Autism and dyslexia: A spectrum of cognitive styles as defined by minicolumnar morphometry

SummaryThere is a continuum of cognitive styles amongst humans, defined by differences in minicolumnar numbers/width and arcuate/commissural white matter connectivities. Specifically, it is the connectivity within and between modular cortical circuits that defines conditions such as autism and developmental dyslexia. In autism, a model of local hyperconnectivity and long-range hypoconnectivity explains many of the behavioral and cognitive traits present in the condition, while the inverse arrangement of local hypoconnectivity and long-range hyperconnectivity in dyslexia sheds light on that condition as well. We propose that the cognitive styles present in autism and developmental dyslexia typify the extremes of a minicolumnar spectrum in humans.