1. Bong G, Kim SY, Song DY, Kim JH, Hong Y, Yoon NH, Sunwoo H, Jang JY, Oh M, Kim JM, Lee KS, Jung S, Choi CW, Ryu JS, Yoo HJ. Short caregiver interview and play observation for early screening of autism spectrum disorder: Behavior development screening for toddlers (BeDevel). Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research. 2021; 14(7): 1472-83.

This study validates behavior development screening for toddlers (BeDevel), which utilizes a combination of short caregiver interviews (BeDevel-I) and semistructured play observations (BeDevel-P). The data of 431 toddlers (male 66.2%; mean age (SD) = 29.11 (8.59) months; ASD, n = 201; developmental delay, n = 46; typically developing, n = 184), aged 18 ~ 42 months, were included in the validation of BeDevel. The best clinical estimate diagnosis, screening rate, validity, sensitivity, and reliability of BeDevel were determined based on data cross-sectionally collected using BeDevel and existing diagnostic/screening instruments: autism diagnostic observation schedule (ADOS), autism diagnostic interview (ADI-R), Vineland adaptive behavior scales-II (VABS-II), social response scales (SRS), sequenced language scale for infants (SELSI), Korean childhood autism rating scale (K-CARS), and Korean social communication questionnaire (K-SCQ). The k values of BeDevel-I and BeDevel-P were 0.055 ~ 0.732 and 0.291 ~ 0.752, respectively. Items related to social referencing in BeDevel-P had a particularly high diagnostic validity (k = 0.483 ~ 0.684). Reliabilities of BeDevel-I and BeDevel-P were sufficient (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.86 ~ 0.88 and 0.92 ~ 0.95, respectively). BeDevel-I and BeDevel-P showed high sensitivity (BeDevel-I: 85.00 ~ 89.29%; BeDevel-P: 85.00 ~ 91.75%), specificity (BeDevel-I: 77.55 ~ 89.55%; BeDevel-P: 85.09 ~ 97.01%), PPV (BeDevel-I: 70.83 ~ 88.54%; BeDevel-P: 81.52 ~ 94.68%), and NPV (BeDevel-I: 76.00 ~ 95.24%; BeDevel-P: 84.62 ~ 95.45%). The agreement between the composite BeDevel score and ADOS, ADI-R, K-CARS, and K-SCQ was >67.6% (range = 67.6 ~ 90.8%). Combining a short caregiver interview and direct play observation is a valid and reliable screening process. More studies on social referencing as an important early marker are needed. BeDevel can be utilized as a secondary screening instrument before diagnostic confirmation in clinical and community settings. LAY SUMMARY: BeDevel, which consists of a short caregiver interview and direct play observation, is a valid and reliable screening instrument for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). We suggest that BeDevel can be utilized as a secondary instrument before administering diagnostic assessments in clinical and community settings. More studies examining social referencing as a potential behavioral marker of ASD are needed.

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2. Chen F, Zhang H, Ding H, Wang S, Peng G, Zhang Y. Neural coding of formant-exaggerated speech and nonspeech in children with and without autism spectrum disorders. Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research. 2021; 14(7): 1357-74.

The presence of vowel exaggeration in infant-directed speech (IDS) may adapt to the age-appropriate demands in speech and language acquisition. Previous studies have provided behavioral evidence of atypical auditory processing towards IDS in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), while the underlying neurophysiological mechanisms remain unknown. This event-related potential (ERP) study investigated the neural coding of formant-exaggerated speech and nonspeech in 24 4- to 11-year-old children with ASD and 24 typically-developing (TD) peers. The EEG data were recorded using an alternating block design, in which each stimulus type (exaggerated/non-exaggerated sound) was presented with equal probability. ERP waveform analysis revealed an enhanced P1 for vowel formant exaggeration in the TD group but not in the ASD group. This speech-specific atypical processing in ASD was not found for the nonspeech stimuli which showed similar P1 enhancement in both ASD and TD groups. Moreover, the time-frequency analysis indicated that children with ASD showed differences in neural synchronization in the delta-theta bands for processing acoustic formant changes embedded in nonspeech. Collectively, the results add substantiating neurophysiological evidence (i.e., a lack of neural enhancement effect of vowel exaggeration) for atypical auditory processing of IDS in children with ASD, which may exert a negative effect on phonetic encoding and language learning. LAY SUMMARY: Atypical responses to motherese might act as a potential early marker of risk for children with ASD. This study investigated the neural responses to such socially relevant stimuli in the ASD brain, and the results suggested a lack of neural enhancement responding to the motherese even in individuals without intellectual disability.

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3. Cheng J, Çelik MH, Kundaje A, Gagneur J. MTSplice predicts effects of genetic variants on tissue-specific splicing. Genome biology. 2021; 22(1): 94.

We develop the free and open-source model Multi-tissue Splicing (MTSplice) to predict the effects of genetic variants on splicing of cassette exons in 56 human tissues. MTSplice combines MMSplice, which models constitutive regulatory sequences, with a new neural network that models tissue-specific regulatory sequences. MTSplice outperforms MMSplice on predicting tissue-specific variations associated with genetic variants in most tissues of the GTEx dataset, with largest improvements on brain tissues. Furthermore, MTSplice predicts that autism-associated de novo mutations are enriched for variants affecting splicing specifically in the brain. We foresee that MTSplice will aid interpreting variants associated with tissue-specific disorders.

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4. Choi B, Castelbaum L, McKechnie R, Rowe ML, Nelson CA, Tager-Flusberg H. Brief Report: Parents’ Declarative Use of Deictic Gestures Predict Vocabulary Development in Infants at High and Low Risk for Autism Spectrum Disorder. Journal of autism and developmental disorders. 2022; 52(2): 914-22.

We examined the communicative intentions behind parents’ deictic gesture use with high-risk infants later diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD; n = 17), high-risk infants who were not diagnosed with ASD (n = 25), and low-risk infants (n = 28) at 12 months and assessed the extent to which the parental deictic gesture intentions predicted infants’ later vocabulary development. We found that parents in the three groups produced similar numbers of declarative and imperative gestures during a 10-minute parent-child interaction in the lab at 12 months and that 12-month parental declarative gesture use was significantly, positively associated with children’s 36-month vocabulary scores. Encouraging parental use of declarative gestures with infants could have important implications for language development.

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5. Crehan ET, Rocha J, Dufresne S. Brief Report: Sources of Sexuality and Relationship Education for Autistic and Neurotypical Adults in the U.S. and a Call to Action. Journal of autism and developmental disorders. 2022; 52(2): 908-13.

Sexuality and relationship education (SRE) occurs in many formats. In order to inform best practices, current trends of SRE sources must be characterized. Using an online survey of autistic and neurotypical adults in the United States, we compared eleven potential sources of SRE across nine content areas. Source use did not differ significantly across five of the content areas. Same-aged peers were consulted less often by the autistic adults for flirting, dating, and consent. For partnered sexual behavior, neurotypical adults reported consulting romantic partners significantly more often than autistic adults. Across all groups, use of the internet as a source of information was high. The need for improving SRE access based on existing trends is discussed.

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6. Finnemann JJS, Plaisted-Grant K, Moore J, Teufel C, Fletcher PC. Low-level, prediction-based sensory and motor processes are unimpaired in Autism. Neuropsychologia. 2021; 156: 107835.

A new promising account of human brain function suggests that sensory cortices try to optimise information processing via predictions that are based on prior experiences. The brain is thus likened to a probabilistic prediction machine. There has been a growing – though inconsistent – literature to suggest that features of autism spectrum conditions (ASCs) are associated with a deficit in modelling the world through such prediction-based inference. However empirical evidence for differences in low-level sensorimotor predictions in autism is still lacking. One approach to examining predictive processing in the sensorimotor domain is in the context of self-generated (predictable) as opposed to externally-generated (less predictable) effects. We employed two complementary tasks – forcematching and intentional binding – which examine self-versus externally-generated action effects in terms of sensory attenuation and intentional binding respectively in adults with and without autism. The results show that autism was associated with normal levels of sensory attenuation of internally-generated force and with unaltered temporal attraction of voluntary actions and their outcomes. Thus, our results do not support a general deficit in predictive processing in autism.

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7. Friedman C. Organizational Supports to Promote the Community Integration of People With Dual Diagnosis. Intellectual and developmental disabilities. 2021; 59(2): 101-11.

One of the most common reasons people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) return to institutions is because of maladaptive behaviors. This study’s aim was to examine the impact organizational supports can have on the community outcomes of people with dual diagnosis-those with IDD and psychiatric disabilities. We analyzed secondary Personal Outcome Measures interview data from 533 people with dual diagnosis. Findings revealed people with dual diagnosis were significantly more likely to have community outcomes present when they received individualized organizational supports. In addition, we found a number of disparities in organizational supports, including related to guardianship, communication method, and residence type. A more robust service system is necessary to ensure people with dual diagnosis are integrated into their communities.

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8. Gal E, Gal-Mishael R, Vissoker RE, Hedley D, Bury SM, Stolar O. Eating Challenges in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Development and Validation of the « Aut-Eat » Questionnaire (AEQ). Journal of autism and developmental disorders. 2022; 52(2): 811-22.

The Aut-Eat Questionnaire (AEQ) provides a novel and comprehensive assessment of eating problems and patterns in children with ASD. To establish the internal consistency and discriminant validity of the AEQ, parents of children with ASD (n = 105, M(age) = 40.85, SD = 15.67 months) or typical development (TD; n = 98, M(age) = 50.33, SD = 16.50 months) completed the AEQ. Questionnaire construction, content validity, factor analysis, internal consistency and discriminant validity are reported. The AEQ was reliable with high internal consistency in most domains. Significant differences were found between groups in all domains. The AEQ is a reliable and valid tool and may help to characterize eating difficulties in this population.

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9. Geurts HM, Agelink van Rentergem JA, Radhoe T, Torenvliet C, Van der Putten WJ, Groenman AP. Ageing and heterogeneity regarding autism spectrum conditions: a protocol paper of an accelerated longitudinal study. BMJ open. 2021; 11(3): e040943.

INTRODUCTION: Autism spectrum conditions (ASC) develop early in life and are thought to last a lifetime. However, ASC research has two major knowledge gaps that hinder progression in understanding the concept of ASC and in providing proper support for autistic adults: (1) the majority of knowledge about ASC mainly stems from childhood studies so little is known about older autistic adults and (2) while it is broadly recognised that ASC is a heterogeneous condition, we do not yet understand the differences in trajectories leading to their future outcome. We aim to fill both knowledge gaps. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: A multistage overlapping cohort design assessing (cognitive) ageing in ASC is designed to obtain an accelerated longitudinal data set. Data, including a multitude of questionnaires, diagnostics and cognitive tests, are collected over four waves within a 10-year time frame. This will provide information regarding actual changes in quality of life, co-occurring health conditions and cognition as well as the possibility to test external validity and temporal stability in newly formed behavioural subtypes. Participants consist of three groups of adults aged 20-90 years: (1) with a clinical diagnosis of ASC, (2) with a clinical diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) but no ASC, (3) no ASC/ADHD (ie, comparison group). The sample size differs between waves and instruments. Detailed analysis plans will be preregistered in AsPredicted or at the Open Science Framework. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval for this study was obtained from the ethical review board of the Department of Psychology of the University of Amsterdam (wave 1 2011-PN-1952 and 2013-PN-2668, wave 2 2015-BC-4270, waves 3 and 4 2018-BC-9285). In line with the funding policies of the grant organisation funding this study, future papers will be published open access.

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10. Goff KM, Goldberg EM. A Role for Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide Interneurons in Neurodevelopmental Disorders. Developmental neuroscience. 2021; 43(3-4): 168-80.

GABAergic inhibitory interneurons of the cerebral cortex expressing vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP-INs) are rapidly emerging as important regulators of network dynamics and normal circuit development. Several recent studies have also identified VIP-IN dysfunction in models of genetically determined neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs). In this article, we review the known circuit functions of VIP-INs and how they may relate to accumulating evidence implicating VIP-INs in the mechanisms of prominent NDDs. We highlight recurring VIP-IN-mediated circuit motifs that are shared across cerebral cortical areas and how VIP-IN activity can shape sensory input, development, and behavior. Ultimately, we extract a set of themes that inform our understanding of how VIP-INs influence pathogenesis of NDDs. Using publicly available single-cell RNA sequencing data from the Allen Institute, we also identify several underexplored disease-associated genes that are highly expressed in VIP-INs. We survey these genes and their shared related disease phenotypes that may broadly implicate VIP-INs in autism spectrum disorder and intellectual disability rather than epileptic encephalopathy. Finally, we conclude with a discussion of the relevance of cell type-specific investigations and therapeutics in the age of genomic diagnosis and targeted therapeutics.

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11. Haque MM, Rabbani M, Dipal DD, Zarif MII, Iqbal A, Akhter S, Parveen S, Rasel M, Rabbani G, Alam F, Soron TR, Ahmed SI, Ahamed SI. Grant Report on mCARE: Mobile-Based Care for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) for Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs). Journal of psychiatry and brain science. 2021; 6.

In low- and middle-income countries, especially in Bangladesh, Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) may be considered an anathema, and social-cultural-financial constraints mean that there are few facilities available for treatment for ASD children. The revolution in the use of the mobile phone (~80%) by the majority of people in Bangladesh in recent years has created an opportunity to improve the overall scenario in the treatment or remote monitoring process for children with ASD. In this grant project, we planned and developed a mobile phone-based system to remotely monitor children with ASD and help their treatment process both at the caregiver and care practitioner ends. In developing mCARE, we utilized a Remote Experience Sampling Method to design, build, deploy, and study the impact of mobile based monitoring and treatment of children with ASD in Bangladesh. We developed a mobile application using the Experience Sampling Method (ESM). A caregiver routinely reported the behavioral and milestone parameters of their children with ASD. The care practitioners monitored the longitudinal data that helped them in decision-making in a particular patient’s treatment process. The Value Sensitive Design (VSD) was used to make this mobile application more user friendly with consideration of the local economic, social, and cultural values in Bangladesh.

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12. Hau J, J SK, Shryock I, Kinnear MK, Schadler A, Müller RA, Carper RA. Supplementary and Premotor Aspects of the Corticospinal Tract Show Links with Restricted and Repetitive Behaviors in Middle-Aged Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Cerebral cortex (New York, NY : 1991). 2021; 31(8): 3962-72.

Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) show motor impairment into adulthood and risk decline during aging, but little is known about brain changes in aging adults with ASD. Few studies of ASD have directly examined the corticospinal tract (CST)-the major descending pathway in the brain responsible for voluntary motor behavior-outside its primary motor (M1) connections. In 26 middle-aged adults with ASD and 26 age-matched typical comparison participants, we used diffusion imaging to examine the microstructure and volume of CST projections from M1, dorsal premotor (PMd), supplementary motor area (SMA), and primary somatosensory (S1) cortices with respect to age. We also examined relationships between each CST sub-tract (-cst), motor skills, and autism symptoms. We detected no significant group or age-related differences in tracts extending from M1 or other areas. However, sub-tracts of the CST extending from secondary (but not primary) motor areas were associated with core autism traits. Increased microstructural integrity of left PMd-cst and SMA-cst were associated with less-severe restricted and repetitive behaviors (RRB) in the ASD group. These findings suggest that secondary motor cortical areas, known to be involved in selecting motor programs, may be implicated in cognitive motor processes underlying RRB in ASD.

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13. Killian HJ, Pallotto IK, Sweeney BR, Dreyer Gillette ML. Weight Management Outcomes of Youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder Seeking Treatment from a Multidisciplinary Team. Journal of autism and developmental disorders. 2022; 52(2): 791-9.

Youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are at an increased risk for developing obesity when compared to their typically developing peers. Given higher prevalence of obesity in youth with ASD, understanding factors relating to success in obesity treatment provides insight into implementing efficacious treatments for youth. The current study examines age, sleep, and metabolic factors potentially affecting success in 74 youth (M(age) = 11.66) attending a multidisciplinary weight management treatment program over a year. Multilevel modeling indicated that higher baseline BMI class category, medications at baseline, and absence of sleep difficulties predicted greater reduction in BMI after a year of treatment.

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14. Kinnaird E, Oakley M, Lawrence V, Shergill S, Tchanturia K. A peer interview qualitative study exploring support for carers of people with comorbid autism and eating disorders. Journal of eating disorders. 2021; 9(1): 42.

BACKGROUND: Carers of people with eating disorders (EDs) are known to experience a lack of support, high levels of unmet needs and resulting distress. Specific support and interventions for carers may benefit both the carer, and their loved one with an ED. Individuals with co-occurring autism and EDs may present with additional needs and difficulties relating to their Autism Spectrum Condition (ASC) that impact their carers. However, there is a lack of research exploring whether carers of people with ASC and EDs have specific support needs, and what kinds of support may be most beneficial for this population. METHODS: This study used a qualitative interview design, utilising peer interviews. Eleven carers participated in interviews about their experiences as a carer, and their views on existing support systems and potential improvements. As the study took place during the initial UK coronavirus lockdown, the impact of the lockdown also emerged as a topic during the interviews. Interviews were transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis. RESULTS: Five themes were identified: challenges associated with co-occurring Autism and EDs, a lack of existing support for carers from healthcare services, the personal impact of caring for someone with both ASC and EDs, ideas for how carers can be best supported, and the impact of the coronavirus on carers. CONCLUSIONS: Carers of loved ones with both ASC and EDs described the experience as having a significant personal impact on their lives, but also experienced a lack of support from healthcare services. There was a perception that caring for someone with both an ASC and EDs presents additional challenges compared to caring for someone with an ED only, and that this population therefore requires specialised support. Recommendations for possible support options, and for further research, are outlined.

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15. Lacivita E, Niso M, Mastromarino M, Garcia Silva A, Resch C, Zeug A, Loza MI, Castro M, Ponimaskin E, Leopoldo M. Knowledge-Based Design of Long-Chain Arylpiperazine Derivatives Targeting Multiple Serotonin Receptors as Potential Candidates for Treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorder. ACS chemical neuroscience. 2021; 12(8): 1313-27.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) includes a group of neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by core symptoms such as impaired social interaction and communication, repetitive and stereotyped behaviors, and restricted interests. To date, there are no effective treatments for these core symptoms. Several studies have shown that the brain serotonin (5-HT) neurotransmission system is altered in both ASD patients and animal models of the disease. Multiple pieces of evidence suggest that targeting 5-HT receptors may treat the core symptoms of ASD and associated intellectual disabilities. In fact, stimulation of the 5-HT(1A) receptor reduces repetitive and restricted behaviors; blockade of the 5-HT(2A) receptor reduces both learning deficits and repetitive behavior, and activation of the 5-HT(7) receptor improves cognitive performances and reduces repetitive behavior. On such a basis, we have designed novel arylpiperazine derivatives pursuing unprecedently reported activity profiles: dual 5-HT(7)/5-HT(1A) receptor agonist properties and mixed 5-HT(7) agonist/5-HT(1A) agonist/5-HT(2A) antagonist properties. Seventeen new compounds were synthesized and tested in radioligand binding assay at the target receptors. We have identified the dual 5-HT(1A)R/5-HT(7)R agonists 8c and 29 and the mixed 5-HT(1A)R agonist/5-HT(7)R agonist/5-HT(2A)R antagonist 20b. These compounds are metabolically stable in vitro and have suitable central nervous system druglike properties.

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16. Leung M, Kioumourtzoglou MA, Raz R, Weisskopf MG. Bias due to Selection on Live Births in Studies of Environmental Exposures during Pregnancy: A Simulation Study. Environmental health perspectives. 2021; 129(4): 47001.

BACKGROUND: Studies of the effects of prenatal environmental exposures on postnatal outcomes are particularly vulnerable to live birth bias; i.e., the bias that arises from the necessary restriction of the analysis to live births when that is influenced by both the exposure under study A and unmeasured factors U that also affect the outcome. OBJECTIVES: In the context of a recent publication of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) that found an odds ratio (OR) of 0.77 per 5.85 ppb NO2 during pregnancy, we aimed to examine what parameters would be needed to account for this protective association through live birth bias. METHODS: We simulated the magnitude of bias under two selection mechanisms and when both mechanisms co-occur, assuming a true null effect. Simulation input parameters were based on characteristics of the original study and a range of plausible values for the prevalence of unmeasured factor U and the ORs for the selection effects (i.e., the effects of NO2 and U on loss and of U on ASD). Each scenario was simulated 1,000 times. RESULTS: We found that the magnitude of bias was small when NO2 and U independently influenced pregnancy loss (collider-stratification without interaction), was stronger when NO2-induced loss preferentially occurred in U = 1 (depletion of susceptibles), and was strongest when both mechanisms worked together. For example, ORs of 3.0 for NO2-loss, U-loss, U-ASD, and U prevalence = 0.75 yielded NO2-ASD ORs per 5.85 ppb NO2 of 0.95, 0.89, and 0.75 for the three scenarios, respectively. The bias is amplified with multiple Us, yielding ORs as low as 0.51. DISCUSSION: Our simulations illustrate that live birth bias may lead to exposure-outcome associations that are biased downward, where the extent of the bias depends on the fetal selection mechanism, the strength of that selection, and the prevalence of U. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP7961.

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17. Mahoney WJ, Villacrusis M, Sompolski M, Iwanski B, Charman A, Hammond C, Abraham G. Nursing care for pediatric patients with autism spectrum disorders: A cross-sectional survey of perceptions and strategies. Journal for specialists in pediatric nursing : JSPN. 2021; 26(4): e12332.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to describe nursing staff perspectives about caring for children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in the hospital, strategies they use to support care, and relationships between these factors. DESIGN AND METHODS: A descriptive, cross-sectional survey design with nursing staff at a large pediatric hospital system in the United States was employed. The researcher-designed, pilot-tested survey assessed participant demographics, knowledge about ASD, perceived effectiveness caring for children with ASD, previous training, and current strategy use. Data analysis involved descriptive statistics, correlations, and group comparisons based on interaction frequency with the population and previous training. RESULTS: The participants involved 90 pediatric hospital nursing staff members providing direct care. Respondents demonstrated 90% accurate knowledge of the characteristics of ASD. Self-reported effectiveness in caring for children with ASD did not correlate with knowledge and significantly correlated with an increased number of strategies. Nursing staff with frequent interaction with people with ASD or those with previous training reported significantly more strategies to care for children with ASD. Only 35% of participants reported that they have adequate strategies to care for children with ASD in the hospital. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Having more strategies was the factor associated with higher self-efficacy, so training for nursing staff should focus on increasing the number of strategies to use with children with ASD in the hospital and provide mechanisms to collaborate with other professionals to individualize strategies to meet each child’s needs.

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18. Murthy S, Hsieh K. Examining Association Between Reported High Cholesterol and Risk Factors in Adults With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD): A Five-Year Follow-Up. Intellectual and developmental disabilities. 2021; 59(2): 112-22.

Adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) are at a greater risk of developing high cholesterol and cardiovascular disease. We examined whether physical inactivity, obesity, and diabetes were predictive of reported high cholesterol and whether there were any mediating effects of diabetes on the relationship between obesity and high cholesterol in 1,618 adults with IDD across five years. Results suggest that obesity and diabetes were significantly associated with high cholesterol after adjusting for age, sex, and residence type with a partial mediator effect of diabetes in the relationship between obesity and high cholesterol across all time points. Further research is needed to explore the causal mechanisms behind the relationships between obesity, diabetes, and high cholesterol.

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19. Pearson JN, Meadan H. FACES: An Advocacy Intervention for African American Parents of Children With Autism. Intellectual and developmental disabilities. 2021; 59(2): 155-71.

Children with autism and their families often face challenges accessing early intervention and related services. African American children face additional challenges due to disparities in diagnoses and access to services. These disparities present a great need for parent advocacy to combat culturally insensitive service delivery and strained parent-professional partnerships. In this sequential mixed methods study, we piloted a 6-week parent-training intervention (FACES) among African American parents of children with autism and evaluated participants’ empowerment, advocacy, and partnerships pre- and postintervention. Results indicated that parents’ advocacy, sense of empowerment, and community support were strengthened, following the FACES program. Participants also described the FACES intervention as socially valid. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

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20. Robain F, Kojovic N, Solazzo S, Glaser B, Franchini M, Schaer M. The impact of social complexity on the visual exploration of others’ actions in preschoolers with autism spectrum disorder. BMC psychology. 2021; 9(1): 50.

BACKGROUND: Typical development of socio-communicative skills relies on keen observation of others. It thus follows that decreased social attention negatively impacts the subsequent development of socio-communicative abilities in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). In addition, studies indicate that social attention is modulated by context and that greater social difficulties are observed in more socially demanding situations. Our study aims to investigate the effect of social complexity on visual exploration of others’ actions in preschoolers. METHODS: To investigate the impact of social complexity, we used an eye-tracking paradigm with 26 typically developing preschoolers (TD, age = 3.60 ± 1.55) and 37 preschoolers with ASD (age = 3.55 ± 1.21). Participants were shown videos of two children engaging in socially simple play (parallel) versus socially complex play (interactive). We subsequently quantified the time spent and fixation duration on faces, objects, bodies, as well as the background and the number of spontaneous gaze shifts between socially relevant areas of interest. RESULTS: In the ASD group, we observed decreased time spent on faces. Social complexity (interactive play) elicited changes in visual exploration patterns in both groups. From the parallel to the interactive condition, we observed a shift towards socially relevant parts of the scene, a decrease in fixation duration, as well as an increase in spontaneous gaze shifts between faces and objects though there were fewer in the ASD group. LIMITATIONS: Our results need to be interpreted cautiously due to relatively small sample sizes and may be relevant to male preschoolers, given our male-only sample and reported phenotypic differences between males and females. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that similar to TD children, though to a lesser extent, visual exploration patterns in ASD are modulated by context. Children with ASD that were less sensitive to context modulation showed decreased socio-communicative skills or higher levels of symptoms. Our findings support using naturalistic designs to capture socio-communicative deficits in ASD.

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21. Samtani G, Bassford TL, Williamson HJ, Armin JS. Are Researchers Addressing Cancer Treatment and Survivorship Among People With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities in the U.S.? A Scoping Review. Intellectual and developmental disabilities. 2021; 59(2): 141-54.

People with intellectual and developmental disabilities (PWIDD) often encounter barriers in the health care system when seeking general and specialized medical care. Literature has shown that PWIDD experience a lack of proper screening for and prevention of cancer compared to the general population. However, less is known regarding the cancer care and survivorship of PWIDD, especially in the United States. In this review, we examine what is currently known about the primary, psychosocial, and palliative care of PWIDD diagnosed with cancer. Our analyses reveal an immediate need for improvement in caregiver support, collaboration among health care providers, and ethical approaches to information disclosure for this population, as well as the establishment of more reliable standards of care through additional research with PWIDD.

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22. Tann CJ, Kohli-Lynch M, Nalugya R, Sadoo S, Martin K, Lassman R, Nanyunja C, Musoke M, Sewagaba M, Nampijja M, Seeley J, Webb EL. Surviving and Thriving: Early Intervention for Neonatal Survivors With Developmental Disability in Uganda. Infants and young children. 2021; 34(1): 17-32.

Global attention on early child development, inclusive of those with disability, has the potential to translate into improved action for the millions of children with developmental disability living in low- and middle-income countries. Nurturing care is crucial for all children, arguably even more so for children with developmental disability. A high proportion of survivors of neonatal conditions such as prematurity and neonatal encephalopathy are affected by early child developmental disability. The first thousand days of life is a critical period for neuroplasticity and an important window of opportunity for interventions, which maximize developmental potential and other outcomes. Since 2010, our group has been examining predictors, outcomes, and experiences of neonatal encephalopathy in Uganda. The need for an early child intervention program to maximize participation and improve the quality of life for children and families became apparent. In response, the « ABAaNA early intervention program, » (now re-branding as ‘Baby Ubuntu’) a group participatory early intervention program for young children with developmental disability and their families, was developed and piloted. Piloting has provided early evidence of feasibility, acceptability, and impact and a feasibility trial is underway. Future research aims to develop programmatic capacity across diverse settings and evaluate its impact at scale.

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23. Xiao J, Chen H, Shan X, He C, Li Y, Guo X, Chen H, Liao W, Uddin LQ, Duan X. Linked Social-Communication Dimensions and Connectivity in Functional Brain Networks in Autism Spectrum Disorder. Cerebral cortex (New York, NY : 1991). 2021; 31(8): 3899-910.

Much recent attention has been directed toward elucidating the structure of social interaction-communication dimensions and whether and how these symptom dimensions coalesce with each other in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, the underlying neurobiological basis of these symptom dimensions is unknown, especially the association of social interaction and communication dimensions with brain networks. Here, we proposed a method of whole-brain network-based regression to identify the functional networks linked to these symptom dimensions in a large sample of children with ASD. Connectome-based predictive modeling (CPM) was established to explore neurobiological evidence that supports the merging of communication and social interaction deficits into one symptom dimension (social/communication deficits). Results showed that the default mode network plays a core role in communication and social interaction dimensions. A primary sensory perceptual network mainly contributed to communication deficits, and high-level cognitive networks mainly contributed to social interaction deficits. CPM revealed that the functional networks associated with these symptom dimensions can predict the merged dimension of social/communication deficits. These findings delineate a link between brain functional networks and symptom dimensions for social interaction and communication and further provide neurobiological evidence supporting the merging of communication and social interaction deficits into one symptom dimension.

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