1. Bennabi M, Delorme R, Oliveira J, Fortier C, Lajnef M, Boukouaci W, Feugeas JP, Marzais F, Gaman A, Charron D, Ghaleh B, Krishnamoorthy R, Leboyer M, Tamouza R. {{Correction: Dectin-1 Polymorphism: A Genetic Disease Specifier in Autism Spectrum Disorders?}}. {PLoS One}. 2019; 14(3): e0214104.
[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0137339.].
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2. Dellapiazza F, Michelon C, Oreve MJ, Robel L, Schoenberger M, Chatel C, Vesperini S, Maffre T, Schmidt R, Blanc N, Vernhet C, Picot MC, Baghdadli A. {{The Impact of Atypical Sensory Processing on Adaptive Functioning and Maladaptive Behaviors in Autism Spectrum Disorder During Childhood: Results From the ELENA Cohort}}. {J Autism Dev Disord}. 2019.
Atypical sensory processing is common in autism spectrum disorders (ASD), but their role in adaptive difficulties and problem behaviors is poorly understood. Our aim was to determine the prevalence and type of atypical sensory processing in children with ASD and investigate its impact on their adaptive functioning and maladaptive behaviors. We studied a subsample of 197 children rigorously diagnosed with ASD from the ELENA cohort. Children were divided into atypical and typical sensory processing groups and several independent variables were compared, including adaptive functioning and maladaptive behaviors. Overall, 86.8% of the children had at least one atypical sensory pattern and all sensory modalities were disturbed. Atypical sensory processing explained a significant part of the variance of behavioral problems.
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3. Dissanayake C, Richdale A, Kolivas N, Pamment L. {{An Exploratory Study of Autism Traits and Parenting}}. {J Autism Dev Disord}. 2019.
The study examined the association between autism traits and parenting when raising a typically developing (TD) child, and differences in parenting needs between parents with high and low traits. Fifty-eight parents with a blood relative with Autism (who happened to be an offspring with ASD in all cases) and a TD child completed the Autism Quotient, demographic and psychological information, as well as reporting on Parenting Sense of Competence, the Parent-Child Relationship, and Parenting Needs. Autism traits did not uniquely contribute to parenting self-esteem, but were associated with parenting difficulties for their TD child, and some aspects of this parent-child relationship. Parents with high autism traits reported more parenting difficulties than parents with low traits. The study identified specific aspects of parenting needing support to assist parents with high autism traits prosper in their parenting role.
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4. Eura N, Sugie K, Suzuki N, Kiriyama T, Izumi T, Shimakura N, Kato M, Aoki M. {{A juvenile sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis case with P525L mutation in the FUS gene: A rare co-occurrence of autism spectrum disorder and tremor}}. {Journal of the neurological sciences}. 2019; 398: 67-8.
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5. Gabrielli AP, Manzardo AM, Butler MG. {{GeneAnalytics Pathways and Profiling of Shared Autism and Cancer Genes}}. {International journal of molecular sciences}. 2019; 20(5).
Recent research revealed that autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and cancer may share common genetic architecture, with evidence first reported with the PTEN gene. There are approximately 800 autism genes and 3500 genes associated with cancer. The VarElect phenotype program was chosen to identify genes jointly associated with both conditions based on genomic information stored in GeneCards. In total, 138 overlapping genes were then profiled with GeneAnalytics, an analysis pathway enrichment tool utilizing existing gene datasets to identify shared pathways, mechanisms, and phenotypes. Profiling the shared gene data identified seven significantly associated diseases of 2310 matched disease entities with factors implicated in shared pathology of ASD and cancer. These included 371 super-pathways of 455 matched entities reflecting major cell-signaling pathways and metabolic disturbances (e.g., CREB, AKT, GPCR); 153 gene ontology (GO) biological processes of 226 matched processes; 41 GO molecular functions of 78 matched functions; and 145 phenotypes of 232 matched phenotypes. The entries were scored and ranked using a matching algorithm that takes into consideration genomic expression, sequencing, and microarray datasets with cell or tissue specificity. Shared mechanisms may lead to the identification of a common pathology and a better understanding of causation with potential treatment options to lessen the severity of ASD-related symptoms in those affected.
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6. Gardiner E, Masse LC, Iarocci G. {{A psychometric study of the Family Resilience Assessment Scale among families of children with autism spectrum disorder}}. {Health and quality of life outcomes}. 2019; 17(1): 45.
BACKGROUND: The family system represents a critical context within which children develop. Although raising a child with a disability may represent a challenge to this dynamic system, research demonstrates that families have the capacity to demonstrate both maladaptation and resilience in the face of related stressors. In the current study, we examined the psychometric properties of the Family Resilience Assessment Scale (FRAS) among families of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This tool is the only measure of family resilience that seeks to identify within-family protective factors, including the extent to which they rely on adaptive belief systems, organizational patterns, and communication processes. Identifying protective processes utilized by those who show resilience is critical within both clinical practice and research, as it aligns with a strength-based perspective that builds on what families are doing well. METHODS: Participants included 174 caregivers of individuals with ASD (84% mothers). Caregivers completed the FRAS, as well as the Beach Center Family Quality of Life Scale. The 54-item FRAS was submitted to an exploratory factor analysis, using the iterated principal factor method with a promax rotation. RESULTS: Fifty-one items across 3 factors (Family Communication and Problem Solving, Utilizing Social and Economic Resources, Family Spirituality) were retained, explaining 52% of the total variance. The final scale demonstrated convergent validity with the Family Quality of Life assessment tool. CONCLUSIONS: It is our hope that identifying the optimal scale structure will encourage other researchers to utilize this measure with families of children with ASD, thus continuing to advance the study of family resilience within this unique context.
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7. Isabel BM, Ireri DM, Monica MM, Octavio G, Daniel GC, Aliesha GA. {{Dendritic complexity in prefrontal cortex and hippocampus of the autistic-like mice C58/J}}. {Neurosci Lett}. 2019.
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has been associated to atypical neuronal connectivity in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and the hippocampus, in part, due to an alteration in neuroplasticity processes such as dendritic remodeling. Moreover, it has been proposed that abnormal cytoskeletal dynamics might be underlying the disrupted formation and morphology of dendrites in the ASD brain. Hence, we performed an analysis of the complexity of dendritic arborization of the pyramidal neurons localized in the layer II/III of the PFC and the CA1 region of the hippocampus in the autistic-like mouse strain C58/J, which has previously demonstrated neuronal cytoskeleton anomalies. We found differences in length, number and branching pattern of dendrites of the pyramidal neurons from both structures of C58/J strain. These data suggest a lower dendritic arborization complexity that could be involved with the characteristic autistic-like behaviors displayed in C58/J mice.
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8. Katsigianni M, Karageorgiou V, Lambrinoudaki I, Siristatidis C. {{Maternal polycystic ovarian syndrome in autism spectrum disorder: a systematic review and meta-analysis}}. {Mol Psychiatry}. 2019.
There is evidence showing a positive correlation between prenatal androgens and their effect on the development of central nervous system and the autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) phenotype in offspring of mothers with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). We applied a systematic review to investigate whether women with PCOS have increased odds of having a child with ASD, while, secondarily, if these women themselves are at high risk of having the disease. Major databases from inception until 14th October 2018 were searched. The primary outcome measure was the odds of an ASD diagnosis in children of mothers with diagnosed PCOS, while the secondary outcome was the odds of ASD diagnosis in women with PCOS. Scheduled subgroup analyses were according to the time of birth and maternal age. We assessed the odds ratio (OR), using a random-effects model; heterogeneity was assessed by I(2) and tau(2) statistics. The quality of the evidence was evaluated using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. Ten studies were eligible for inclusion, including a total of 33,887 ASD children and 321,661 non-ASD children. Diagnosed PCOS was associated with a 1.66 times increase in the odds of ASD in the offspring [95% CI: 1.51, 1.83, p = 1.99 x 10(-25), 7 studies, I(2) = 0%, tau(2) = 0]. Women with PCOS were 1.78 times more likely to be diagnosed with ASD (95% CI: 1.10, 2.87, p = 0.0179, 5 studies, I(2) = 85.4%, tau(2) = 0.2432). Additional analyses did not change the initial result. The overall quality of the evidence was high. The pooled effects size displayed low heterogeneity (I(2) = 0%) for the primary outcome. While the heterogeneity in the secondary outcome appears to attenuate when only high quality studies are synthesized, still the result exhibits significant heterogeneity. Tauhe available data allowed a subgroup analysis only for classification system for PCOS diagnosis and showed a significant increase of ASD diagnosis in the offspring of women with Read Code and ICD diagnosed PCOS. In conclusion, the available evidence suggests that women with PCOS have increased odds of having a child with ASD, an effect size estimate based on a large number of patients from studies of good quality. Regarding the evidence on the prevalence of ASD in PCOS women, results suggest that women with PCOS are more likely to be diagnosed with ASD.
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9. Lee K, Vyas Y, Garner CC, Montgomery JM. {{Autism-associated Shank3 mutations alter mGluR expression and mGluR-dependent but not NMDA receptor-dependent long-term depression}}. {Synapse (New York, NY)}. 2019.
SHANK3 is a postsynaptic structural protein localized at excitatory glutamatergic synapses in which deletions and mutations have been implicated in patients with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). The expression of Shank3 ASD mutations causes impairments in ionotropic glutamate receptor-mediated synaptic responses in neurons, which is thought to underlie ASD-related behaviours, thereby indicating glutamatergic synaptopathy as one of the major pathogenic mechanisms. However little is known about the functional consequences of ASD-associated mutations in Shank3 on another important set of glutamate receptors, group I metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs). Here we further assessed how Shank3 mutations identified in patients with ASD (one de novo InsG mutation and two inherited point mutations, R87C and R375C) disrupt group I mGluR (mGluR1 and mGluR5) expression and function. To identify potential isoform-specific deficits induced by ASD-associated Shank3 mutations on group I mGluRs, we surface immuno-labeled mGluR1 and mGluR5 independently. We also induced mGluR-dependent synaptic plasticity (R,S-3,5-dihydroxyphenylglycine [DHPG]-induced long-term depression [LTD]) as well as N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR)-dependent LTD. ASD-associated mutations in Shank3 differentially interfered with the ability of cultured hippocampal neurons to express mGluR5 and mGluR1 at synapses. Intriguingly, all ASD Shank3 mutations impaired mGluR-dependent LTD without altering NMDAR-dependent LTD. Our data show that the specific perturbation in mGluR-dependent synaptic plasticity occurs in neurons expressing ASD-associated Shank3 mutations, which may underpin synaptic dysfunction and subsequent behavioural deficits in ASD. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
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10. Locke J, Lawson GM, Beidas RS, Aarons GA, Xie M, Lyon AR, Stahmer A, Seidman M, Frederick L, Oh C, Spaulding C, Dorsey S, Mandell DS. {{Individual and organizational factors that affect implementation of evidence-based practices for children with autism in public schools: a cross-sectional observational study}}. {Implementation science : IS}. 2019; 14(1): 29.
BACKGROUND: Children with autism receive most of their intervention services in public schools, but implementation of evidence-based practices (EBPs) for autism varies. Studies suggest that individual (attitudes) and organizational characteristics (implementation leadership and climate) may influence providers’ use of EBPs, but research is relatively limited in this area. This study examined individual and organizational factors associated with implementation of three EBPs-discrete trial training, pivotal response training, and visual schedules-for children with autism in special education classrooms in public elementary schools. METHODS: Participants included 67 autism support teachers and 85 other classroom staff from 52 public elementary schools in the northeastern United States. Participants reported their attitudes toward EBPs (e.g., intuitive appeal, willingness if required, openness, and divergence), implementation leadership and climate of their school, and the frequency with which they deliver each of three EBPs. Linear regression was used to estimate the association of attitudes about EBPs with organizational characteristics and intensity of EBP use. Demographic covariates with a bivariate association with EBP use significant at p < .20 were entered into the adjusted models. RESULTS: There were significant findings for only one EBP, discrete trial training. Teachers who reported higher perceived divergence (perceived difference of usual practice with academically developed or research-based practices) between EBPs and current practices used less discrete trial training (f(2) = .18), and teachers who reported higher appeal (willingness to adopt EBPs given their intuitive appeal) of EBPs used more discrete trial training (f(2) = .22). No organizational factors were significantly associated with implementation with any of the three EBPs. CONCLUSIONS: Attitudes toward EBPs may affect teachers' decisions to use EBPs; however, implementation leadership and climate did not predict EBP use. Future implementation efforts ought to consider the type of EBP and its fit within the context in terms of the EBP's similarities to and differences from existing practices and programs in the setting. Implementation strategies that target individual attitudes about EBPs may be warranted in public schools. Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
11. McClain MB, Shahidullah JD, Mezher KR, Haverkamp CR, Benallie KJ, Schwartz SE. {{School-Clinic Care Coordination for Youth with ASD: A National Survey of School Psychologists}}. {J Autism Dev Disord}. 2019.
Many youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may benefit from interdisciplinary care coordination. Communication and collaboration between the school and clinic settings is particularly important when youth with ASD are receiving both special education and clinic-based services. The responsibility of initiating coordinated care has historically been with the medical home (e.g., primary care clinicians), however, educational professionals (e.g., school psychologists) are also well positioned to assume a leadership role in care coordination. Little is known about the current state, feasibility, or effectiveness of school psychologists leading care coordination efforts. The current study utilizes a mixed-method approach to understand school psychologists’ engagement in interdisciplinary collaboration across settings, a central tenet to coordinated care, in providing services to youth with ASD.
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12. Ouss L, Leunen D, Laschet J, Chemaly N, Barcia G, Losito EM, Aouidad A, Barrault Z, Desguerre I, Breuillard D, Nabbout R. {{Autism spectrum disorder and cognitive profile in children with Dravet syndrome: Delineation of a specific phenotype}}. {Epilepsia open}. 2019; 4(1): 40-53.
Objective: We aimed to assess a cohort of young patients with Dravet syndrome (DS) for intellectual disability (ID) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) using standardized tools and parental questionnaires to delineate their specific profiles. Methods: We included 35 patients with DS aged 24 months to 7 years, excluding patients with a developmental age (DA) <18 months (n = 5). We performed specific tests adapted for ID (Psychoeducational Profile, Third Edition [PEP-3]), in addition to the Child Development Inventory (CDI) and Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales, Second Edition (VABS-II) questionnaires. We used 2 standardized tools for ASD: the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, Second Edition (ADOS-2) and the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R). We compared the with parental questionnaires and the VABS-II, and with ASD characteristics. Results: PEP-3 subscales showed pathologic development in all but one patient (97%): ID in 23 of 30 (77%), and borderline cognitive functioning in 6 of 30 (22%). Eleven patients (39%) had ASD and 2 (7%) had a Social Communication Disorder (SCD) diagnosis. We found no difference between PEP-3 and CDI categorization except for fine motor skills. We found significant negative correlations between ADOS-2 and PEP-3 for the majority of scores. For patients aged older than 50 months, 2 groups emerged (ASD/no ASD) with significant difference in DA. The logistic regression for ASD diagnosis explained by VABS-II showed a significant effect for Socialization, Motor Skills, and Adaptive Behavior. Significance: We found a high prevalence of ID in patients with DS. ID is characterized by expressive and comprehensive communication deficits in addition to visuospatial difficulties. ASD showed a specific profile with a relative preservation of social skills, emphasizing a possible underdiagnosis. Parental questionnaires can provide a good assessment of cognitive profile and might allow the difficulty of addressing cognitive scales in DS to be overcome. The profile of ID and ASD should help to establish early adapted rehabilitation programs and emphasizes the global need for care beyond seizures in DS and other developmental epileptic encephalopathies. Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
13. Ozonoff S, Iosif AM. {{Changing Conceptualizations of Regression: What Prospective Studies Reveal About the Onset of Autism Spectrum Disorder}}. {Neurosci Biobehav Rev}. 2019.
Until the last decade, studies of the timing of early symptom emergence in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) relied upon retrospective methods. Recent investigations, however, are raising significant questions about the accuracy and validity of such data. Questions about when and how behavioral signs of autism emerge may be better answered through prospective studies, in which infants are enrolled near birth and followed longitudinally until the age at which ASD can be confidently diagnosed or ruled out. This review summarizes the results of recent studies that utilized prospective methods to study infants at high risk of developing ASD due to family history. Collectively, prospective studies demonstrate that the onset of ASD involves declines in the rates of key social and communication behaviors during the first years of life for most children. This corpus of literature suggests that regressive onset patterns occur much more frequently than previously recognized and may be the rule rather than the exception.
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14. Roidi MLR, Grange F, Cozzi F, Pari E, Toshimori K, Ripamonti E. {{Parents’ perception of health care services for girls with Rett syndrome}}. {Child Care Health Dev}. 2019.
BACKGROUND: Rett syndrome (RTT) is a severe neurodevelopmental disorder, implying impairment and disability across several domains. METHOD: We investigated parents’ perception of the caregiving process in a sample of 55 mothers and fathers of girls with RTT using the MPOC-20 questionnaire. The association of parents’ satisfaction with clinical variables has also been explored. RESULTS: We obtained intermediate levels of satisfaction on the MPOC-20 Coordinated and Comprehensive Care and Respectful and Supportive Care scales. The performance was lower on the scales Providing General Information, and Providing Specific Information. Mothers’ assessment was not associated with clinical variables such as walking disability, presence of scoliosis or epilepsy. For children with greater degree of walking impairment, fathers expressed the need of having more information available. CONCLUSIONS: While parents seemed satisfied of the caregiving process, clinicians should put more emphasis on their need of receiving general and specific information on RTT along the entire rehabilitation program.
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15. Russell G, Mandy W, Elliott D, White R, Pittwood T, Ford T. {{Selection bias on intellectual ability in autism research: a cross-sectional review and meta-analysis}}. {Mol Autism}. 2019; 10: 9.
Background: Current global estimates suggest the proportion of the population with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who have intellectual disability (ID) is approximately 50%. Our objective was to ascertain the existence of selection bias due to under-inclusion of populations with ID across all fields of autism research. A sub-goal was to evaluate inconsistencies in reporting of findings. Methods: This review covers all original research published in 2016 in autism-specific journals with an impact factor greater than 3. Across 301 included studies, 100,245 participants had ASD. A random effects meta-analysis was used to estimate the proportion of participants without ID. Selection bias was defined as where more than 75% of participants did not have ID. Results: Meta-analysis estimated 94% of all participants identified as being on the autism spectrum in the studies reviewed did not have ID (95% CI 0.91-0.97). Eight out of ten studies demonstrated selection bias against participants with ID. The reporting of participant characteristics was generally poor: information about participants’ intellectual ability was absent in 38% of studies (n = 114). Where there was selection bias on ID, only 31% of studies mentioned lack of generalisability as a limitation. Conclusions: We found selection bias against ID throughout all fields of autism research. We recommend transparent reporting about ID and strategies for inclusion for this much marginalised group.
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16. Smith H, Carter AS, Blaser E, Kaldy Z. {{Successful attentional set-shifting in 2-year-olds with and without Autism Spectrum Disorder}}. {PLoS One}. 2019; 14(3): e0213903.
The development of executive function is necessary for flexible and voluntary control of behavior. Deficits in executive function are purported to be a primary cause of behavioral inflexibility-a core clinical symptom-in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Attentional set-shifting has traditionally been measured with the Dimensional Change Card Sort, however, this task requires following verbal instructions. Here, we used a novel visual search task that does not require verbal instructions in conjunction with eye-tracking to test attentional set-shifting in 2-year-old toddlers diagnosed with ASD (N = 29) and chronological age-matched typically developing controls (N = 30). On each trial, a relevant and an irrelevant target were embedded in a set of feature-conjunction distractors, and toddlers were tasked with searching for the relevant target. Critically, after a set of trials the targets switched roles (i.e., the previously relevant target became irrelevant, and the previously relevant target became irrelevant). We measured visual search performance prior to and following a target switch. We found that both groups of toddlers could readily switch targets, and found strikingly similar performance between typically developing toddlers and toddlers with ASD. Our results challenge the centrality of deficits in attentional set-shifting to early behavioral inflexibility in ASD.
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17. Solari EJ, Grimm RP, McIntyre NS, Zajic M, Mundy PC. {{Longitudinal stability of reading profiles in individuals with higher functioning autism}}. {Autism}. 2019: 1362361318812423.
The reading difficulties of individuals with autism spectrum disorders have been established in the literature, with particular attention drawn toward reading comprehension difficulties. Recent papers have highlighted the heterogeneous nature of reading abilities in this population by utilizing statistical methods that allow for investigations of unique reading profiles. This article extends this literature by investigating reading profiles longitudinally, to investigate the stability of reader profiles across time. Latent profile and transition analyses were conducted to establish categorically distinct reading profiles at two time points, 30 months apart. This study also examined whether age and autism symptom severity were related to the profiles at each time point. Finally, transitions between profiles at each time point were identified. Age did not predict profile membership, but there were significant differences in symptom severity that were largely stable over time. Results indicate that heterogeneous reading profiles exist within the autism population, ranging from average reading ability to severe difficulties across different reading subskills. The data from this study demonstrate that reading profiles of children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders shift when examined across time.
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18. Tranfaglia MR, Thibodeaux C, Mason DJ, Brown D, Roberts I, Smith R, Guilliams T, Cogram P. {{Repurposing available drugs for neurodevelopmental disorders: The fragile X experience}}. {Neuropharmacology}. 2019; 147: 74-86.
Many available drugs have been repurposed as treatments for neurodevelopmental disorders. In the specific case of fragile X syndrome, many clinical trials of available drugs have been conducted with the goal of disease modification. In some cases, detailed understanding of basic disease mechanisms has guided the choice of drugs for clinical trials, and several notable successes in fragile X clinical trials have led to common use of drugs such as minocycline in routine medical practice. Newer technologies like Disease-Gene Expression Matching (DGEM) may allow for more rapid identification of promising repurposing candidates. A DGEM study predicted that sulindac could be therapeutic for fragile X, and subsequent preclinical validation studies have shown promising results. The use of combinations of available drugs and nutraceuticals has the potential to greatly expand the options for repurposing, and may even be a viable business strategy. This article is part of the Special Issue entitled ‘Drug Repurposing: old molecules, new ways to fast track drug discovery and development for CNS disorders’.
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19. Trutzer IM, Garcia-Cabezas MA, Zikopoulos B. {{Postnatal development and maturation of layer 1 in the lateral prefrontal cortex and its disruption in autism}}. {Acta neuropathologica communications}. 2019; 7(1): 40.
Autism is a neurodevelopmental connectivity disorder characterized by cortical network disorganization and imbalance in excitation/inhibition. However, little is known about the development of autism pathology and the disruption of laminar-specific excitatory and inhibitory cortical circuits. To begin to address these issues, we examined layer 1 of the lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC), an area with prolonged development and maturation that is affected in autism. We focused on layer 1 because it contains a distinctive, diverse population of interneurons and glia, receives input from feedback and neuromodulatory pathways, and plays a critical role in the development, maturation, and function of the cortex. We used unbiased quantitative methods at high resolution to study the morphology, neurochemistry, distribution, and density of neurons and myelinated axons in post-mortem brain tissue from children and adults with and without autism. We cross-validated our findings through comparisons with neighboring anterior cingulate cortices and optimally-fixed non-human primate tissue. In neurotypical controls we found an increase in the density of myelinated axons from childhood to adulthood. Neuron density overall declined with age, paralleled by decreased density of inhibitory interneurons labeled by calretinin (CR), calbindin (CB), and parvalbumin (PV). Importantly, we found PV neurons in layer 1 of typically developing children, previously detected only perinatally. In autism there was disorganization of cortical networks within layer 1: children with autism had increased variability in the trajectories and thickness of myelinated axons in layer 1, while adults with autism had a reduction in the relative proportion of thin axons. Neurotypical postnatal changes in layer 1 of LPFC likely underlie refinement of cortical activity during maturation of cortical networks involved in cognition. Our findings suggest that disruption of the maturation of feedback pathways, rather than interneurons in layer 1, has a key role in the development of imbalance between excitation and inhibition in autism.
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20. Watkins L, Ledbetter-Cho K, O’Reilly M, Barnard-Brak L, Garcia-Grau P. {{Interventions for students with autism in inclusive settings: A best-evidence synthesis and meta-analysis}}. {Psychological bulletin}. 2019.
Students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are increasingly educated alongside typically developing peers in regular education environments. These students have impairments that may hinder their success in inclusive school settings and require individualized supports to improve outcomes. The purpose of this meta-analysis and best-evidence synthesis is to examine the characteristics of interventions for students with ASD in inclusive settings, offer quantitative analysis of intervention effects, examine potential moderating variables that influence outcomes, analyze the social validity of these interventions, and provide recommendations for practice and future research. The 28 included studies met the What Works Clearinghouse standards for group design and single-case design research. Studies focused mostly on social communication skills, produced moderate to large effects, and were generally found to be socially valid. Function-based interventions, visual supports, self-monitoring strategies, and peer-mediated interventions resulted in mostly large effects, and teacher delivered interventions produced the largest overall effects. More high-quality studies for students with ASD in inclusive school settings are needed to advance evidence-based practice for this population. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).
