Brain scans show that people with autism spectrum disorder had significantly less activity in their dorsal parietal cortex during eye-to-eye contact, than people without the disorder, US researchers report.

This brain region has been associated with guiding a person’s visual evaluation of something and influencing their reaction to that visual stimulus.

The dorsal parietal cortex also has been linked with the social symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Armed with these study results, researchers say they can use this brain region to potentially help diagnose autism and test treatments.