1. Akemoğlu Y, Laroue D, Kudesey C, Stahlman M. A Module-Based Telepractice Intervention for Parents of Children with Developmental Disabilities. Journal of autism and developmental disorders. 2022.

In the current study, we describe a study of the Internet-based Parent-implemented Communication Strategies-Storybook (i-PiCSS). I-PiCSS is an intervention program designed to train and coach parents to use evidence-based naturalistic communication teaching (NCT) strategies (i.e., modeling, mand-model, and time delay) and reading techniques while reading storybooks with their young children with disabilities. Three participating parents were trained via online modules and coached via telepractice technologies (videoconferences). Zoom videoconference software was used for all coaching sessions. Using a single case multiple-baseline design across NCT strategies within each family, we examined, (a) parents’ fidelity use of the three NCT strategies, (b) parents’ use of book reading techniques, and (c) child language and communication outcomes. After self-directed training and remote coaching, parents used modeling, mand-model, and time delay strategies with higher rates and fidelity (accuracy). Children initiated more communicative acts upon parents’ use of time delay and increased their numbers of single-and multiple-word responses.

Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)

2. Brynge M, Gardner R, Sjöqvist H, Karlsson H, Dalman C. Maternal levels of acute phase proteins in early pregnancy and risk of autism spectrum disorders in offspring. Translational psychiatry. 2022; 12(1): 148.

Previous research supports a contribution of early-life immune disturbances in the etiology of autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Biomarker studies of the maternal innate (non-adaptive) immune status related to ASD risk have focused on one of the acute phase proteins (APP), C-reactive protein (CRP), with conflicting results. We evaluated levels of eight different APP in first-trimester maternal serum samples, from 318 mothers to ASD cases and 429 mothers to ASD-unaffected controls, nested within the register-based Stockholm Youth Cohort. While no overall associations between high levels of APP and ASD were observed, associations varied across diagnostic sub-groups based on co-occurring conditions. Maternal levels of CRP in the lowest compared to the middle tertile were associated with increased risk of ASD without ID or ADHD in offspring (OR = 1.92, 95% CI 1.08-3.42). Further, levels of maternal ferritin in the lowest (OR = 1.78, 95% CI 1.18-2.69) and highest (OR = 1.64, 95% CI 1.11-2.43) tertiles were associated with increased risk of any ASD diagnosis in offspring, with stronger associations still between the lowest (OR = 3.81, 95% CI 1.91-7.58) and highest (OR = 3.36, 95% CI 1.73-6.53) tertiles of ferritin and risk of ASD with ID. The biological interpretation of lower CRP levels among mothers to ASD cases is not clear but might be related to the function of the maternal innate immune system. The finding of aberrant levels of ferritin conferring risk of ASD-phenotypes indicates a plausibly important role of iron during neurodevelopment.

Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)

3. Buro AW, Salinas-Miranda A, Marshall J, Gray HL, Kirby RS. Autism Spectrum Disorder Diagnosis and Other Child, Family, and Community Risk Factors for Obesity among Children and Adolescents Aged Ten to Seventeen Years in the United States: A Mediation Analysis. Childhood obesity (Print). 2022.

Background: This study explored whether there are mediated effects of child and family risk in the association between community and organizational risk and obesity among children and adolescents aged 10-17 years using 2017-2018 National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH) data, addressing autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and co-occurring conditions. Methods: This cross-sectional study (N = 27,157) used 2017-2018 NSCH data. Frequency distributions and chi-square tests were used to describe participants with and without ASD. Cumulative risk indices were created for child, family, community, and organizational level risk, and mediation analyses were conducted in a two-mediator model (X(1): community risk, X(2): organizational risk, M(1): child risk, M(2): family risk) for the dichotomous outcome (Y: obesity). Path analyses were performed using generalized structural equation modeling in Stata 16.0. Results: Direct effects for all four risk indices were associated with obesity in single index models (all p < 0.001); only child and family risk indices were associated with obesity in a full model with all four risk indices (both p < 0.001). When child and family risk indices were assessed as mediators, the indirect effects of community and organizational risk were significant (all p < 0.0001). The total effect of community risk on obesity was significant with family risk as a mediator (p = 0.002). The total effect of organizational risk was not significant with either mediator. Conclusion: Findings suggest that child and family factors play a strong role in obesity risk and that ASD contributes to this risk. Community risk may be another strong predictor of obesity, mediated by family risk. Additional research on social-ecological risk factors for obesity is needed to identify leverage points to improve obesity risk in children and adolescents with and without ASD.

Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)

4. Gaziel-Guttman M, Anaki D, Mashal N. Social Anxiety and Shame Among Young Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder Compared to Typical Adults. Journal of autism and developmental disorders. 2022.

Social anxiety (SA) is common among young adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). While shame feelings predict SA among typical adults, the relationship between shame and SA in ASD remains unclear. The current study compared the relationship between SA and shame in ASD. SA, shame, and autistic self-assessment questionnaires were administered to 33 young adults with ASD (28 M/5F) and 38 typical young adults (32 M/6F, Mage = 24 years, range = 20-28 in both groups). Results showed higher SA levels in ASD than typical adults, but lower levels of shame characteristics in the former than in the latter group. Moreover, a significant moderation model showed that some aspects of shame were related to SA only in the typical group but not in ASD.

Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)

5. Hampton LH, Stern YS, Fipp-Rosenfield H, Bearss K, Roberts MY. Parent-Implemented Positive Behavior Support Strategies for Young Children on the Autism Spectrum: A Pilot Investigation. Journal of speech, language, and hearing research : JSLHR. 2022: 1-18.

PURPOSE: Parents of children on the autism spectrum enrolled in early intervention often receive coaching to address both social communication and disruptive behavior, which are the two most frequently reported concerns by parents. Intervention techniques for both are often recommended to be implemented across daily routines and require the parents to learn new ways of interacting with their child. A sequential approach to instructing parents in these key intervention targets may reduce burden and increase adherence. METHOD: This multiple-baseline design pilot study included three mother-child dyads who received instruction in a disruptive behavior intervention immediately following a social communication intervention. Maternal maintenance of social communication strategies and child disruptive behaviors were measured during probes throughout the study. RESULTS: Results indicate that although mothers readily learned to implement the techniques, fidelity of implementing social communication strategies declined after introduction of the positive behavior support strategies. CONCLUSIONS: A sequenced approach to parent-mediated intervention is feasible and acceptable. Clinical implications and future directions are discussed. SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL: https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.19528978.

Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)

6. Lee NR, Niu X, Zhang F, Clasen LS, Kozel BA, Smith ACM, Wallace GL, Raznahan A. Variegation of autism related traits across seven neurogenetic disorders. Translational psychiatry. 2022; 12(1): 149.

Gene dosage disorders (GDDs) constitute a major class of genetic risks for psychopathology, but there is considerable debate regarding the extent to which different GDDs induce different psychopathology profiles. The current research speaks to this debate by compiling and analyzing dimensional measures of several autism-related traits (ARTs) across seven diverse GDDs. The sample included 350 individuals with one of 7 GDDs, as well as reference idiopathic autism spectrum disorder (ASD; n = 74) and typically developing control (TD; n = 171) groups. The GDDs were: Down, Williams-Beuren, and Smith-Magenis (DS, WS, SMS) syndromes, and varying sex chromosome aneuploidies (« plusX », « plusXX », « plusY », « plusXY »). The Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS-2) was used to measure ARTs at different levels of granularity-item, subscale, and total. General linear models were used to examine ART profiles in GDDs, and machine learning was used to predict genotype from SRS-2 subscales and items. These analyses were completed with and without covariation for cognitive impairment. Twelve of all possible 21 pairwise GDD group contrasts showed significantly different ART profiles (7/21 when co-varying for IQ, all Bonferroni-corrected). Prominent GDD-ART associations in post hoc analyses included relatively preserved social motivation in WS and relatively low levels of repetitive behaviors in plusX. Machine learning revealed that GDD group could be predicted with plausible accuracy (~60-80%) even after controlling for IQ. GDD effects on ARTs are influenced by GDD subtype and ART dimension. This observation has consequences for mechanistic, clinical, and translational aspects of psychiatric neurogenetics.

Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)

7. Lewis EM, Dababnah S, Hollie KR, Kim I, Wang Y, Shaia WE. The creator did not give me more than I can handle: Exploring coping in parents of Black autistic children. Autism : the international journal of research and practice. 2022: 13623613211070865.

Parents of Black autistic children use several strategies to cope with daily stressors. These strategies include seeking social support, self-care, and optimism. We asked parents about their experiences receiving treatment services for their autistic child and how they reduce parenting stress. Twenty-two parents completed a coping survey and participated in individual interviews. Few studies have explored the experiences of Black families raising autistic children, and it’s important for healthcare and other systems of care to understand the role culture, race, and ethnicity play in the use of coping strategies. In our study, the majority of parents relied on social support to relieve stress and identified partners, family, and community members, as their most useful sources of support. Connecting with other parents of autistic children, through support groups and social media, also helped parents relieve stress. Parents discussed using self-care activities (e.g. church, exercising, listening to music) to cope with stressors. Several parents described how prayer and meditation helped them reframe stressful situations and gain more patience and appreciation for « what’s important. » The findings of this work demonstrate the need for professionals to have ongoing and deeper conversations about the ways in which parents deal with stressors. In particular, clinicians should leverage the strengths of Black families and promote strategies that are culturally informed and engaged.

Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)

8. Mitchell A, Thomas CS, O’Laughlin M, Cina R. Large Bowel Perforation and Peritonitis in a Child with Nonverbal Autism and Chronic Constipation: A Case Report. The American surgeon. 2022: 31348221084955.

Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)

9. Ryan C, Cogan S. Eliciting Expressions of Emotion: An Exploratory Analysis of Alexithymia in Adults with Autism Utilising the APRQ. Journal of autism and developmental disorders. 2022.

This study examined alternative methods for detecting alexithymia to the Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20 (TAS-20) by comparing the emotional linguistic performance of ASD and NT samples (n = 32 in each) on the Alexithymia Provoked Responses Questionnaire (APRQ). We utilised both the LIWC and tidytext approaches to linguistic analysis. The results indicate the ASD sample used significantly fewer affective words in response to emotionally stimulating scenarios and had less emotional granularity. Affective word use was correlated with ASD symptomatology but not with TAS-20 scores, suggesting that some elements of alexithymia are not well detected by the TAS-20 alone. The APRQ, in combination with the tidytext package, offers significant potential for sophisticated exploration of emotional expression in ASD.

Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)

10. Sathyanarayana SH, Saunders JA, Slaughter J, Tariq K, Chakrabarti R, Sadanandappa MK, Luikart BW, Bosco G. Pten heterozygosity restores neuronal morphology in fragile X syndrome mice. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 2022; 119(15): e2109448119.

SignificancePhosphatase and tensin homolog protein (PTEN) and fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP) play a vital role in neuronal development and function. This work provides new evidence for the genetic interaction of Pten and Fmr1 in postnatal development of granule neurons and conserved mechanisms across evolution. The observed cellular phenotypic defects in Pten and Fmr1 knockout (KO) could be rectified and restored by heterozygosity of Pten in Fmr1 KO neurons. Additionally, increased expression of PTEN in background Fmr1 KO animals suggests that FMRP negatively regulates PTEN, and we propose that introducing a combination of genetic mutations may normalize structural aspects of neuronal morphology by balancing each other’s expression.

Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)

11. Umesawa Y, Ide M, Wada M. The relationship between the effect of hand visibility on visuotactile temporal resolution and autistic traits. Experimental brain research. 2022; 240(5): 1557-64.

Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have atypical sensory processing, particularly when sensory stimuli are delivered from different modalities with a temporal lag of subseconds. Previous studies have suggested that individuals with ASD require a longer temporal lag to judge temporal orders of successive audiovisual stimuli than neurotypical individuals; however, it remains unclear whether a lower temporal resolution in the visuotactile domain is associated with an individual’s autistic traits. In addition, a previous study demonstrated that visuotactile temporal resolution degraded when the participants saw a hand image on a display. In this study, we investigated whether the temporal resolution of the visuotactile stimuli degrades when the participant’s own hand or rubber hands are visible, and whether the effect of the hand’s visibility on the temporal resolution decreases according to an individual’s autistic traits. We used the temporal order judgment (TOJ) of the vibrotactile stimulus delivered to the participant’s index finger and an LED attached above their own hand or rubber hand. Our findings suggest that when participants could not see their hand, temporal order judgment tended to be coarser in participants with higher autistic traits. However, this tendency was not observed when they could see both their own or the rubber hands. Moreover, temporal resolution degraded when the participants could see their own hands. These results indicate that autistic traits influence the temporal resolution of visuotactile stimuli if they are delivered as external signals in TOJ.

Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)