# Neural mechanisms of speech motor control in Autism Spectrum Disorders

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO · 2023 · $734,424

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Speech deficits are among the most prevalent and impairing of symptoms for people with Autism Spectrum
Disorder (ASD). In fact, 25% of people with ASD have little to no speech. The reasons many people with ASD
struggle to speak are still poorly understood, which means that our treatments don't target the source of the
problem. Our preliminary work has demonstrated that altering auditory feedback can influence speech in
individuals with ASD. However, the ability to translate these findings to the development of novel treatments for
speech deficits in ASD is impeded by our limited understanding of how auditory feedback interacts with speech
motor control in individuals with ASD. In the proposed study, we will use behavioral tasks and multiple methods
of advanced brain imaging to understand how brain chemicals and brain function impact a child's ability to speak
in order to identify the specific barriers to speech production for people with ASD.
Specifically, we will first characterize psychophysical and neural markers of speech motor control in children and
adolescents with and without ASD (Aim 1). We will then identify the mechanisms of speech motor control that
are associated with clinical symptoms of speech impairment (Aim 2). Using magnetoencephalography, functional
MRI and MR spectroscopy, we will then examine the relations between clinical speech abilities and brain
metabolites and connectivity in the speech motor network (Aim 3). The results of the project will not only help
explain why some people with ASD struggle to speak but will also open doors for development of targeted
treatments to address the source of the problem for the first time, which could dramatically extend the impact of
current speech therapies and even fundamentally change the prognosis for minimally verbal children with autism.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10632142
- **Project number:** 5R01DC019167-03
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO
- **Principal Investigator:** Carly Demopoulos
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2023
- **Award amount:** $734,424
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2021-08-02 → 2026-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10632142

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10632142, Neural mechanisms of speech motor control in Autism Spectrum Disorders (5R01DC019167-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10632142. Licensed CC0.

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