1. Adamo N, Hodsoll J, Asherson P, Buitelaar JK, Kuntsi J. {{Ex-Gaussian, Frequency and Reward Analyses Reveal Specificity of Reaction Time Fluctuations to ADHD and Not Autism Traits}}. {Journal of abnormal child psychology}. 2018.
Both attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have been linked to increased reaction time variability (RTV), a marker of attentional fluctuation. Here we test whether specificity to either trait emerges when we examine (1) detailed ex-Gaussian and frequency RTV subcomponents, (2) effects while controlling for the other trait and (3) improvement in the RTV measures following rewards or a faster event rate. 1110 children aged 7-10 years from a population-based sample completed a Go/No-Go task under three conditions (slow, fast and incentives). We measured RTV with standard deviation of RT (SDRT), ex-Gaussian distribution measures (Sigma and Tau), RT fluctuations in cycles of ~14-90 s in all conditions (Slow-4 and Slow-5), and RT fluctuations in cycles of 2-14 s in the fast condition (Slow-2 and Slow-3). Parent-rated ADHD and ASD traits were obtained. All refined RTV components were linked to ADHD traits only and not to ASD traits, while Sigma did not relate to either trait. Although both ADHD and ASD social-communication traits were associated with SDRT, the association with social-communication impairments disappeared when controlling for ADHD traits. A reward-induced improvement in RTV measures, indicating malleability, emerged in relation to ADHD traits but not ASD traits. Under closer inspection, specificity emerges of high RTV to ADHD traits. For the clinician, our findings indicate that attentional fluctuation in children with high ASD traits may be due to co-occurring ADHD traits and emphasise how the effectiveness of rewards does not generalise from ADHD to ASD traits.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
2. Bhaskaran S, Lawrence L, Flora J, Perumalsamy V. {{Functional and cognitive vision assessment in children with autism spectrum disorder}}. {Journal of AAPOS : the official publication of the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus}. 2018.
PURPOSE: To assess functional vision in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with a cognitive visual function battery in addition to standard ophthalmic examinations. METHODS: Subjects were recruited from a school for children with ASD. In addition to a comprehensive ophthalmic examination, all children underwent cognitive vision assessment at a tertiary ophthalmological care center in India. RESULTS: A total of 30 children were included. The distribution of the number of children with mild to moderate versus severe ASD was nearly equal based on CARS autism scores. The majority of subjects had normal color vision (16/18), contrast (24), shape discrimination (26), and perception of directionality (28). Most were not able to identify optical illusions or differentiate tests of emotions. Ocular pursuits, saccades, and recognition of size differences were often abnormal. Poor visual closure was noted in (11) subjects. The duration of fixation to Heidi face target was inversely proportional to the severity of ASD. The study further established that cognitive visual impairment was present in children with ASD irrespective of their severity of ASD. CONCLUSIONS: All subjects had some form of cognitive visual impairment independent of ASD severity.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
3. Chlebowski C, Magana S, Wright B, Brookman-Frazee L. {{Implementing an intervention to address challenging behaviors for autism spectrum disorder in publicly-funded mental health services: Therapist and parent perceptions of delivery with Latinx families}}. {Cultural diversity & ethnic minority psychology}. 2018.
OBJECTIVES: As implementation of evidence-based practices (EBPs) in publicly funded children’s mental health services has become increasingly common, concerns have been raised about the appropriateness of specific EBPs to the diverse client populations served in these settings. Exploring stakeholder perspectives can provide direction for refinements of EBPs when delivered with Latinx families. The current study used qualitative methods to examine therapist and Latinx parent perceptions of therapist-parent interactions and the intervention process when therapists are trained to deliver AIM HI (An Individualized Mental Health Intervention for ASD), a structured, parent-mediated intervention for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). METHOD: Therapist and parent participants were a subset of participants from a large-scale community effectiveness trial. Perceptions were gathered through focus groups with therapists (n = 17) and semistructured interviews with Latinx parents (n = 29). Therapists were 94% female, 35% Latinx, and 47% were fluent in Spanish. Parents were 93% female, 100% Latinx, and 66% preferred Spanish. A coding, consensus, co-occurrence and comparison approach was used to analyze data. RESULTS: Three primary themes emerged: (a) limited parental knowledge about ASD and the need to address knowledge gaps; (b) differing perceptions regarding parental participation in treatment; and (c) identification of influences on parent-therapist interaction, including the cultural value of respeto/deference (emphasized by therapists), and importance of personalismo/personal connection (emphasized by parents). CONCLUSIONS: The themes provide specific direction for enhancements to AIM HI to maximize engagement of Latinx families. The themes also have broader implications for intervention development and community implementation including refinement of EBPs to facilitate fit and sustained implementation. (PsycINFO Database Record
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
4. Cygan HB, Okuniewska H, Jednorog K, Marchewka A, Wypych M, Nowicka A. {{Face processing in a case of high functioning autism with developmental prosopagnosia}}. {Acta neurobiologiae experimentalis}. 2018; 78(2): 114-31.
The ability to « read » the information about facial identity, expressed emotions, and intentions is crucial for nonverbal social interaction. Neuroimaging and clinical studies consequently link face perception with fusiform gyrus (FG) and occipital face area (OFA) activity. Here we investigated face processing in an adult, patient PK, diagnosed with both high functioning autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and developmental prosopagnosia (DP). Both disorders have a significant impact on face perception and recognition, thus creating a unique neurodevelopmental condition. We used eyetracking and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) method. Eyetracking and fMRI results of PK were compared to results of control subjects. Patient PK showed atypical gazefixation strategy during face perception and typical patterns of brain activations in the FG and OFA. However, a significant difference between PK and control subjects was found in the left anterior superior temporal sulcus/middle temporal gyrus (aSTS/MTG). In PK the left aSTS/MTG was hypoactivated in comparison to the control subjects. Additionally, functional connectivity analysis revealed decreased interhemispheric connectivity between right and left aSTS/MTG in ‘ASD and DP’ patient during face recognition performance as compared to the control subjects. The lack of activity in the left aSTS/MTG observed in the case of the clinical subject, combined with the behavioral, eyetracking, and neuropsychological results, suggests that impairment of the cognitive mechanism of face recognition involves higher level of processing. It seems to be related to insufficient access to semantic knowledge about the person when prompted by face stimuli.
5. Doostparast Torshizi A, Duan J, Wang K. {{Transcriptional network analysis on brains reveals a potential regulatory role of PPP1R3F in autism spectrum disorders}}. {BMC research notes}. 2018; 11(1): 489.
OBJECTIVE: This study aims at identifying master regulators of transcriptional networks in autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). RESULTS: With two sets of independent RNA-Seq data generated on cerebellum from patients with ASDs and control subjects (N = 39 and 45 for set 1, N = 24 and 38 for set 2, respectively), we carried out a network deconvolution of transcriptomic data, followed by virtual protein activity analysis. We identified PPP1R3F (Protein Phosphatase 1 Regulatory Subunit 3F) as a candidate master regulator affecting a large body of downstream genes that are associated with the disease phenotype. Pathway analysis on the identified targets of PPP1R3F in both datasets indicated alteration of endocytosis pathway. Despite a limited sample size, our study represents one of the first applications of network deconvolution approach to brain transcriptomic data to generate hypotheses that may be further validated by large-scale studies.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
6. Gallagher S, Pilch M, Hannigan A. {{Prior depressive symptoms and persistent child problem behaviours predict future depression in parents of children with developmental disabilities: The growing up in Ireland cohort study}}. {Res Dev Disabil}. 2018; 80: 170-9.
Predictors of depression over time were examined in parental carers of children with developmental disabilities (DD) and parents of typically developing children (controls) who participated in the Growing up in Ireland Study. Parents completed measures of depression, the Centre for Epidemiological Depression Scale (CES-D) and child problem behaviours, the Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire when the children were aged 9 (Wave 1) and 13 (Wave 2). Using CES-D cut-off scores to indicate probable depression, caregivers were more likely to be depressed at both waves compared to controls with a Wave 1 rate of depression of 14.6% vs. 7.9% (p<0.001, Cramer`s V=0.059) and Wave 2 (14.8% vs. 10%, p=0.003, Cramer`s V=0.038). While overall rates of depression were stable for caregivers, a shifting pattern emerged; 59.6% of those who were depressed at Wave 1, were not at Wave 2; similarly, 10.9% who were not depressed at Wave 1, were at Wave 2. Parents of children with DD were also more likely to report greater problem behaviours in their children compared to controls at both waves. Depression in caregivers at Wave 1 and persistent child problem behaviours were significant predictors of depression at Wave 2. In conclusion, while overall rates of depression remain stable in caregivers, there are shifting patterns evident with prior depression and persistent behaviour problems predictive of ongoing depression. Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
7. Gupta N, Sachdev A, Gupta D, Gupta S, Gupta D, Nanavati J. {{Autism and Allergy – Are They Linked?}}. {Indian journal of pediatrics}. 2018.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
8. Huijnen C, Lexis MAS, Jansens R, de Witte LP. {{Roles, Strengths and Challenges of Using Robots in Interventions for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)}}. {J Autism Dev Disord}. 2018.
The aim of this research was to study roles, strengths and challenges of robot-mediated interventions using robot KASPAR for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Twelve focus group sessions were organized in which 70 ASD care and/or education professionals participated. Six roles for KASPAR were identified: provoker, reinforcer, trainer, mediator, prompter, and diagnostic information provider. Strengths of KASPAR are related to personalisation possibilities, its playfulness, the action-reaction principle, its neutral expression, consistent and repetitive application of actions, possibilities to vary behaviour in a controlled manner and having an extra hand. Challenges of working with KASPAR were: limited reaction possibilities, possibility of children being scared of KASPAR, difficulties with generalisation or transfer and finally potential dependence on KASPAR.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
9. Ide M, Yaguchi A, Sano M, Fukatsu R, Wada M. {{Higher Tactile Temporal Resolution as a Basis of Hypersensitivity in Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder}}. {J Autism Dev Disord}. 2018.
Many individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have symptoms of sensory hypersensitivity. Several studies have shown high individual variations in temporal processing of tactile stimuli. We hypothesized that these individual differences are linked to differences in hyper-reactivity among individuals with ASD. Participants performed two tasks as to vibrotactile stimuli: One is a temporal order judgement task, and another is a detection task. We found that individuals with ASD with higher temporal resolution tended to have more severe hypersensitivity symptoms. In contrast, the tactile detection threshold/sensitivity were related to the severities of stereotyped behaviour and restricted interests, rather than to hypersensitivity. Our findings demonstrate that higher temporal resolution to sensory stimuli may contribute to sensory hypersensitivity in individuals with ASD.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
10. Kambanaros M, Christou N, Grohmann KK. {{Interpretation of compound words by Greek-speaking children with autism spectrum disorder plus language impairment (ASD-LI)}}. {Clinical linguistics & phonetics}. 2018: 1-40.
The language abilities of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are highly variable. More insight is needed into the mechanisms that underlie co-morbid language impairments (LI) in children with ASD (henceforth, ASD-LI) across complex lexical and/or grammatical phenomena, particularly for languages beyond English. The present study tested the comprehension and production of two-constituent compound words at the single-word level for Greek (e.g., pondikopayideltaa ‘mouse trap’). The Compound Word Test, measured on a range of psycholinguistic variables, was used to assess the (compound) constitutent recognition, comprehension/definition, and production of compositional noun-noun compounds in four school-aged children diagnosed with ASD-LI. Their results were compared to age-matched peers with typical language development as a group and as single cases. Comprehension was probed in relation to the word’s constituents, for which semantic interpretation involved explaining the meaning of the compound. Production of compound words was tested using a picture confrontation naming task. The results revealed that the four children with ASD-LI who participated had less difficulty recognizing the compound constituents but showed a significant deficit in deriving the compound meaning. Naming compounds was exceptionally difficult despite generally intact comprehension of the object pictures. This leads us to suggest a dissociation between linguistic and conceptual knowledge about the constituents and the compound word. Moreover, the children with ASD-LI produced semantically infelicitous responses when explaining the meaning of compounds, an error not evident in their typically developing peers. Generalizing over the four single clinical cases, we hypothesize that children with ASD-LI have difficulties at the interface of (morpho)syntax with semantics and pragmatics, that is, at the conceptual-intentional system.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
11. Kennedy PJ, Sinfield P, Tweedlie L, Nixon C, Martin A, Edwards K. {{Brief Report: Using the Social Communication Questionnaire to Identify Young People Residing in Secure Children’s Homes with Symptom Complexes Compatible with Autistic Spectrum Disorder}}. {J Autism Dev Disord}. 2018.
Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) affects approximately 1% of the general population. The prevalence of ASD, or symptom complexes compatible with ASD, amongst young people residing within Secure Children’s Homes (SCH’s) remains ill understood. There are critical implications for the resourcing and understanding of the management of young people with social/communication difficulties. This paper describes a preliminary investigation of the prevalence of ASD within SCH’s in the UK. The Social Communication Questionnaire (SCQ) was completed with support workers for 113 adolescents admitted to two SCH’s in England as a screen for ASD. The SCQ identified 15 (13.3%) young people with symptoms compatible with an ASD presentation; differences in gender, legal status and a history of Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE) are discussed.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
12. Kernbach JM, Satterthwaite TD, Bassett DS, Smallwood J, Margulies D, Krall S, Shaw P, Varoquaux G, Thirion B, Konrad K, Bzdok D. {{Shared endo-phenotypes of default mode dsfunction in attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder and autism spectrum disorder}}. {Translational psychiatry}. 2018; 8(1): 133.
Categorical diagnoses from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) or International Classification of Diseases (ICD) manuals are increasingly found to be incongruent with emerging neuroscientific evidence that points towards shared neurobiological dysfunction underlying attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder and autism spectrum disorder. Using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data, functional connectivity of the default mode network, the dorsal attention and salience network was studied in 1305 typically developing and diagnosed participants. A transdiagnostic hierarchical Bayesian modeling framework combining Indian Buffet Processes and Latent Dirichlet Allocation was proposed to address the urgent need for objective brain-derived measures that can acknowledge shared brain network dysfunction in both disorders. We identified three main variation factors characterized by distinct coupling patterns of the temporoparietal cortices in the default mode network with the dorsal attention and salience network. The brain-derived factors were demonstrated to effectively capture the underlying neural dysfunction shared in both disorders more accurately, and to enable more reliable diagnoses of neurobiological dysfunction. The brain-derived phenotypes alone allowed for a classification accuracy reflecting an underlying neuropathology of 67.33% (+/-3.07) in new individuals, which significantly outperformed the 46.73% (+/-3.97) accuracy of categorical diagnoses. Our results provide initial evidence that shared neural dysfunction in ADHD and ASD can be derived from conventional brain recordings in a data-led fashion. Our work is encouraging to pursue a translational endeavor to find and further study brain-derived phenotypes, which could potentially be used to improve clinical decision-making and optimize treatment in the future.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
13. Kheirouri S, Alizadeh M. {{Response to ‘Does l-Carnitine Supplementation Improve Sleep Quality in Children with Autism?’}}. {Basic & clinical pharmacology & toxicology}. 2018.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
14. Oien RA, Cicchetti DV, Nordahl-Hansen A. {{Gender Dysphoria, Sexuality and Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Systematic Map Review}}. {J Autism Dev Disord}. 2018.
In this systematic map review, we aimed (1) at identifying studies including the co-occurrence of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and gender dysphoria (GD) between 1946 and 2018, and (2) to present the papers included in this systematic map review to provide authors in the field of GD, sexuality and ASD with an important database of studies focusing on this very complex topic. The field is of emerging interest, as observed by the large increase of studies over the past decades, especially since 2015. However, future challenges are to be addressed in future studies.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
15. Pereira NRM, Tufik S, Hachul H. {{Does L-Carnitine Supplementation Improve Sleep Quality in Children with Autism?}}. {Basic & clinical pharmacology & toxicology}. 2018.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
16. Williams ZJ, Failla MD, Gotham KO, Woynaroski TG, Cascio C. {{Psychometric Evaluation of the Short Sensory Profile in Youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder}}. {J Autism Dev Disord}. 2018.
The Short Sensory Profile (SSP) is one of the most commonly used measures of sensory features in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), but psychometric studies in this population are limited. Using confirmatory factor analysis, we evaluated the structural validity of the SSP subscales in ASD children. Confirmatory factor models exhibited poor fit, and a follow-up exploratory factor analysis suggested a 9-factor structure that only replicated three of the seven original subscales. Secondary analyses suggest that while reliable, the SSP total score is substantially biased by individual differences on dimensions other than the general factor. Overall, our findings discourage the use of the SSP total score and most subscale scores in children with ASD. Implications for future research are discussed.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
17. Yan Y, Liu C, Ye L, Liu Y. {{Using animated vehicles with real emotional faces to improve emotion recognition in Chinese children with autism spectrum disorder}}. {PLoS One}. 2018; 13(7): e0200375.
The objective of the present study was to conduct an intervention study which aimed to improve emotion recognition for Chinese children with ASD by using animated vehicles with real emotional faces. A total of 21 children participated in the current study; participants consisted of 14 children (2 girls) with a formal diagnosis of ASD and 7 typically developing children. Participants were measured on emotional vocabulary and situation-facial expression matching before and after the intervention. Results indicated that the intervention significantly improved ASD children’s emotion recognition compared to their pre-intervention scores. Our findings suggest that this emotional recognition intervention using animated vehicles (i.e. The Transporters) is an effective early intervention for Chinese children with ASD.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
18. Yorke I, White P, Weston A, Rafla M, Charman T, Simonoff E. {{Correction to: The Association Between Emotional and Behavioral Problems in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Psychological Distress in Their Parents: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis}}. {J Autism Dev Disord}. 2018.
The original version of this article contains additional supplementary material which was omitted during the initial submission and it was not published. These are graphical representations of the studies and effect sizes in each meta-analysis. Please note that there is no change to the main body of the article, data entered, or conclusions drawn from the meta-analyses.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
19. Zhang J, Meng Y, He J, Xiang Y, Wu C, Wang S, Yuan Z. {{McGurk Effect by Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Typically Developing Controls: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis}}. {J Autism Dev Disord}. 2018.
By synthesizing existing behavioural studies through a meta-analytic approach, the current study compared the performances of Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and typically developing groups in audiovisual speech integration and investigated potential moderators that might contribute to the heterogeneity of the existing findings. In total, nine studies were included in the current study, and the pooled overall difference between the two groups was significant, g = – 0.835 (p < 0.001; 95% CI - 1.155 to - 0.516). Age and task scoring method were found to be associated with the inconsistencies of the findings reported by previous studies. These findings indicate that individuals with ASD show weaker McGurk effect than typically developing controls. Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
