Amber M Davis, Nicole A Telfer, Jonet Artis, Oluwatobi Abubakare, Yolanda D Keller-Bell, Carmen Caruthers, Desiree R Jones, Nigel P Pierce
Gaps in research knowledge pertaining to resiliency factors and strengths among the Black autism community, inclusive of autistic persons and their support system exist. A scoping review was conducted to further explore quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods studies that investigate resiliency factors and related strengths in the Black autism community in the United States. A total of 436 articles were identified, with 28 studies included in the final review. Results demonstrated that (1) strengths of Black autistic persons across the life course have been disregarded in research; (2) Black caregiver advocacy, while common, is also a developmental process that can be supported by community-based interventions; (3) informal supports including family and friends play an instrumental role in supporting the well-under investigated being of Black parents of autistic children; and (4) spirituality is often endorsed by Black caregivers of autistic children, such as playing a role in acceptance of the autism diagnosis and with coping with difficult life situations. Research and practice implications are discussed.
{"title":"Resilience and strengths in the Black autism community in the United States: A scoping review.","authors":"Amber M Davis, Nicole A Telfer, Jonet Artis, Oluwatobi Abubakare, Yolanda D Keller-Bell, Carmen Caruthers, Desiree R Jones, Nigel P Pierce","doi":"10.1002/aur.3243","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.3243","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Gaps in research knowledge pertaining to resiliency factors and strengths among the Black autism community, inclusive of autistic persons and their support system exist. A scoping review was conducted to further explore quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods studies that investigate resiliency factors and related strengths in the Black autism community in the United States. A total of 436 articles were identified, with 28 studies included in the final review. Results demonstrated that (1) strengths of Black autistic persons across the life course have been disregarded in research; (2) Black caregiver advocacy, while common, is also a developmental process that can be supported by community-based interventions; (3) informal supports including family and friends play an instrumental role in supporting the well-under investigated being of Black parents of autistic children; and (4) spirituality is often endorsed by Black caregivers of autistic children, such as playing a role in acceptance of the autism diagnosis and with coping with difficult life situations. Research and practice implications are discussed.</p>","PeriodicalId":72339,"journal":{"name":"Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-10-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142395681","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Isabel H Bleimeister, Inbar Avni, Michael C Granovetter, Gal Meiri, Michal Ilan, Analya Michaelovski, Idan Menashe, Marlene Behrmann, Ilan Dinstein
Recent neuroimaging and eye-tracking studies have suggested that children with autism exhibit more variable and idiosyncratic brain responses and eye movements than typically developing (TD) children. Here, we extended this research to pupillometry recordings. We successfully acquired pupillometry recordings from 111 children (74 with autism), 4.5-years-old on average, who viewed three 90 s movies, twice. We extracted their pupillary time-course for each movie, capturing their stimulus evoked pupillary responses. We then computed the correlation between the time-course of each child and those of all others in their group as well as between each autistic child and all children in the TD group. This yielded an average inter-subject correlation value per child, representing how similar their pupillary responses were to all others in their group or the comparison group. Children with autism exhibited significantly weaker inter-subject correlations than TD children in all comparisons. These differences were independent of previously reported differences in gaze inter-subject correlations and were largest in responses to a naturalistic movie containing footage of a social interaction between two TD children. The results demonstrate the utility of measuring the idiosyncrasy of pupil regulation, which can be performed with passive viewing of movies even by young children with co-occurring intellectual disability. These findings reveal that a considerable number of children with autism have significantly less stable, idiosyncratic pupil regulation than TD children, indicative of more variable, weakly regulated, underlying neural activity.
{"title":"Idiosyncratic pupil regulation in autistic children.","authors":"Isabel H Bleimeister, Inbar Avni, Michael C Granovetter, Gal Meiri, Michal Ilan, Analya Michaelovski, Idan Menashe, Marlene Behrmann, Ilan Dinstein","doi":"10.1002/aur.3234","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.3234","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Recent neuroimaging and eye-tracking studies have suggested that children with autism exhibit more variable and idiosyncratic brain responses and eye movements than typically developing (TD) children. Here, we extended this research to pupillometry recordings. We successfully acquired pupillometry recordings from 111 children (74 with autism), 4.5-years-old on average, who viewed three 90 s movies, twice. We extracted their pupillary time-course for each movie, capturing their stimulus evoked pupillary responses. We then computed the correlation between the time-course of each child and those of all others in their group as well as between each autistic child and all children in the TD group. This yielded an average inter-subject correlation value per child, representing how similar their pupillary responses were to all others in their group or the comparison group. Children with autism exhibited significantly weaker inter-subject correlations than TD children in all comparisons. These differences were independent of previously reported differences in gaze inter-subject correlations and were largest in responses to a naturalistic movie containing footage of a social interaction between two TD children. The results demonstrate the utility of measuring the idiosyncrasy of pupil regulation, which can be performed with passive viewing of movies even by young children with co-occurring intellectual disability. These findings reveal that a considerable number of children with autism have significantly less stable, idiosyncratic pupil regulation than TD children, indicative of more variable, weakly regulated, underlying neural activity.</p>","PeriodicalId":72339,"journal":{"name":"Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-10-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142395680","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cynthia Anderson, Samantha Hochheimer, Zachary Warren, Eric Butter, Susan L Hyman, Hongyue Wang, Lisa Wallace, Lynne Levato, Ryan Martin, Kevin G Stephenson, Megan Norris, Wynn Jacqueline, Tristram Smith, Cynthia R Johnson
This 24-week single-blind trial tested a modular approach for young autistic children (MAYAC) that was delivered for fewer hours per week and modified based on child progress and parental input compared to comprehensive behavioral intervention treatment as usual (CBI, TAU). Participants were autistic children, ages 18-60 months of age. MAYAC was initially 5 h of intervention per week, one of which was parent training and the other four direct therapy focusing on social communication and engagement, but additional modules could be added for up to 10 h per week. Comprehensive behavior intervention was delivered for ≥15 h per week. Outcome measures included the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales; VABS, the Ohio Autism Clinical Improvement Scale - Autism Severity; OACIS - AS and the Pervasive Developmental Disorder Behavior Inventory - Parent; PDDBI-P. Implementation and parent satisfaction measures were also collected. Fifty-six children, mean age of 34 months, were randomized. Within-group analysis revealed significant improvements from baseline to week 24 for both MAYAC (p < 0.0001) and CBI, TAU (p < 0.0001) on the VABS. The noninferiority test was performed to test between group differences and MAYAC was not inferior to CBI, TAU on the VABS (p = 0.0144). On the OACIS - AS, 48.0% of MAYAC and 45.5% of CBI were treatment responders there were no significant changes on the PDDBI-P, for either group. Treatment fidelity was high for both groups (>95%) as was parent satisfaction. Findings from this small trial are promising and suggest MAYAC may be an alternative for some young autistic children and their families to CBI, TAU.
{"title":"Comparative effectiveness trial: Modular behavior approach for young autistic children compared to comprehensive behavioral intervention.","authors":"Cynthia Anderson, Samantha Hochheimer, Zachary Warren, Eric Butter, Susan L Hyman, Hongyue Wang, Lisa Wallace, Lynne Levato, Ryan Martin, Kevin G Stephenson, Megan Norris, Wynn Jacqueline, Tristram Smith, Cynthia R Johnson","doi":"10.1002/aur.3240","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.3240","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This 24-week single-blind trial tested a modular approach for young autistic children (MAYAC) that was delivered for fewer hours per week and modified based on child progress and parental input compared to comprehensive behavioral intervention treatment as usual (CBI, TAU). Participants were autistic children, ages 18-60 months of age. MAYAC was initially 5 h of intervention per week, one of which was parent training and the other four direct therapy focusing on social communication and engagement, but additional modules could be added for up to 10 h per week. Comprehensive behavior intervention was delivered for ≥15 h per week. Outcome measures included the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales; VABS, the Ohio Autism Clinical Improvement Scale - Autism Severity; OACIS - AS and the Pervasive Developmental Disorder Behavior Inventory - Parent; PDDBI-P. Implementation and parent satisfaction measures were also collected. Fifty-six children, mean age of 34 months, were randomized. Within-group analysis revealed significant improvements from baseline to week 24 for both MAYAC (p < 0.0001) and CBI, TAU (p < 0.0001) on the VABS. The noninferiority test was performed to test between group differences and MAYAC was not inferior to CBI, TAU on the VABS (p = 0.0144). On the OACIS - AS, 48.0% of MAYAC and 45.5% of CBI were treatment responders there were no significant changes on the PDDBI-P, for either group. Treatment fidelity was high for both groups (>95%) as was parent satisfaction. Findings from this small trial are promising and suggest MAYAC may be an alternative for some young autistic children and their families to CBI, TAU.</p>","PeriodicalId":72339,"journal":{"name":"Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-10-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142395679","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Kathryn B Altman, Samantha N Plate, Emily Roemer Britsch, Jana M Iverson
Toddlers with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may exhibit less pretend play than their neurotypical counterparts. Previous research suggests that caregivers' input during play influences children's play behavior, and children's behavior may in turn prompt caregivers of differently developing children to talk about play in different ways. Caregiver input about pretend play during toy play at home was examined at 18- and 36-months in toddlers with an older sibling with ASD, who are at elevated likelihood (EL) for ASD (n = 40), and toddlers with typical likelihood (TL) for ASD (n = 12). EL toddlers were classified into three outcome groups: EL-ASD (n = 10), EL-no diagnosis (EL-ND; n = 14), or EL-language delays (EL-LD, n = 16). Caregiver utterances were categorized according to the types of pretend and non-pretend play suggested (e.g., pretending with inanimate objects vs. using objects for their intended function). Pretend utterances were further categorized as related or unrelated to the child's own actions. All caregivers produced proportionately more utterances about complex types of pretend play over time. At 36 months, caregivers of autistic toddlers produced proportionately fewer pretend play utterances, and proportionately fewer pretend play utterances were related to EL-ASD toddlers' actions compared to their neurotypical peers. These findings highlight bidirectional effects between caregivers and toddlers during play. While EL-ASD toddlers may provide less frequent opportunities for caregivers to talk about complex types of pretend play, the current study highlights caregivers' high levels of attunement to their toddlers' play skills.
{"title":"Cultivating the imagination: Caregiver input during pretend play with toddlers at elevated likelihood for autism.","authors":"Kathryn B Altman, Samantha N Plate, Emily Roemer Britsch, Jana M Iverson","doi":"10.1002/aur.3244","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.3244","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Toddlers with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may exhibit less pretend play than their neurotypical counterparts. Previous research suggests that caregivers' input during play influences children's play behavior, and children's behavior may in turn prompt caregivers of differently developing children to talk about play in different ways. Caregiver input about pretend play during toy play at home was examined at 18- and 36-months in toddlers with an older sibling with ASD, who are at elevated likelihood (EL) for ASD (n = 40), and toddlers with typical likelihood (TL) for ASD (n = 12). EL toddlers were classified into three outcome groups: EL-ASD (n = 10), EL-no diagnosis (EL-ND; n = 14), or EL-language delays (EL-LD, n = 16). Caregiver utterances were categorized according to the types of pretend and non-pretend play suggested (e.g., pretending with inanimate objects vs. using objects for their intended function). Pretend utterances were further categorized as related or unrelated to the child's own actions. All caregivers produced proportionately more utterances about complex types of pretend play over time. At 36 months, caregivers of autistic toddlers produced proportionately fewer pretend play utterances, and proportionately fewer pretend play utterances were related to EL-ASD toddlers' actions compared to their neurotypical peers. These findings highlight bidirectional effects between caregivers and toddlers during play. While EL-ASD toddlers may provide less frequent opportunities for caregivers to talk about complex types of pretend play, the current study highlights caregivers' high levels of attunement to their toddlers' play skills.</p>","PeriodicalId":72339,"journal":{"name":"Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-10-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142376327","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Agnes S Chan, Pui-Ying Leung, Tiffany Wing-Yin Pang, Sophia L Sze
Given the close connection between eye movement and frontal lobe functions and some evidence supporting the effect of eye-tracking training on enhancing cognitive performance mediated by the frontal lobe, this study aimed to explore if after-school eye-tracking training can improve the visuospatial working memory (VSWM) and cognitive flexibility performance in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This study is a non-randomized cluster trial. Forty children from eight primary schools were selected, half receiving eye-tracking training for 20 sessions over 9 months, while the other half served as a waitlist control. They were matched on demographic characteristics and baseline cognitive performance. Their VSWM and cognitive flexibility were assessed at the beginning and end of the study. Results showed that children who received eye-tracking training, but not those on a waitlist, exhibited significant improvements in the total score and working memory span of the VSWM tests, and the correct responses in cognitive flexibility tests. Specifically, VSWM performance at higher span levels (5 or above) yielded a greater improvement. The findings suggest that eye-tracking training can be a feasible and effective after-school program for improving working memory and cognitive flexibility performance in children with ADHD and ASD. This study was prospectively registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (https://clinicaltrials.gov/, trial number: NCT05428657).
{"title":"Eye-tracking training improves visuospatial working memory of children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and autism spectrum disorder.","authors":"Agnes S Chan, Pui-Ying Leung, Tiffany Wing-Yin Pang, Sophia L Sze","doi":"10.1002/aur.3238","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.3238","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Given the close connection between eye movement and frontal lobe functions and some evidence supporting the effect of eye-tracking training on enhancing cognitive performance mediated by the frontal lobe, this study aimed to explore if after-school eye-tracking training can improve the visuospatial working memory (VSWM) and cognitive flexibility performance in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This study is a non-randomized cluster trial. Forty children from eight primary schools were selected, half receiving eye-tracking training for 20 sessions over 9 months, while the other half served as a waitlist control. They were matched on demographic characteristics and baseline cognitive performance. Their VSWM and cognitive flexibility were assessed at the beginning and end of the study. Results showed that children who received eye-tracking training, but not those on a waitlist, exhibited significant improvements in the total score and working memory span of the VSWM tests, and the correct responses in cognitive flexibility tests. Specifically, VSWM performance at higher span levels (5 or above) yielded a greater improvement. The findings suggest that eye-tracking training can be a feasible and effective after-school program for improving working memory and cognitive flexibility performance in children with ADHD and ASD. This study was prospectively registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (https://clinicaltrials.gov/, trial number: NCT05428657).</p>","PeriodicalId":72339,"journal":{"name":"Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-10-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142373669","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a lifelong neurodevelopmental condition and understanding the changes in autism symptoms over time is crucial for tailoring support and interventions. This study therefore aimed to investigate the changes in symptom severity in a large cohort of children with ASD over a three-year follow-up period and identify factors that influence these changes. The study included 575 children diagnosed with ASD, ranging in age from 2 to 12 years, who were assessed at baseline and again 3 years later using the Autism Diagnostic Observational Schedule-2 (ADOS-2). ASD severity changes were investigated using the ADOS calibrated severity score (CSS) scores for total, social affect (SA) and restricted and repetitive behaviors (RRB). Results highlight four distinct patterns: stable high, stable low, increased, and decreased severity. The ADOS CSS total score changed for half of the sample, reflecting an increase in ASD severity for 21.9% and a decrease for 29.1% of children. For the other half, the ADOS CSS score remained stable, either high (34.4%) or low (14.6%). While the majority of previous studies reported stability in ASD severity, our findings revealed significant variability with frequent improvements in SA symptoms whereas RRBs remained stable or worsened. Our findings also showed that an improvement in SA was associated with the youngest group and early diagnosis. However, no clinical or sociodemographic factors were linked to changes in RRB, emphasizing the necessity for RRB-specific therapies. The third six-year follow-up point of the ongoing ELENA cohort study will map the long-term trajectories of the severity of ASD symptoms and their potential risk factors.
{"title":"Longitudinal change in symptom severity in children with ASD: Results from the ELENA cohort.","authors":"Florine Dellapiazza, Cécile Rattaz, Cécile Michelon, Hugo Peyre, Marie-Christine Picot, Amaria Baghdadli","doi":"10.1002/aur.3242","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.3242","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a lifelong neurodevelopmental condition and understanding the changes in autism symptoms over time is crucial for tailoring support and interventions. This study therefore aimed to investigate the changes in symptom severity in a large cohort of children with ASD over a three-year follow-up period and identify factors that influence these changes. The study included 575 children diagnosed with ASD, ranging in age from 2 to 12 years, who were assessed at baseline and again 3 years later using the Autism Diagnostic Observational Schedule-2 (ADOS-2). ASD severity changes were investigated using the ADOS calibrated severity score (CSS) scores for total, social affect (SA) and restricted and repetitive behaviors (RRB). Results highlight four distinct patterns: stable high, stable low, increased, and decreased severity. The ADOS CSS total score changed for half of the sample, reflecting an increase in ASD severity for 21.9% and a decrease for 29.1% of children. For the other half, the ADOS CSS score remained stable, either high (34.4%) or low (14.6%). While the majority of previous studies reported stability in ASD severity, our findings revealed significant variability with frequent improvements in SA symptoms whereas RRBs remained stable or worsened. Our findings also showed that an improvement in SA was associated with the youngest group and early diagnosis. However, no clinical or sociodemographic factors were linked to changes in RRB, emphasizing the necessity for RRB-specific therapies. The third six-year follow-up point of the ongoing ELENA cohort study will map the long-term trajectories of the severity of ASD symptoms and their potential risk factors.</p>","PeriodicalId":72339,"journal":{"name":"Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-10-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142376328","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Marissa Hartston, Tal Lulav-Bash, Yael Goldstein-Marcusohn, Galia Avidan, Bat-Sheva Hadad
Atypical perception has been widely reported in autism spectrum disorders, and deficits in face recognition, specifically, are argued to be closely associated with social impairment experienced by these individuals. However, it is still debated (a) whether deficits are perceptually based, and (b) what the role is of experience-based refinements of perceptual face representations in autism. We investigated the effect of short- and long-term experienced stimulus history on face processing. Autistic and non-autistic individuals performed same-different judgments in a serial discrimination task where two consecutive faces were drawn from a distribution of morphed faces. Use of stimulus statistics was measured by testing the gravitation of face representations towards, the mean of a range of morphed faces around which they were sampled (regression-to-the-mean). The results show that unlike non-autistic individuals, representations of own- and other-race faces were equally biased by stimulus statistics in autistic individuals. Moreover, autistic individuals used the most recently exposed faces without forming a strong internal representation based on the overall experienced faces, indicating a weaker internal model of the "typical" averaged face. This accumulated history of faces may underlie typical face specialization, and thus may account for the reduced specialization for own-race faces shown in autism. The results shed light on the way autistic people process and recognize faces, and on the basic mechanisms underlying atypical face perception.
{"title":"Fast updating of stimulus history reveals weak internal representations of faces in autism.","authors":"Marissa Hartston, Tal Lulav-Bash, Yael Goldstein-Marcusohn, Galia Avidan, Bat-Sheva Hadad","doi":"10.1002/aur.3236","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.3236","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Atypical perception has been widely reported in autism spectrum disorders, and deficits in face recognition, specifically, are argued to be closely associated with social impairment experienced by these individuals. However, it is still debated (a) whether deficits are perceptually based, and (b) what the role is of experience-based refinements of perceptual face representations in autism. We investigated the effect of short- and long-term experienced stimulus history on face processing. Autistic and non-autistic individuals performed same-different judgments in a serial discrimination task where two consecutive faces were drawn from a distribution of morphed faces. Use of stimulus statistics was measured by testing the gravitation of face representations towards, the mean of a range of morphed faces around which they were sampled (regression-to-the-mean). The results show that unlike non-autistic individuals, representations of own- and other-race faces were equally biased by stimulus statistics in autistic individuals. Moreover, autistic individuals used the most recently exposed faces without forming a strong internal representation based on the overall experienced faces, indicating a weaker internal model of the \"typical\" averaged face. This accumulated history of faces may underlie typical face specialization, and thus may account for the reduced specialization for own-race faces shown in autism. The results shed light on the way autistic people process and recognize faces, and on the basic mechanisms underlying atypical face perception.</p>","PeriodicalId":72339,"journal":{"name":"Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142333634","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Since children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often exhibit selective eating behaviors, it is generally believed that they may have abnormal nutrient structure, leading to aberrant concentrations of some serum vitamins. However, previous studies on serum vitamins in individuals with ASD are mixed. Additionally, the interaction and association between multiple serum vitamin and ASD-related symptoms remain unclear. This study utilized a cross-sectional survey with a large sample size (n = 1235) from China to clarify previous mixed findings, and examine the interaction and association between multiple serum vitamins (including folic acid [FA], vitamin A [VA], vitamin E [VE], vitamin B12 [VB12], and vitamin D [VD]) and social adaptability and symptom severity in children with ASD. Findings found that symptom severity was negatively associated with concentrations of serum VA, VE, VB12, and VD; while, social adaptability was significantly associated with the natural log-transformed concentrations of FA and VB12. Finding also revealed the interaction of VA and VE on the association between both vitamins and severity of ASD symptoms, as well as the interaction of VB12 and FA on the association between both vitamins and social adaptability. In particular, the combination of low concentration of VA and high concentration of VE is associated with the lowest risk of being "severely autistic"; while, the combination of low concentration of FA and high concentration of VB12 is associated with the lowest risk of being "poor social adaptability". This study offers the evidence for the requirement of considering multiple vitamins comprehensively, as well as valuable references for revealing the association between vitamin disparities and food selectivity in children with ASD.
由于患有自闭症谱系障碍(ASD)的儿童经常表现出选择性进食行为,人们普遍认为他们可能营养结构异常,从而导致某些血清维生素浓度异常。然而,以往关于 ASD 患者血清维生素的研究结果不一。此外,多种血清维生素与 ASD 相关症状之间的相互作用和关联仍不清楚。本研究采用了一项来自中国的大样本量横断面调查(n = 1235),以澄清之前的混合研究结果,并研究多种血清维生素(包括叶酸[FA]、维生素A[VA]、维生素E[VE]、维生素B12[VB12]和维生素D[VD])与ASD儿童的社会适应能力和症状严重程度之间的相互作用和关联。研究结果发现,症状严重程度与血清中维生素E、维生素E、维生素B12和维生素D的浓度呈负相关;而社会适应能力与经自然对数转换的维生素E和维生素B12的浓度呈显著相关。研究结果还显示,VA和VE对两种维生素与ASD症状严重程度之间的关系具有交互作用,VB12和FA对两种维生素与社会适应能力之间的关系也具有交互作用。其中,低浓度 VA 和高浓度 VE 的组合与 "严重自闭症 "的最低风险相关;而低浓度 FA 和高浓度 VB12 的组合与 "社会适应能力差 "的最低风险相关。这项研究为全面考虑多种维生素的要求提供了证据,也为揭示 ASD 儿童维生素差异与食物选择性之间的关联提供了有价值的参考。
{"title":"Interaction and association between multiple vitamins and social adaptability and severity of autism: A large-scale retrospective study from China.","authors":"Qi Liu, Dongchuan Yu","doi":"10.1002/aur.3241","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.3241","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Since children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often exhibit selective eating behaviors, it is generally believed that they may have abnormal nutrient structure, leading to aberrant concentrations of some serum vitamins. However, previous studies on serum vitamins in individuals with ASD are mixed. Additionally, the interaction and association between multiple serum vitamin and ASD-related symptoms remain unclear. This study utilized a cross-sectional survey with a large sample size (n = 1235) from China to clarify previous mixed findings, and examine the interaction and association between multiple serum vitamins (including folic acid [FA], vitamin A [VA], vitamin E [VE], vitamin B12 [VB12], and vitamin D [VD]) and social adaptability and symptom severity in children with ASD. Findings found that symptom severity was negatively associated with concentrations of serum VA, VE, VB12, and VD; while, social adaptability was significantly associated with the natural log-transformed concentrations of FA and VB12. Finding also revealed the interaction of VA and VE on the association between both vitamins and severity of ASD symptoms, as well as the interaction of VB12 and FA on the association between both vitamins and social adaptability. In particular, the combination of low concentration of VA and high concentration of VE is associated with the lowest risk of being \"severely autistic\"; while, the combination of low concentration of FA and high concentration of VB12 is associated with the lowest risk of being \"poor social adaptability\". This study offers the evidence for the requirement of considering multiple vitamins comprehensively, as well as valuable references for revealing the association between vitamin disparities and food selectivity in children with ASD.</p>","PeriodicalId":72339,"journal":{"name":"Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142333635","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Zachary P Christensen, Edward G Freedman, John J Foxe
Postmortem investigations in autism have identified anomalies in neural cytoarchitecture across limbic, cerebellar, and neocortical networks. These anomalies include narrow cell mini-columns and variable neuron density. However, difficulty obtaining sufficient post-mortem samples has often prevented investigations from converging on reproducible measures. Recent advances in processing magnetic resonance diffusion weighted images (DWI) make in vivo characterization of neuronal cytoarchitecture a potential alternative to post-mortem studies. Using extensive DWI data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Developmentsm (ABCD®) study 142 individuals with an autism diagnosis were compared with 8971 controls using a restriction spectrum imaging (RSI) framework that characterized total neurite density (TND), its component restricted normalized directional diffusion (RND), and restricted normalized isotropic diffusion (RNI). A significant decrease in TND was observed in autism in the right cerebellar cortex (β = -0.005, SE =0.0015, p = 0.0267), with significant decreases in RNI and significant increases in RND found diffusely throughout posterior and anterior aspects of the brain, respectively. Furthermore, these regions remained significant in post-hoc analysis when the autism sample was compared against a subset of 1404 individuals with other psychiatric conditions (pulled from the original 8971). These findings highlight the importance of characterizing neuron cytoarchitecture in autism and the significance of their incorporation as physiological covariates in future studies.
{"title":"Autism is associated with in vivo changes in gray matter neurite architecture.","authors":"Zachary P Christensen, Edward G Freedman, John J Foxe","doi":"10.1002/aur.3239","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.3239","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Postmortem investigations in autism have identified anomalies in neural cytoarchitecture across limbic, cerebellar, and neocortical networks. These anomalies include narrow cell mini-columns and variable neuron density. However, difficulty obtaining sufficient post-mortem samples has often prevented investigations from converging on reproducible measures. Recent advances in processing magnetic resonance diffusion weighted images (DWI) make in vivo characterization of neuronal cytoarchitecture a potential alternative to post-mortem studies. Using extensive DWI data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development<sup>sm</sup> (ABCD®) study 142 individuals with an autism diagnosis were compared with 8971 controls using a restriction spectrum imaging (RSI) framework that characterized total neurite density (TND), its component restricted normalized directional diffusion (RND), and restricted normalized isotropic diffusion (RNI). A significant decrease in TND was observed in autism in the right cerebellar cortex (β = -0.005, SE =0.0015, p = 0.0267), with significant decreases in RNI and significant increases in RND found diffusely throughout posterior and anterior aspects of the brain, respectively. Furthermore, these regions remained significant in post-hoc analysis when the autism sample was compared against a subset of 1404 individuals with other psychiatric conditions (pulled from the original 8971). These findings highlight the importance of characterizing neuron cytoarchitecture in autism and the significance of their incorporation as physiological covariates in future studies.</p>","PeriodicalId":72339,"journal":{"name":"Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142333633","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Samia M Ltaief, Wared Nour-Eldine, Nimshitha Pavathuparambil Abdul Manaph, Ti-Myen Tan, Nur Diana Anuar, Ilham Bensmail, Jilbin George, Houari B Abdesselem, Abeer R Al-Shammari
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by impaired social interaction and communication, as well as the occurrence of stereotyped and repetitive behaviors. Previous studies have provided solid evidence of dysregulated immune system in ASD; however, limited studies have investigated autoantibody profiles in individuals with ASD. This study aims to screen plasma autoantibodies in a well-defined cohort of young children with ASD (n = 100) and their matched controls (n = 60) utilizing a high-throughput KoRectly Expressed (KREX) i-Ome protein-array technology. We identified differential protein expression of 16 autoantibodies in ASD, which were correlated with differential gene expression of these markers in independent ASD cohorts. Meanwhile, we identified a distinct list of 33 autoantibodies associated with ASD severity; several of which were correlated with maternal age and birth weight in ASD. In addition, we found dysregulated numbers of circulating B cells and activated HLADR+ B cells in ASD, which were correlated with altered levels of several autoantibodies. Further in-depth analysis of B cell subpopulations revealed an increased frequency of activated naïve B cells in ASD, as well as an association of resting naïve B cells and transitional B cells with ASD severity. Pathway enrichment analysis revealed disrupted MAPK signaling in ASD, suggesting a potential relevance of this pathway to altered autoantibodies and B cell dysfunction in ASD. Finally, we found that a combination of eight autoantibodies associated with ASD severity showed an area under the curve (ROC-AUC) of 0.937 (95% CI = 0.890, 0.983; p < 0.001), which demonstrated the diagnostic accuracy of the eight-marker signature in the severity classification of ASD cases. Overall, this study determined dysregulated autoantibody profiles and B cell dysfunction in children with ASD and identified an eight-autoantibody panel for ASD severity classification.
自闭症谱系障碍(ASD)是一种神经发育障碍,其特点是社会交往和沟通能力受损,以及出现刻板和重复行为。以往的研究已提供了 ASD 免疫系统失调的确凿证据;然而,对 ASD 患者自身抗体谱的研究却很有限。本研究旨在利用高通量的KoRectly Expressed(KREX)i-Ome蛋白芯片技术,筛查一组明确定义的ASD幼儿(100人)及其匹配对照组(60人)的血浆自身抗体。我们发现了16种自身抗体在ASD中的差异蛋白表达,这些差异蛋白表达与独立ASD队列中这些标记物的差异基因表达相关。同时,我们还发现了33种与ASD严重程度相关的自身抗体,其中有几种与ASD患者的母体年龄和出生体重相关。此外,我们还发现 ASD 中循环 B 细胞和活化的 HLADR+ B 细胞数量失调,这与几种自身抗体水平的改变有关。对B细胞亚群的进一步深入分析显示,ASD患者中活化的幼稚B细胞频率增加,静息的幼稚B细胞和过渡性B细胞也与ASD的严重程度有关。通路富集分析显示,MAPK 信号在 ASD 中被破坏,这表明该通路可能与 ASD 中自身抗体的改变和 B 细胞功能障碍有关。最后,我们发现,与ASD严重程度相关的八种自身抗体的组合显示曲线下面积(ROC-AUC)为0.937(95% CI = 0.890, 0.983; p
{"title":"Dysregulated plasma autoantibodies are associated with B cell dysfunction in young Arab children with autism spectrum disorder in Qatar.","authors":"Samia M Ltaief, Wared Nour-Eldine, Nimshitha Pavathuparambil Abdul Manaph, Ti-Myen Tan, Nur Diana Anuar, Ilham Bensmail, Jilbin George, Houari B Abdesselem, Abeer R Al-Shammari","doi":"10.1002/aur.3235","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.3235","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by impaired social interaction and communication, as well as the occurrence of stereotyped and repetitive behaviors. Previous studies have provided solid evidence of dysregulated immune system in ASD; however, limited studies have investigated autoantibody profiles in individuals with ASD. This study aims to screen plasma autoantibodies in a well-defined cohort of young children with ASD (n = 100) and their matched controls (n = 60) utilizing a high-throughput KoRectly Expressed (KREX) i-Ome protein-array technology. We identified differential protein expression of 16 autoantibodies in ASD, which were correlated with differential gene expression of these markers in independent ASD cohorts. Meanwhile, we identified a distinct list of 33 autoantibodies associated with ASD severity; several of which were correlated with maternal age and birth weight in ASD. In addition, we found dysregulated numbers of circulating B cells and activated HLADR+ B cells in ASD, which were correlated with altered levels of several autoantibodies. Further in-depth analysis of B cell subpopulations revealed an increased frequency of activated naïve B cells in ASD, as well as an association of resting naïve B cells and transitional B cells with ASD severity. Pathway enrichment analysis revealed disrupted MAPK signaling in ASD, suggesting a potential relevance of this pathway to altered autoantibodies and B cell dysfunction in ASD. Finally, we found that a combination of eight autoantibodies associated with ASD severity showed an area under the curve (ROC-AUC) of 0.937 (95% CI = 0.890, 0.983; p < 0.001), which demonstrated the diagnostic accuracy of the eight-marker signature in the severity classification of ASD cases. Overall, this study determined dysregulated autoantibody profiles and B cell dysfunction in children with ASD and identified an eight-autoantibody panel for ASD severity classification.</p>","PeriodicalId":72339,"journal":{"name":"Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142309234","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}