1. Coombs E, Brosnan M, Bryant-Waugh R, Skevington SM. {{An investigation into the relationship between eating disorder psychopathology and autistic symptomatology in a non-clinical sample}}. {Br J Clin Psychol};2011 (Sep);50(3):326-338.
Objective. Female adults with a diagnosis of anorexia nervosa (AN) have been found to score higher than healthy controls on a questionnaire that measures characteristics associated with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). This research investigated the relationship between eating disorder (ED) and ASD symptomatology in a non-clinical sample, with an additional focus on prenatal testosterone (pT) levels. Design. A cross-sectional research design was used. The selected age group of both males and females allowed for a focus on early onset of ED symptomatology in both sexes. Methods. Self-reported questionnaire data from the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26) and the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ) were collected from 132 schoolchildren (61 boys, 71 girls) aged 11 to 14, with no recorded psychiatric diagnoses. Digit ratio (2D:4D) measures to index levels of pT exposure were also obtained. Results. A significant relationship between levels of ED symptomatology and ASD symptomatology was identified. Particularly strong relationships were identified between the EAT-26 and the attention to detail and communication subscales of the AQ. Few relationships were found for digit ratios. Conclusion. The results extend previous research from a sample with a diagnosis of AN to a non-clinical population. Those registering higher levels of ED symptomatology also reported higher levels of attention to detail and communication difficulties associated with ASD.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
2. de Theije CG, Wu J, da Silva SL, Kamphuis PJ, Garssen J, Korte SM, Kraneveld AD. {{Pathways underlying the gut-to-brain connection in autism spectrum disorders as future targets for disease management}}. {Eur J Pharmacol};2011 (Jul 27)
Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are pervasive neurodevelopmental disorders, characterized by impairments in social interaction and communication and the presence of limited, repetitive and stereotyped interests and behavior. Bowel symptoms are frequently reported in children with ASD and a potential role for gastrointestinal disturbances in ASD has been suggested. This review focuses on the importance of (allergic) gastrointestinal problems in ASD. We provide an overview of the possible gut-to-brain pathways and discuss opportunities for pharmaceutical and/or nutritional approaches for therapy.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
3. Goines PE, Croen LA, Braunschweig D, Yoshida CK, Grether J, Hansen R, Kharrazi M, Ashwood P, Van de Water J. {{Increased mid-gestational IFN-gamma, IL-4, and IL-5 in women giving birth to a child with autism: a case-control study}}. {Mol Autism};2011 (Aug 2);2(1):13.
ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Immune anomalies have been documented in individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) and their family members. It is unknown whether the maternal immune profile during pregnancy is associated with the risk of bearing a child with ASD or other neurodevelopmental disorders. METHODS: Using Luminex technology, levels of 17 cytokines and chemokines were measured in banked serum collected from women at 15 to 19 weeks of gestation who gave birth to a child ultimately diagnosed with (1) ASD (n = 84), (2) a developmental delay (DD) but not autism (n = 49) or (3) no known developmental disability (general population (GP); n = 159). ASD and DD risk associated with maternal cytokine and chemokine levels was estimated by using multivariable logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: Elevated concentrations of IFN-gamma, IL-4 and IL-5 in midgestation maternal serum were significantly associated with a 50% increased risk of ASD, regardless of ASD onset type and the presence of intellectual disability. By contrast, elevated concentrations of IL-2, IL-4 and IL-6 were significantly associated with an increased risk of DD without autism. CONCLUSION: The profile of elevated serum IFN-gamma, IL-4 and IL-5 was more common in women who gave birth to a child subsequently diagnosed with ASD. An alternative profile of increased IL-2, IL-4 and IL-6 was more common for women who gave birth to a child subsequently diagnosed with DD without autism. Further investigation is needed to characterize the relationship between these divergent maternal immunological phenotypes and to evaluate their effect on neurodevelopment.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
4. Hudenko WJ, Magenheimer MA. {{Listeners prefer the laughs of children with autism to those of typically developing children}}. {Autism};2011 (Aug 2)
The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of laugh sounds produced by 8- to 10-year-old children with and without autism on naive listeners, and to evaluate if listeners could distinguish between the laughs of the two groups. Results showed that listeners rated the laughs of children with autism more positively than the laughs of typically developing children, and that they were slightly above chance levels at judging which group produced the laugh. A subset of participants who reported listening for « uncontrolled » or « longer » laughs were significantly better at discriminating between the laughs of the two groups. Our results suggest that the laughs of children with autism have the potential to promote the formation of relationships.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
5. Schilbach L, Eickhoff SB, Cieslik EC, Kuzmanovic B, Vogeley K. {{Shall we do this together? Social gaze influences action control in a comparison group, but not in individuals with high-functioning autism}}. {Autism};2011 (Aug 2)
Perceiving someone else’s gaze shift toward an object can influence how this object will be manipulated by the observer, suggesting a modulatory effect of a gaze-based social context on action control. High-functioning autism (HFA) is characterized by impairments of social interaction, which may be associated with an inability to automatically integrate socially relevant nonverbal cues when generating actions. To explore these hypotheses, we made use of a stimulus-response compatibility paradigm in which a comparison group and patients with HFA were asked to generate spatially congruent or incongruent motor responses to changes in a face, a face-like and an object stimulus. Results demonstrate that while in the comparison group being looked at by a virtual other leads to a reduction of reaction time costs associated with generating a spatially incongruent response, this effect is not present in the HFA group. We suggest that this modulatory effect of social gaze on action control might play an important role in direct social interactions by helping to coordinate one’s actions with those of someone else. Future research should focus on these implicit mechanisms of interpersonal alignment (‘online’ social cognition), which might be at the very heart of the difficulties individuals with autism experience in everyday social encounters.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
6. Sharma A. {{Immune response also connects autism and epilepsy}}. {Nat Med};2011;17(8):922.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
7. Sharma S, Woolfson LM, Hunter SC. {{Confusion and inconsistency in diagnosis of Asperger syndrome: a review of studies from 1981 to 2010}}. {Autism};2011 (Aug 2)
This paper presents a review of past and current research on the diagnosis of Asperger syndrome (AS) in children. It is suggested that the widely used criteria for diagnosing AS in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)-IV are insufficient and invalid for a reliable diagnosis of AS. In addition, when these diagnostic criteria are applied, there is the potential bias of receiving a diagnosis towards the high-functioning end of the autism spectrum. Through a critical review of 69 research studies carried out between 1981 and 2010, this paper shows that six possible criteria for diagnosing AS (specifically, the age at which signs and symptoms related to autism become apparent, language and social communication abilities, intellectual abilities, motor or movement skills, repetitive patterns of behaviour and the nature of social interaction) overlap with the criteria for diagnosing autism. However, there is a possibility that some finer differences exist in the nature of social interaction, motor skills and speech patterns between groups with a diagnosis of AS and autism. These findings are proposed to be of relevance for designing intervention studies aimed at the treatment of specific symptoms in people with an autism spectrum disorder.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
8. Sipes M, Rojahn J, Turygin N, Matson JL, Tureck K. {{Comparison of problem behaviours in atypically developing infants and toddlers as assessed with the Baby and Infant Screen for Children with aUtIsm Traits (BISCUIT)}}. {Dev Neurorehabil};2011 (Aug 2)
Objective: Compares infants and toddlers with intellectual and developmental conditions in regard to the presence of challenging behaviour. Methods: Parents and caregivers to 140 children ranging from 17-35 months with five different conditions (Down syndrome (n = 23), developmental delay (n = 18), prematurity (n = 56), Cerebral Palsy (n = 15) and Seizure disorder (n = 28)) were administered the BISCUIT-Part 3. An ANOVA on overall scores and a MANOVA on the sub-scale scores were conducted to determine if groups differed significantly. Results: Results found no significant differences on total scores or differences on the sub-scales of the BISCUIT-Part 3: Aggressive/Destructive, Stereotypic and Self-Injurious. Some trends in individual item endorsement were found. Conclusions: It is possible that differences among individuals with these disorders are not apparent until later in life. These results emphasize the importance of monitoring challenging behaviours in all at-risk infants and toddlers to ensure that early interventions to treat these challenging behaviours are possible.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
9. Thomas P, Zahorodny W, Peng B, Kim S, Jani N, Halperin W, Brimacombe M. {{The Association of Autism Diagnosis With Socioeconomic Status}}. {Autism};2011 (Aug 2)
Background: In 2007 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported a higher prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in New Jersey, one of the wealthiest states in the United States, than in other surveillance regions. Objective: To examine the association of socioeconomic status (SES) with ASD prevalence. Methods: Information on eight-year-olds with ASD from four counties was abstracted from school and medical records. US Census 2000 provided population and median household income data. Results: 586 children with ASD were identified: autism prevalence was 10.2/1000, higher in boys than girls (16 vs. 4/1000); higher in white and Asian non-Hispanics than in black non-Hispanics and Hispanics (12.5, 14.0, 9.0, and 8.5/1000, respectively); and higher (17.2/1000 (95% CI 14.0-21.1)) in tracts with median income >US$90,000 than in tracts with median income </=US$30,000 (7.1 (95% CI 5.7-8.9)). Number of professional evaluations was higher, and age at diagnosis younger, in higher income tracts (p < .001), but both measures spanned a wide overlapping range in all SES levels. In multivariable models race/ethnicity did not predict ASD, but the prevalence ratio was 2.2 (95% CI 1.5-3.1) when comparing highest with lowest income tracts. Conclusions: In the US state of New Jersey, ASD prevalence is higher in wealthier census tracts, perhaps due to differential access to pediatric and developmental services.
