Enhanced Sensitivity and Altered EEG Patterns During General Anesthesia in BTBR Mice, a Model of Autism

Kim, Yeonsu; Lee, Seounghun; Kim, Seong-Eun; Kim, Yeojung; Ju, Xianshu; Lee, Yulim; Zhang, Tao; Kim, Juyeon; Choi, Sungho; Heo, Jun Young; Chung, Woosuk; Park, Jiho

doi:10.3390/brainsci16040391

Open AccessArticle

Enhanced Sensitivity and Altered EEG Patterns During General Anesthesia in BTBR Mice, a Model of Autism

by

Yeonsu Kim

^1,†

,

Seounghun Lee

^2,3,†

,

Seong-Eun Kim

⁴

,

Yeojung Kim

^2,3

,

Xianshu Ju

^5,6,

Yulim Lee

^5,6,

Tao Zhang

^5,6,

Juyeon Kim

⁷,

Sungho Choi

⁷,

Jun Young Heo

^5,6,

Woosuk Chung

^3,7 and

Jiho Park

^2,3,*

¹

Biomedical Research Institute, Chungnam National University Hospital, Daejeon 35015, Republic of Korea

²

Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Chungnam National University Sejong Hospital, 20, Bodeum 7-ro, Sejong 30099, Republic of Korea

³

Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Chungnam National University School of Medicine, Daejeon 35015, Republic of Korea

⁴

Department of Applied Artificial Intelligence, Seoul National University of Science and Technology, Seoul 01811, Republic of Korea

⁵

Department of Medical Science, Chungnam National University School of Medicine, Daejeon 35015, Republic of Korea

⁶

Department of Biochemistry, Chungnam National University School of Medicine, Daejeon 35015, Republic of Korea

⁷

Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Chungnam National University Hospital, Daejeon 35015, Republic of Korea

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

^†

These authors contributed equally to this work.

Brain Sci. 2026, 16(4), 391; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci16040391

Submission received: 11 March 2026 / Revised: 28 March 2026 / Accepted: 29 March 2026 / Published: 1 April 2026

(This article belongs to the Section Behavioral Neuroscience)

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Abstract

Background/Objectives: Alterations in excitation/inhibition (E/I) balance, involving both inhibitory and excitatory signaling, have been implicated in the pathophysiology of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Volatile anesthetics, including sevoflurane, act on multiple molecular and network targets, and anesthetic sensitivity may therefore differ in ASD. This study investigated whether sevoflurane sensitivity is altered in BTBR T+Itpr3tf/J (BTBR) mice, a widely used mouse model of ASD. Methods: Sevoflurane sensitivity was compared between BTBR mice and C57BL/6J (B6) control mice using behavioral and electroencephalographic (EEG) analyses. The minimum alveolar concentration required to abolish nociceptive responses (MACsevo) and the sevoflurane concentration associated with recovery of the righting reflex (RRsevo) were measured. Dose-dependent EEG changes, including burst suppression and theta power distribution, were also evaluated. Results: MACsevo did not differ significantly between BTBR and B6 mice. However, RRsevo was significantly lower in BTBR mice (1.10 ± 0.10%) compared with B6 mice (1.65 ± 0.13%; p < 0.001). EEG analyses demonstrated that burst suppression occurred at lower sevoflurane concentrations in BTBR mice (2.0%) than in B6 mice (2.4%). In addition, topographical mapping revealed distinct theta power dynamics between the two strains during anesthesia. Conclusions: BTBR mice exhibit increased sensitivity to sevoflurane during emergence from anesthesia and show distinct EEG patterns compared with control mice. These findings suggest altered anesthetic responsiveness in a mouse model of ASD and support the possibility that network-level neurophysiological differences may influence anesthetic responses. Further studies are needed to clarify whether similar alterations are present across other ASD models and human ASD populations.

Keywords: autism spectrum disorder; sevoflurane; electroencephalography; BTBR mice; general anesthesia; burst suppression

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MDPI and ACS Style

Kim, Y.; Lee, S.; Kim, S.-E.; Kim, Y.; Ju, X.; Lee, Y.; Zhang, T.; Kim, J.; Choi, S.; Heo, J.Y.; et al. Enhanced Sensitivity and Altered EEG Patterns During General Anesthesia in BTBR Mice, a Model of Autism. Brain Sci. 2026, 16, 391. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci16040391

AMA Style

Kim Y, Lee S, Kim S-E, Kim Y, Ju X, Lee Y, Zhang T, Kim J, Choi S, Heo JY, et al. Enhanced Sensitivity and Altered EEG Patterns During General Anesthesia in BTBR Mice, a Model of Autism. Brain Sciences. 2026; 16(4):391. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci16040391

Chicago/Turabian Style

Kim, Yeonsu, Seounghun Lee, Seong-Eun Kim, Yeojung Kim, Xianshu Ju, Yulim Lee, Tao Zhang, Juyeon Kim, Sungho Choi, Jun Young Heo, and et al. 2026. "Enhanced Sensitivity and Altered EEG Patterns During General Anesthesia in BTBR Mice, a Model of Autism" Brain Sciences 16, no. 4: 391. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci16040391

APA Style

Kim, Y., Lee, S., Kim, S.-E., Kim, Y., Ju, X., Lee, Y., Zhang, T., Kim, J., Choi, S., Heo, J. Y., Chung, W., & Park, J. (2026). Enhanced Sensitivity and Altered EEG Patterns During General Anesthesia in BTBR Mice, a Model of Autism. Brain Sciences, 16(4), 391. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci16040391

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Enhanced Sensitivity and Altered EEG Patterns During General Anesthesia in BTBR Mice, a Model of Autism

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