# Neural and developmental trajectories of females with autism spectrum disorder

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS · 2023 · $794,498

## Abstract

Girls and women are understudied in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) research because study samples often
reflect the male predominance in ASD prevalence, with 3-4 boys diagnosed for every girl. Longitudinal imaging
studies with sufficient numbers of females are completely lacking. To address this important gap in knowledge,
we aim to evaluate brain and behavioral trajectories from early to middle childhood in a large, longitudinal
cohort of nearly 100 girls with autism. As the field moves towards identifying neural biomarkers for ASD risk
and predicting outcomes, it is critical to understand similarities and differences between males and females
with ASD across the lifespan. Another serious need is to better understand co-occurring psychiatric conditions
in females with ASD. It is well-recognized that individuals with autism have high rates of co-occurring
psychopathology, but little is known about early behavioral and neural risk factors that may be specific to girls.
As in so many other areas of medicine, the optimal treatment of girls and women with ASD will only emerge
when sex-related autism attributes and problems are adequately understood. In 2014, we established the Girls
with Autism – Neuroimaging of Development (GAIN) study, which increased representation of females with
ASD in a larger ongoing project called the Autism Phenome Project and followed a cohort of girls across three
time points from 2-6 years of age. With this application, we plan to conduct a fourth longitudinal time point in
GAIN participants during middle childhood (9-12 years of age). In addition, in order to increase generalizability
of findings, we plan to enroll new girls into the study with a focus on racial and ethnic minority groups that have
historically been under-represented. Newly enrolled girls will follow the same study protocols established by
the GAIN study and data will be combined. We propose the following aims: 1) To identify sex-specific neural
and behavioral patterns in girls with ASD in early and middle childhood. 2) To identify sex differences in neural
risk factors associated with symptoms of internalizing and externalizing psychopathology in middle childhood.
3) To characterize the emergence and impact of symptoms of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in
girls with ASD. Evaluating females with ASD is a cross-cutting goal that spans all objectives of the US
Department of Health & Human Services Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee and is also consistent
with the goals of the Trans-NIH Strategic Plan for Women’s Health Research.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10614560
- **Project number:** 5R01MH127046-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS
- **Principal Investigator:** Christine Wu Nordahl
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2023
- **Award amount:** $794,498
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2022-05-01 → 2027-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10614560

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10614560, Neural and developmental trajectories of females with autism spectrum disorder (5R01MH127046-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-21 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10614560. Licensed CC0.

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