1. Hollocks MJ, Ozsivadjian A, Matthews CE, Howlin P, Simonoff E. {{The Relationship Between Attentional Bias and Anxiety in Children and Adolescents With Autism Spectrum Disorders}}. {Autism Res};2013 (Mar 21)
Young people with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are more likely to have heightened levels of anxiety compared with their typically developing (non-ASD) peers. The reasons for this are poorly understood, and there has been little research investigating the cognitive correlates of anxiety in individuals with ASD. Typically developing youth with anxiety disorders have frequently been found to show an attentional bias toward threatening information. In this study, we examined whether such a bias was also found in young people with ASD and anxiety symptoms. The protocol utilized two versions of the dot-probe paradigm, the first with emotional faces and the second with emotional words. Participants comprised 38 boys with an ASD and 41 typically developing controls aged 10-16 years of age. Those with an ASD displayed higher levels of parent- and child-rated anxiety (both P < 0.001) and depression (P < 0.001) compared with controls. However, there were no significant group differences in attentional bias scores and no significant relationship between anxiety and attentional bias in either the face or word tasks, for either group. Our findings suggest that, for young people with ASD, unlike non-ASD individuals with an anxiety disorder, high levels of anxiety may not be associated with attentional bias to threat. This may indicate that anxiety in ASD has different cognitive correlates from anxiety in the typically developing population. Further conclusions, study limitations, and future directions are discussed. Autism Res 2013, : -. (c) 2013 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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2. Sala GD, Pizzorusso T. {{Synaptic plasticity and signaling in rett syndrome}}. {Dev Neurobiol};2013 (Aug 1)
Rett Syndrome (RTT) is a disorder that is caused in the majority of cases by mutations in the gene methyl-CpG-binding protein-2 (MeCP2). Children with RTT are generally characterized by normal development up to the first year and a half of age, after which they undergo a rapid regression marked by a deceleration of head growth, the onset of stereotyped hand movements, irregular breathing and seizures. Animal models of RTT with good construct and face validity are available. Their analysis showed that homeostatic regulation of MeCP2 gene is necessary for normal CNS functioning and that multiple complex pathways involving different neuronal and glial cell types are disrupted in RTT models. However, it is increasingly clear that RTT pathogenetic mechanisms converge at synaptic level impairing synaptic transmission and plasticity. We review novel findings showing how specific synaptic mechanisms and related signaling pathways are affected in RTT models. (c) 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol, 2013.
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3. Tager-Flusberg H. {{International society for autism research news}}. {Autism Res};2013 (Apr);6(2):147.
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4. Venker CE, Ray-Subramanian CE, Bolt DM, Weismer SE. {{Trajectories of Autism Severity in Early Childhood}}. {J Autism Dev Disord};2013 (Aug 2)
Relatively little is known about trajectories of autism severity using calibrated severity scores (CSS) from the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, but characterizing these trajectories has important theoretical and clinical implications. This study examined CSS trajectories during early childhood. Participants were 129 children with autism spectrum disorder evaluated annually from ages 2(1/2) to 5(1/2). The four severity trajectory classes that emerged-Persistent High (n = 47), Persistent Moderate (n = 54), Worsening (n = 10), and Improving (n = 18)-were strikingly similar to those identified by Gotham et al. (Pediatrics 130(5):e1278-e1284, 2012). Children in the Persistent High trajectory class had the most severe functional skill deficits in baseline nonverbal cognition and daily living skills and in receptive and expressive language growth.
