We compared the couple conflict of parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to a comparison group of parents of children without disabilities using self-reported and observational measures.
Slide of the Week
H. Hill Goldsmith, PhD – Slide of the Week
Using Discordant MZ Twins and Genome-wide Methylation Analyses to Identify Anxiety-relevant Genes – Three MZ (genetically identical) twin pairs were chosen to be clearly discordant for childhood cortisol levels and adolescent fMRI patterns in the amygdala that correlated with anxiety symptoms.
Anita Bhattacharyya, PhD – Slide of the Week
Generation of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells from Unaffected Neonatal Skin Cells – We have generated and characterized iPSC clones from three unaffected, neonatal individuals using non-integrating episomal reprogramming plasmids expressing OCT4, SOX2, LIN28, KLF4, and c-Myc.
David Gamm, MD, PhD
Cell type-specific investigations commonly employ gene reporters or single-cell (sc) analytical techniques. However, reporter line development is arduous and generally limited to a single gene of interest, while scRNA-seq frequently yields equivocal results that preclude definitive cell identification.
Peter Ferrazzano, MD
Immunostaining and microglia isolation via magnetic cell sorting was performed at postnatal day 2, 9, 30 and 60 (P2, P9, P30, P60). Microglia branching and soma size were quantified using semiautomated software analysis (Imaris, Oxford Insturments).
Randolph Ashton, PhD
Human pluripotent stem cell-derived neural organoids provide unprecedented potential to recapitulate human brain and spinal cord tissues in vitro. However, organoid morphogenesis relies upon cell-intrinsic self-assembly of biomimetic tissue structures in the absence of normal developmental constraints and morphogen signaling centers.
Maureen S. Durkin, PhD, DrPH – Slide of the Week
Objectives: To describe the association between indicators of SES and the prevalence of ASD in the United States during the period 2002 to 2010, when overall ASD prevalence among children more than doubled, and to determine whether SES disparities account for ongoing racial and ethnic disparities in ASD prevalence.
Susan Ellis Weismer, PhD
Weak central coherence (processing details over gist), poor oral language abilities, poor suppression, semantic interference, and poor comprehension monitoring have all been implicated to affect reading comprehension in individuals with ASD.
Leann Smith DaWalt, PhD
Currently there are few evidence-based programs available for families of individuals with ASD during the transition to adulthood. The present study provided a preliminary evaluation of a multi-family group psychoeducation intervention using a randomized waitlist control design (n = 41).
Richard Davidson, PhD
Empathy, the ability to understand others’ emotions, can occur through perspective taking and experience sharing. Neural systems active when adults empathize include regions underlying perspective taking (e.g. medial prefrontal cortex; MPFC), and experience sharing (e.g. inferior parietal lobule; IPL).