1. Borie AM, Dromard Y, Guillon G, Olma A, Manning M, Muscatelli F, Desarmenien MG, Jeanneteau F. {{Correction of vasopressin deficit in the lateral septum ameliorates social deficits of mouse autism model}}. {The Journal of clinical investigation}. 2020.
Intellectual and social disabilities are common comorbidities in adolescents and adults with MAGEL2 gene deficiency characterizing the Prader-Willi and Schaaf-Yang neurodevelopmental syndromes. The cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying the risk for autism in these syndromes are not understood. We ask whether vasopressin functions are altered by MAGEL2 deficiency and whether a treatment with vasopressin can alleviate the disabilities of social behavior. We used Magel2 knockout mice (adult males) combined with optogenetic or pharmacological tools to characterize disease modifications in the vasopressinergic brain system and monitor its impact on neurophysiological and behavioral functions. We find that the activation of vasopressin neurons and its projections in the lateral septum are inappropriate to perform a social habituation/discrimination task. Mechanistically, the lack of vasopressin impedes the deactivation of somatostatin neurons in the lateral septum, which predicts social discrimination deficits. Correction of vasopressin septal content by administration or optogenetic stimulation of projecting axons suppressed the activity of somatostatin neurons and ameliorated social behavior. This preclinical study identifies vasopressin in the lateral septum as a key factor in the pathophysiology.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
2. D’Alò GL, De Crescenzo F, Amato L, Cruciani F, Davoli M, Fulceri F, Minozzi S, Mitrova Z, Morgano GP, Nardocci F, Saulle R, Schünemann HJ, Scattoni ML. {{Acceptability, equity, and feasibility of using antipsychotics in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder: a systematic review}}. {BMC Psychiatry}. 2020; 20(1): 561.
BACKGROUND: It is unclear whether the administration of antipsychotics to children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) is acceptable, equitable, and feasible. METHODS: We performed a systematic review to support a multidisciplinary panel in formulating a recommendation on antipsychotics, for the development of the Italian national guidelines for the management of ASD. A comprehensive search strategy was performed to find data related to intervention acceptability, health equity, and implementation feasibility. We used quantitative data from randomized controlled trials to perform a meta-analysis assessing the acceptability and tolerability of antipsychotics, and we estimated the certainty of the effect according to the GRADE approach. We extracted data from systematic reviews, primary studies, and grey literature, and we assessed the risk of bias and methodological quality of the published studies. RESULTS: Antipsychotics were acceptable (dropouts due to any cause: RR 0.61, 95% CI 0.48-0.78, moderate certainty of evidence) and well tolerated (dropouts due to adverse events: RR 0.99, 95% CI 0.55-1.79, low certainty of evidence) by children and adolescents with ASD. Parents and clinicians did not raise significant issues concerning acceptability. We did not find studies reporting evidence of reduced equity for antipsychotics in disadvantaged subgroups of children and adolescents with ASD. Workloads, cost barriers, and inadequate monitoring of metabolic adverse events were indirect evidence of concerns for feasibility. CONCLUSION: Antipsychotics in children and adolescents with ASD were likely acceptable and possibly feasible. We did not find evidence of concern for equity.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
3. Diekamp M, Jenter L, Schulte AG, Fricke O, Schmidt P. {{Restoration of an Upper Anterior Tooth in an Adolescent with Autism Spectrum Disorder-A Student Case Report}}. {Children (Basel, Switzerland)}. 2020; 7(11).
BACKGROUND: Patients with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or other mental or physical limitations experience an imbalance in the frequency of dental treatment as compared with the general patient population, in part, due to inadequate pre-graduate training of future dentists. CASE PRESENTATION: This case report describes a successful anterior tooth restoration, in awake state, in a 15-year-old boy with early childhood autism. The procedure was carried out independently by students of dentistry within the scope of their integrated clinical training semesters. Desensitization sessions were used as a preparatory measure and elements of behavioral facilitation (tell-show-feel-feel-do) were applied during the treatment. CONCLUSIONS: To avoid discrimination of this group of patients in the provision and quality of dental care, a structured approach to the transfer of theoretical and practical knowledge in the field of special care dentistry is indispensable. To this end, treatment strategies for special care patients should be taught to pre-graduate dental students as a fundamental part of their university curriculum.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
4. Fiscella NA, Case LK, Jung J, Yun J. {{Influence of Neighborhood Environment on Physical Activity Participation among Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder}}. {Autism Res}. 2020.
Despite the positive influence of environmental factors on physical activity (PA) levels of children, further investigation is necessary when considering the unique characteristics of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between neighborhood environment factors and PA among children with ASD by examining the extent to which (a) the built environment, (b) neighborhood safety, and (c) neighborhood support contributes to PA. A secondary data analysis using the 2016 and 2017 combined dataset of the National Survey of Children’s Health was used. The total sample included 14,944 children between the ages of 6-17 years; of this, a sample of 494 children had a parent-reported diagnosis of ASD. Multivariate logistic regressions were conducted to explore the unique influences of the above three neighborhood environment factors on PA engagement. Among children with and without ASD, an association was found between feeling safe and engaging in PA, that is, the odds of engaging in PA are greater among children who were safe in their neighborhoods than children who were not in safe neighborhoods. Surprisingly, other neighborhood factors do not have a significant relationship with PA participation among children with ASD at this time. Future studies should consider how to incorporate the support of others and feeling of safety into the neighborhood along with how to improve accessibility of the built environment in order to increase PA for children with ASD. LAY SUMMARY: The results of this study showed that neighborhood factors influence physical activity (PA) among children with ASD differently compared to their peers without ASD. Children with ASD who live in safe neighborhoods are more likely to engage in PA, while other neighborhood factors, such as playgrounds and support, are not associated with an increased likelihood of engaging in PA at this time. Efforts should be made to improve neighborhood accessibility and design in order to increase PA among children with ASD.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
5. Harris JF, Gorman LP, Doshi A, Swope S, Page SD. {{Development and implementation of health care transition resources for youth with autism spectrum disorders within a primary care medical home}}. {Autism}. 2020: 1362361320974491.
As adolescents become adults, they typically change from seeing a pediatric health care provider to seeing a health care provider who specializes in working with adults. Adolescents with autism spectrum disorder may have more difficulty finding an adult health care provider who is trained to address the varied needs and medical and mental health issues that often are seen with autism spectrum disorder. Without careful planning for transition to adult health care, patients may continue to be seen by pediatric providers who may not be familiar with adult health needs. This quality improvement project focused on improving transition to adult health care by creating varied supports for the patient, family, and the health care team and putting them into action within a pediatric medical practice that serves over 250 adolescent and young adult patients with autism spectrum disorder. Before the supports were put into place, patients and families received limited and inconsistent communication to help them with transition. While the supports helped increase the amount and quality of help patients and families received, medical providers skipped or put off transition discussion in approximately half of well visits for targeted patients. Challenges in implementing the transition process included finding time to discuss transition-related issues with patients/families, preference of medical providers to have social workers discuss transition, and difficulty identifying adult health care providers for patients. This suggests more work is needed to both train and partner with patients, families, and health staff to promote smooth and positive health transitions.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
6. Hazan S, Spradling-Reeves KD, Papoutsis A, Walker SJ. {{Shotgun Metagenomic Sequencing Identifies Dysbiosis in Triplet Sibling with Gastrointestinal Symptoms and ASD}}. {Children (Basel, Switzerland)}. 2020; 7(12).
The gut microbiome profile of a child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and co-occurring gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms was compared to that of her healthy triplet siblings to determine if she exhibited intestinal dysbiosis. Shotgun metagenomic sequencing was performed in individual fecal samples, and relative microbial abundance and diversity was determined. Microbial diversity was lower in sibling #3, coupled with a higher Bacteroidetes/Firmicutes ratio, a lower relative abundance of Actinobacteria, and an increased relative abundance of Proteobacteria. Our findings are suggestive of gut dysbiosis in a child with ASD and co-occurring GI symptoms, compared to her two healthy triplet siblings.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
7. Jaswal VK, Dinishak J, Stephan C, Akhtar N. {{Experiencing social connection: A qualitative study of mothers of nonspeaking autistic children}}. {PLoS One}. 2020; 15(11): e0242661.
Autistic children do not consistently show conventional signs of social engagement, which some have interpreted to mean that they are not interested in connecting with other people. If someone does not act like they are interested in connecting with you, it may make it difficult to feel connected to them. And yet, some parents report feeling strongly connected to their autistic children. We conducted phenomenological interviews with 13 mothers to understand how they experienced connection with their 5- to 14-year-old nonspeaking autistic children. Mothers of nonspeaking autistic children represent a unique group in which to study connection because their children both may not seem interested in connecting with them and have limited ability to communicate effectively using speech, a common way people connect with each other. The mothers in this study interpreted a range of child behaviors-some unconventional, but many conventional-as signs that their children were interested in connecting with them, (re)framed child behaviors that could undermine connection as caused by factors unrelated to the relationship, and expressed several convictions that may help build and sustain connection in the face of uncertainty about the meaning of their children’s behavior. Even though their autistic children may not consistently act in conventional socially oriented ways, these mothers reported perceiving their children’s behavior as embedded within an emotionally reciprocal relationship.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
8. Lewis EM, Stein-O’Brien GL, Patino AV, Nardou R, Grossman CD, Brown M, Bangamwabo B, Ndiaye N, Giovinazzo D, Dardani I, Jiang C, Goff LA, Dölen G. {{Parallel Social Information Processing Circuits Are Differentially Impacted in Autism}}. {Neuron}. 2020; 108(4): 659-75.e6.
Parallel processing circuits are thought to dramatically expand the network capabilities of the nervous system. Magnocellular and parvocellular oxytocin neurons have been proposed to subserve two parallel streams of social information processing, which allow a single molecule to encode a diverse array of ethologically distinct behaviors. Here we provide the first comprehensive characterization of magnocellular and parvocellular oxytocin neurons in male mice, validated across anatomical, projection target, electrophysiological, and transcriptional criteria. We next use novel multiple feature selection tools in Fmr1-KO mice to provide direct evidence that normal functioning of the parvocellular but not magnocellular oxytocin pathway is required for autism-relevant social reward behavior. Finally, we demonstrate that autism risk genes are enriched in parvocellular compared with magnocellular oxytocin neurons. Taken together, these results provide the first evidence that oxytocin-pathway-specific pathogenic mechanisms account for social impairments across a broad range of autism etiologies.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
9. Liang Y, Xiao Z, Ke X, Yao P, Chen Y, Lin L, Lu J. {{Urinary Metabonomic Profiling Discriminates Between Children with Autism and Their Healthy Siblings}}. {Medical science monitor : international medical journal of experimental and clinical research}. 2020; 26: e926634.
BACKGROUND Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complicated neuropsychiatric disease that displays significant heterogeneity. The diagnosis of ASD is currently primarily dependent upon descriptions of clinical symptoms, and it remains urgent to find biological markers for the detection and diagnosis of autism. The current study applied the urinary metabolic profiling approach to characterize metabolic phenotypes in ASD. MATERIAL AND METHODS Urine was obtained from children with ASD and their matched healthy siblings. Samples were analyzed using 1H NMR-based methods designed to measure a broad range of metabolites. Partial least-square-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) was used to develop models to identify metabonomic variations that can be used to distinguish between individuals with ASD and their unaffected siblings. RESULTS A significant difference was observed between the metabolomic profiles of children with ASD and that of their healthy siblings. An increase in the levels of tryptophan, hippurate, glycine, and creatine, and a decrease in trigonelline, melatonin, pantothenate, serotonin, and taurine were observed compared to the control group. We conclude that several metabolic pathways are affected by autism, which suggests that a gut-brain link may be important in the pathophysiology of ASD. CONCLUSIONS 1H NMR-based metabonomic analysis of the urine can determine perturbations of specific metabolic pathways related to ASD and help identify a characteristic metabolic fingerprint to better understand the disease and its causes.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
10. Nadler C, Godwin DL, Dempsey J, Nyp SS. {{Autism and Access to Care During the COVID-19 Crisis}}. {J Dev Behav Pediatr}. 2020.
Brian is a 6-year-old boy who was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and global developmental delay at age 2. He has no other health conditions of note. Brian lives with his parents and an older brother, who also has ASD, in a rural area 2 hours from the center where he was diagnosed. Brian has a history of intermittent self-injurious behaviors (head-banging, throwing himself onto the floor, etc.) that regularly result in bruising, intense and lengthy tantrums, and aggression toward family and teachers. Brian will occasionally indicate items that he wants, but otherwise has no functional communication skills. Over the past 18 months, Brian’s challenging behaviors have waxed and waned. The regional special education program is not equipped to safely manage his behaviors, and there are no in-home or center-based agencies that provide applied behavior analysis (ABA) available. Brian’s developmental pediatrician initiated guanfacine (eventually adding a small dose of aripiprazole) and referred the family to psychology for weekly telehealth behavioral parent training to address behavioral concerns using the Research Units in Behavioral Intervention curriculum.Brian’s behavioral problems decreased during the initial weeks of the COVID-19 crisis, when he no longer had to leave home or attend special education. However, as summer continued, his behaviors worsened substantially (regular bruising and tissue damage, numerous after-hours consultations with his psychologist and developmental pediatrician, and one trip to the emergency department). The intensity of Brian’s behaviors (maintained primarily by access to tangible items and escape from demands) made progress with behavioral supports slow and discouraging for his parents. Other psychosocial stressors coalesced for the family as well, including employment loss, limited social support because of social distancing requirements, and illness of one of his parents. The developmental pediatrician continued to modify the medication regimen over the summer, transitioning Brian from guanfacine to clonidine and increasing his aripiprazole incrementally (with clear increased benefit); hydroxyzine was also used as needed during the episodes of highest intensity.Despite the availability of best-practice guidelines for children with Brian’s presenting concerns, a confluence of barriers (geographic, economic, ABA work force, global pandemic, etc.) present serious questions for his family and care team related to the next steps in Brian’s care. Should he attend in-person school in the fall, knowing that the available program may have limited educational benefit and increase his risk of COVID-19 exposure (not to mention self-injury)? Would the potential benefits of cross-country travel to an intensive behavioral treatment program outweigh the associated psychosocial and economic stressors? How else can the virtual care team support this family?
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
11. Nayar K, Sealock JM, Maltman N, Bush L, Cook EH, Davis LK, Losh M. {{Elevated Polygenic Burden for Autism Spectrum Disorder Is Associated With the Broad Autism Phenotype in Mothers of Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorder}}. {Biol Psychiatry}. 2020.
BACKGROUND: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a multifactorial neurodevelopmental disorder that encompasses a complex and heterogeneous set of traits. Subclinical traits that mirror the core features of ASD, referred to as the broad autism phenotype (BAP), have been documented repeatedly in unaffected relatives and are believed to reflect underlying genetic liability to ASD. The BAP may help inform the etiology of ASD by allowing the stratification of families into more phenotypically and etiologically homogeneous subgroups. This study explores polygenic scores related to the BAP. METHODS: Phenotypic and genotypic information were obtained from 2614 trios from the Simons Simplex Collection. Polygenic scores of ASD (ASD-PGSs) were generated across the sample to determine the shared genetic overlap between the BAP and ASD. Maternal and paternal ASD-PGSs were explored in relation to BAP traits and their child’s ASD symptomatology. RESULTS: Maternal pragmatic language was related to child’s social communicative atypicalities. In fathers, rigid personality was related to increased repetitive behaviors in children. Maternal (but not paternal) ASD-PGSs were related to the pragmatic language and rigid BAP domains. CONCLUSIONS: Associations emerged between parent and child phenotypes, with more associations emerging in mothers than in fathers. ASD-PGS associations emerged with BAP in mothers only, highlighting the potential for a female protective factor, and implicating the polygenic etiology of ASD-related phenotypes in the BAP.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
12. Pizur-Barnekow K, Lang AC, Barger B. {{Short report: Development and utility of the Family-Centered Autism Navigation interview}}. {Autism}. 2020: 1362361320972890.
When a parent learns of their child’s autism diagnosis, they may be overwhelmed, confused, and frustrated. Family navigation services are designed to improve access to care. While these services are a promising intervention to enhance well-being and developmental outcomes, there are limited tools that can systematically facilitate the development of a shared navigation plan that prioritizes the concerns of the family. The Family-Centered Autism Navigation semi-structured interview guide is designed for family navigators to triage and prioritize caregiver’s needs to coordinate and navigate systems of care after learning of their child’s autism spectrum disorder diagnosis. The goals of the Family-Centered Autism Navigation interview are to (1) identify family and child strengths; (2) identify family/caregiver concerns regarding navigation of services and systems following their child’s diagnosis of autism; (3) measure change in caregiver knowledge, ability and skill as it relates to understanding, remembering, and evaluating information they receive; and (4) assist with the development of a shared navigation plan. When using the Family-Centered Autism Navigation guide, family navigators and caregivers co-create a family-centered, prioritized action plan that supports and prepares caregivers as they navigate systems of care. This short report describes the development process of the Family-Centered Autism Navigation semi-structured interview guide. We utilized brief interviews (n = 42), expert feedback (n = 13), and quality improvement strategies (n = 2 family navigators) to develop the questions and determine the usability of the Family-Centered Autism Navigation interview in practice.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
13. Sivaraman M, Virues-Ortega J, Roeyers H. {{Telehealth mask wearing training for children with autism during the COVID-19 pandemic}}. {Journal of applied behavior analysis}. 2020.
SARS-CoV-2 is the virus causing COVID-19 and is spread through close person-to-person contact. The use of face masks has been described as an important strategy to slow its transmission. We evaluated the effects of coaching caregivers via telehealth technologies to teach face mask wearing to children with autism spectrum disorder. Six participants with a history of challenging behavior associated with mask wearing were recruited from different parts of the world, and trained using graduated exposure, shaping, and contingent reinforcement. By the end of the intervention, all participants wore a face mask for a period of 10 min without exhibiting challenging behavior. The skills generalized to a novel mask or a community setting. Mask wearing did not affect the percentage of oxyhemoglobin saturation of participants, and caregivers found the intervention useful. The findings support previous tolerance training treatment evaluations in children with developmental disorders exhibiting resistance to healthcare routines.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
14. Tanksale R, Sofronoff K, Sheffield J, Gilmour J. {{Evaluating the effects of a yoga-based program integrated with third-wave cognitive behavioral therapy components on self-regulation in children on the autism spectrum: A pilot randomized controlled trial}}. {Autism}. 2020: 1362361320974841.
Children on the autism spectrum may experience difficulties with the regulation of attention, thoughts, emotions, and behavior, understanding, and expressing their emotions appropriately, as well as anxiety, and sleep. In autism research, contemplative practices that work through both body and mind have shown tentatively promising results. However, there are limited studies on this topic, and the use of yoga to facilitate executive control has not been researched yet. The Incredible Explorers (6-week program), a yoga-informed intervention program for children (8-12 years), was developed to understand whether, for children on the autism spectrum, the training could improve the ability to self-regulate, reduce anxiety and sleep problems, and increase awareness of emotions. In our sample, 61 children with one of their parents completed the program. Half of the group received the intervention, and the other half had to wait until the yoga group completed their trial. The participants were asked to give their feedback immediately after program completion and at 6-week follow-up. Compared to the group that was waiting to receive the intervention, parents in the yoga group reported significant gains for their children in regulating their overall executive control immediately after the session and again at follow-up. The parents reported a reduction in some of the sleep problems post-treatment. Children indicated an improved ability to communicate their feelings and willingness to analyze their emotions post-intervention. However, the study had several shortcomings and given that this was the first trial of the program, the results need to be interpreted with caution. Further research is recommended.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
15. Terloyeva D, Frey AJ, Park BY, Kauffman EM, Mathew L, Bostwick A, Varner EL, Lee BK, Croen LA, Fallin MD, Hertz-Picciotto I, Newschaffer CJ, Lyall K, Snyder NW. {{Meconium androgens are correlated with ASD-related phenotypic traits in early childhood in a familial enriched risk cohort}}. {Mol Autism}. 2020; 11(1): 93.
BACKGROUND: Prenatal exposure to increased androgens has been suggested as a risk factor for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This hypothesis has been examined by measurement of steroids in amniotic fluid, cord blood, saliva, and blood with mixed results. METHODS: To provide an orthogonal measure of fetal exposure, this study used meconium, the first stool of a newborn, to measure prenatal androgen exposure from infants in the Early Autism Risk Longitudinal Investigation (EARLI). EARLI is a familial-enriched risk cohort that enrolled pregnant mothers who already had a child with an ASD diagnosis. In the younger child, we investigated the association between meconium unconjugated (u) and total (t) concentrations of major androgens testosterone (T), dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), and androstenedione (A4), and ASD-related traits at 12 and 36 months of age. Traits were measured at 12 months with Autism Observation Scale for Infants (AOSI) and at 36 months with total score on the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS). One hundred and seventy children had meconium and AOSI, 140 had meconium and SRS, and 137 had meconium and both AOSI and SRS. RESULTS: Separate robust linear regressions between each of the log-transformed androgens and log-transformed SRS scores revealed three-way interaction between sex of the child, sex of the proband, and testosterone concentration. In the adjusted analyses, t-T, u-A4, and u-DHEA (P ≤ 0.01) were positively associated with AOSI scores, while u-T (P = 0.004) and u-DHEA (P = 0.007) were positively associated with SRS total score among females with female probands (n = 10). Additionally, higher concentrations of u-T (P = 0.01) and t-T (P = 0.01) predicted higher SRS total score in males with male probands (n = 63). Limitations Since we explored three-way interactions, this resulted in a limited sample size for some analyses. This study was from an enriched-risk cohort which may limit generalizability, and this study used ASD-assessment scales as outcomes instead of diagnostic categories. Additionally, the novel use of meconium in this study limits the ability to compare the results in this cohort to others due to the paucity of research on meconium. CONCLUSIONS: This study supports the utility of meconium for studies of endogenous fetal metabolism and suggests the sex of older siblings with autism should be considered as a biological variable in relevant studies.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
16. Tsai CH, Chen KL, Li HJ, Chen KH, Hsu CW, Lu CH, Hsieh KY, Huang CY. {{The symptoms of autism including social communication deficits and repetitive and restricted behaviors are associated with different emotional and behavioral problems}}. {Sci Rep}. 2020; 10(1): 20509.
The aim of the study was to investigate the associations between symptoms of autism and emotional and behavioral problems in children with autism spectrum disorder from both caregivers’ and clinicians’ perspectives. Three main findings were found in our study. First, the association patterns were similar in the preschool and school-aged children. Second, different association patterns were found from caregivers’ and professionals’ perspectives. From the professionals’ perspective, only repetitive behaviors were associated with behavioral problems, while from the caregivers’ perspective, all symptoms of autism were associated with emotional and behavioral problems. Third, different types of symptoms of autism were associated with different types of emotional and behavioral problems. For example, from the professionals’ perspective, restricted and repetitive behaviors were only associated with hyperactivity and inattention. From the caregivers’ perspective, social emotion was associated with emotional symptoms, and other symptoms of autism were associated with hyperactivity and inattention, as well as with peer problems. The results of our study provided deeper understanding of the relationships between symptoms of autism and emotional and behavioral problems, and the findings could serve as a reference for intervention planning when clinicians approach children with autism spectrum disorder.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
17. Tunçgenç B, Pacheco C, Rochowiak R, Nicholas R, Rengarajan S, Zou E, Messenger B, Vidal R, Mostofsky SH. {{Computerized Assessment of Motor Imitation as a Scalable Method for Distinguishing Children With Autism}}. {Biol Psychiatry Cogn Neurosci Neuroimaging}. 2020.
BACKGROUND: Imitation deficits are prevalent in autism spectrum conditions (ASCs) and are associated with core autistic traits. Imitating others’ actions is central to the development of social skills in typically developing populations, as it facilitates social learning and bond formation. We present a Computerized Assessment of Motor Imitation (CAMI) using a brief (1-min), highly engaging video game task. METHODS: Using Kinect Xbox motion tracking technology, we recorded 48 children (27 with ASCs, 21 typically developing) as they imitated a model’s dance movements. We implemented an algorithm based on metric learning and dynamic time warping that automatically detects and evaluates the important joints and returns a score considering spatial position and timing differences between the child and the model. To establish construct validity and reliability, we compared imitation performance measured by the CAMI method to the more traditional human observation coding (HOC) method across repeated trials and two different movement sequences. RESULTS: Results revealed poorer imitation in children with ASCs than in typically developing children (ps < .005), with poorer imitation being associated with increased core autism symptoms. While strong correlations between the CAMI and HOC methods (rs = .69-.87) confirmed the CAMI's construct validity, CAMI scores classified the children into diagnostic groups better than the HOC scores (accuracy(CAMI) = 87.2%, accuracy(HOC) = 74.4%). Finally, by comparing repeated movement trials, we demonstrated high test-retest reliability of CAMI (rs = .73-.86). CONCLUSIONS: Findings support the CAMI as an objective, highly scalable, directly interpretable method for assessing motor imitation differences, providing a promising biomarker for defining biologically meaningful ASC subtypes and guiding intervention. Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
18. Vettori S, Van der Donck S, Nys J, Moors P, Van Wesemael T, Steyaert J, Rossion B, Dzhelyova M, Boets B. {{Combined frequency-tagging EEG and eye-tracking measures provide no support for the « excess mouth/diminished eye attention » hypothesis in autism}}. {Mol Autism}. 2020; 11(1): 94.
BACKGROUND: Scanning faces is important for social interactions. Difficulty with the social use of eye contact constitutes one of the clinical symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). It has been suggested that individuals with ASD look less at the eyes and more at the mouth than typically developing (TD) individuals, possibly due to gaze aversion or gaze indifference. However, eye-tracking evidence for this hypothesis is mixed. While gaze patterns convey information about overt orienting processes, it is unclear how this is manifested at the neural level and how relative covert attention to the eyes and mouth of faces might be affected in ASD. METHODS: We used frequency-tagging EEG in combination with eye tracking, while participants watched fast flickering faces for 1-min stimulation sequences. The upper and lower halves of the faces were presented at 6 Hz and 7.5 Hz or vice versa in different stimulation sequences, allowing to objectively disentangle the neural saliency of the eyes versus mouth region of a perceived face. We tested 21 boys with ASD (8-12 years old) and 21 TD control boys, matched for age and IQ. RESULTS: Both groups looked longer at the eyes than the mouth, without any group difference in relative fixation duration to these features. TD boys looked significantly more to the nose, while the ASD boys looked more outside the face. EEG neural saliency data partly followed this pattern: neural responses to the upper or lower face half were not different between groups, but in the TD group, neural responses to the lower face halves were larger than responses to the upper part. Face exploration dynamics showed that TD individuals mostly maintained fixations within the same facial region, whereas individuals with ASD switched more often between the face parts. LIMITATIONS: Replication in large and independent samples may be needed to validate exploratory results. CONCLUSIONS: Combined eye-tracking and frequency-tagged neural responses show no support for the excess mouth/diminished eye gaze hypothesis in ASD. The more exploratory face scanning style observed in ASD might be related to their increased feature-based face processing style.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
19. Williams ZJ, Abdelmessih PG, Key AP, Woynaroski TG. {{Cortical Auditory Processing of Simple Stimuli Is Altered in Autism: A Meta-analysis of Auditory Evoked Responses}}. {Biol Psychiatry Cogn Neurosci Neuroimaging}. 2020.
BACKGROUND: Auditory perceptual abnormalities are common in persons on the autism spectrum. The neurophysiologic underpinnings of these differences have frequently been studied using auditory event-related potentials (ERPs) and event-related magnetic fields (ERFs). However, no study to date has quantitatively synthesized this literature to determine whether early auditory ERP/ERF latencies or amplitudes in autistic persons differ from those of typically developing control subjects. METHODS: We searched PubMed and ProQuest for studies comparing 1) latencies/amplitudes of P1/M50, N1b, N1c, M100, P2/M200, and/or N2 ERP/ERF components evoked by pure tones and 2) paired-click sensory gating (P1/N1b amplitude suppression) in autistic individuals and typically developing control subjects. Effects were synthesized using Bayesian 3-level meta-analysis. RESULTS: In response to pure tones, autistic individuals exhibited prolonged P1/M50 latencies (g = 0.341 [95% credible interval = 0.166, 0.546]), prolonged M100 latencies (g = 0.319 [0.093, 0.550]), reduced N1c amplitudes (g = -0.812 [-1.278, -0.187]), and reduced N2 amplitudes (g = -0.374 [-0.633, -0.179]). There were no practically significant group differences in P2/M200 latencies, N2 latencies, P1/M50 amplitudes, N1b amplitudes, M100 amplitudes, or P2/M200 amplitudes. Paired-click sensory gating was also reduced in autistic individuals (g = -0.389 [-0.619, -0.112]), although this effect was primarily driven by smaller responses to the first click stimulus. CONCLUSIONS: Relative to typically developing control subjects, autistic individuals demonstrate multiple alterations in early cortical auditory processing of simple stimuli. However, most group differences were modest in size and based on small numbers of heterogeneous studies with variable quality. Future work is necessary to understand whether these neurophysiologic measures can predict clinically meaningful outcomes or serve as stratification biomarkers for the autistic population.
Lien vers le texte intégral (Open Access ou abonnement)
20. Yoshimura S, Kobayashi K, Ueno T, Miyagi T, Oishi N, Murai T, Fujiwara H. {{Autistic traits are associated with the functional connectivity of between-but not within-attention systems in the general population}}. {BMC neuroscience}. 2020; 21(1): 49.
BACKGROUND: Previous studies have demonstrated that individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) exhibit dysfunction in the three attention systems (i.e., alerting, orienting, and executive control) as well as atypical relationships among these systems. Additionally, other studies have reported that individuals with subclinical but high levels of autistic traits show similar attentional tendencies to those observed in ASD. Based on these findings, it was hypothesized that autistic traits would affect the functions and relationships of the three attention systems in a general population. Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was performed in 119 healthy adults to investigate relationships between autistic traits and within- and between-system functional connectivity (FC) among the three attention systems. Twenty-six regions of interest that were defined as components of the three attention systems by a previous task-based fMRI study were examined in terms of within- and between-system FC. We assessed autistic traits using the Autism-Spectrum Quotient. RESULTS: Correlational analyses revealed that autistic traits were significantly correlated with between-system FC, but not with within-system FC. CONCLUSIONS: Our results imply that a high autistic trait level, even when subclinical, is associated with the way the three attention systems interact.
