group was instructed to maintain their daily activities.Groups were assessed before and after intervention on executive function and ReHo.Working memory and Inhibition were lower in the experimental group post-intervention.This behavioral performance results demonstrated that executive function was improved by MBTP.MBTP could reorganize the participant’ regional homogeneity of spontaneous fluctuations in the blood oxygen level-dependent(BOLD)signals in the right inferior temporal gyrus,left posterior central gyrus,right superior marginal gyrus,left insula,left anterior central gyrus and right dorsolateral superior frontal gyrus.The increased ReHo in right inferior temporal gyrus was correlated with lower scores on Inhibition of experimental group.This study provides the first evidence that 12-week mini basketball exercise intervention can improve the executive functions of preschool ASD children,and its neural mechanism may involve the increase of the regional homogeneity of preschool ASD children caused by the 12-week mini basketball exercise intervention.