Selective attention deficits in persons with autism: preliminary evidence of an inefficient attentional lens

A forced-choice reaction time (RT) task was used to assess the filtering component of selective attention in mental-age (MA) matched groups of persons with autism (n = 12), organic mental retardation (n = 32), familial mental retardation (n = 30), and no handicap (n = 34). Conditions varied with regard to the presence or absence of a window and number (zero, two or four) and location of distractors. The RTs of the persons with autism improved relative to the other groups in the presence of the window without distractors, but this effect was negated when distractors were also presented. The performance of the persons with autism was the most impaired in the presence of distractors. These findings represent preliminary behavioral evidence of an inefficient attentional lens among persons with autism.     

CGG repeat interruptions in the FMR1 gene in patients with infantile autism

We determined the CGG repeat length and AGG interruptions in the FMR1 gene in normal Chinese subjects and patients with infantile autism and mild mental retardation. Genomic DNA was investigated by PCR and Southern hybridisation for CGG repeat number and PCR with Mnl I restriction analysis for AGG interruption. Both the normal subjects and the patients with autism have 53 CGG repeats in FMR1, and the majority have two interspersed AGG. Our normal Chinese subjects have a similar number of interspersed AGG as other populations. When compared with the normal subjects, the autism patients have less AGG interruptions and a different pattern of AGG distribution. There was a significant difference in the CGG configurations between normal subjects and patients with autism. The latter had less interspersed AGG, as in fragile X patients, but they did not have fragile X. A study on mentally retarded patients with no infantile autism should also be carried out to ascertain whether mental retardation alone may have contributed to such AGG pattern.     

Autism and known medical conditions: myth and substance

There is general agreement that autism has an organic basis but there is less agreement on the frequency with which it is associated with known medical conditions. The evidence in the literature on the latter point is reviewed and it is concluded that the rate of known medical conditions in autism is probably about 10%; however the rate appears to be higher in cases of autism associated with profound mental retardation and in cases of atypical autism.     

From categorization to classification: A comparison among individuals with autism, mental retardation, and normal development.

Free-sorting, matrix, and class-inclusion tasks were administered to 16 participants with autism, 16 participants with mental retardation (MR), and 16 normal children, matched for mental age. On perceptual matrices, participants with MR performed less well than those with autism, who performed less well than normal children. On functional matrices, participants with autism and those with MR performed less well than normal children. Participants with autism performed less well than participants with MR and normal children in free-sorting representational objects and in the class-inclusion tasks, which require higher operational thought. These results suggest that individuals with autism have difficulties with tasks that necessitate internal manipulation of information. This impairment is discussed in relation to the cognitive deficit characterizing autism. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Catamnesis of patients with Kanner's early infantile autism syndrome

By means of a follow-up study the author studied 28 patients who at the age of 3-6 years were diagnosed as suffering from early infantile autism. In 6 cases the mental state of patients was characterized by traits of dissociated oligophrenic-like defect with preserved autistic forms of contacts, residual disorders of the syndrome of Kanners early autism, simbiotical dependency from the parents. In 15 cases there was a personality distortion, with traits of autism, emotional poorness, motor insufficiency, indifferent negativistic forms of contacts, mental retardation of the pseudooligophrenic type. In 7 cases there was a formation of a psychopathic state of a schizoid type.     

Meta-analyses comparing theory of mind abilities of individuals with autism, individuals with mental retardation, and normally developing individuals

A deficit in theory of mind (ToM) abilities has been described as the core deficit in autism. The authors performed 3 meta-analyses, comparing ToM abilities of individuals with autism, individuals with mental retardation (MR), and normally developing individuals. Results indicated that individuals with autism and MR have impaired ToM abilities. The etiology associated with MR (i.e., Down syndrome, undifferentiated etiology) was found to be an important moderator variable. Chronological age (CA) and verbal mental age (VMA) of the normally developing children and CA, VMA, and performance mental age of individuals with MR, and type of matching between the groups were also found to be moderator variables. Discussion focuses on the implication of the findings and emphasizes the need to consider the specific etiology of comparison groups when studying abilities and impairments of individuals with autism and MR.     

Development of a model system to compare cell separation methods for the isolation of fetal cells from maternal blood

Genes for Prader Willi syndrome/Angelman syndrome are homologous to genes for fragile X syndrome. Genetic imprinting and expanded trinucleotide repeats cause mental retardation, autism and aggression.     

Ritanserin in autistic children

Ritanserine had a positive effect on children with Rett's syndrome and children with autistic syndrome and mental retardation. The most marked effect was observed in reduction of psychomotor instability, impaired concentration of attention and partly also in autism.     

The ability to manipulate behavior and to understand manipulation of beliefs: A comparison of individuals with autism, mental retardation, and normal development.

This study investigated the ability to deceive in participants with autism, mental retardation ( MR ), and normal development. The authors used S. Hala, M. Chandler, and A. S. Fritz's (see record, 78:20899) procedures, in which children deceive by creating false trails or by erasing all trails and lying about the true location of a hidden object. Participants with autism and those with MR did not differ in their ability to use a deceptive method to manipulate the behavior of another person. Participants with autism were significantly less able than participants with MR to understand that they manipulated the beliefs of another person by predicting the outcome of their deceptive act. The normal group outperformed the group with autism but not the group with MR on both parts of the task. Different possible interpretations of the results are discussed, including a deficit in theory of mind and a deficit in executive control functions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Empirically based methods to assess the preferences of individuals with severe disabilities

A literature review was conducted to provide a synthesis of 18 years of research on preference assessment with individuals who have severe disabilities (e.g., severe mental retardation, autism, multiple disabilities). Through this synthesis, several procedural variables were identified that may influence the outcome of preference assessment, including context, assessment stimuli, selection response, and format. Recommendations were given for designing preference assessment, and questions were raised for future research.     

Antibodies to myelin basic protein in children with autistic behavior

Based on a possible pathological relationship of autoimmunity to autism, antibodies reactive with myelin basic protein (anti-MBP) were investigated in the sera of autistic children. Using a screening serum dilution of 1:400 in the protein-immunoblotting technique, approximately 58% (19 of 33) sera of autistic children (< or = 10 years of age) were found to be positive for anti-MBP. This result in autistics was significantly (p < or = .0001) different from the controls (8 of 88 or only 9% positive), which included age-matched children with normal health, idiopathic mental retardation (MR) and Down syndrome (DS), and normal adults of 20 to 40 years of age. Since autism is a syndrome of unknown etiology, it is possible that anti-MBP antibodies are associated with the development of autistic behavior.     

Stimulus overselectivity in autism: A review of research.

Reviews a series of investigations that suggest that autistic children show "stimulus overselectivity," a response to only a limited number of cues in their environment, and discusses how such overselectivity may relate to several of the behavioral deficits in autism. These include failure to develop normal language or social behavior, failure to generalize newly acquired behavior to new stimulus situations, failure to learn from traditional teaching techniques that use prompts, and a general difficulty in learning new behaviors. Several studies that suggest possible remedial procedures are discussed, and the concept of stimulus overselectivity is related to the literature on attentional or response deficits in adult schizophrenia, mental retardation, learning disabilities, and autism. (2? p ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

In vitro activity of piperacillin/tazobactam against recent clinical isolates from hospitalized patients in ten Belgian hospitals

This review assesses the usefulness of beta-blockers in the treatment of aggression and describes the parameters for their clinical use. A Medline search using the terms "beta-blockers," "aggression," "propranolol," and "brain injury" identified relevant journal articles published in English between 1977 and 1993. Open, prospective and double-blind, placebo-controlled studies, as well as case reports, were included. Beta-blockers appear to be effective in decreasing the frequency and intensity of aggressive outbursts associated with a wide variety of conditions, such as dementias, attention-deficit disorder, personality disorders, Korsakoff's psychosis, posttraumatic stress disorder, schizophrenia, profound mental retardation, autism, and brain injury. A general discussion attempts to resolve some of the issues surrounding the possible mechanisms of beta-blocker effects, reviews the anatomic and neurochemical bases of aggression, and explores implications of the clinical use of beta-blockers.     

Active epilepsy in mentally retarded children. I. Prevalence and additional neuro-impairments

A population-based study of active epilepsy was conducted in 6-13-year-old mentally retarded children born between 1975 and 1986. The population at risk comprised 48,873 children. Ninety-eight children were identified, 35 mildly and 63 severely retarded. The prevalence was 2.0 per 1000; 0.7 per 1000 for mildly and 1.3 per 1000 for severely retarded children. Sixty-nine children had at least one additional neuroimpairment. Cerebral palsy was found in 42 children with a majority of spastic/dystonic tetraplegias; visual impairment was present in 24 and autism in 24. Thirty-three children had only a mild or no gross motor disability and mild mental retardation, while 23 had IQs < 20 and a very severe gross motor disability. This study underlines the fact that active epilepsy in mentally retarded children is often associated with additional neuroimpairments, especially a combination of severe cerebral palsy and severe visual impairment.     

An efficient method of ensuring program quality for adults with developmental disabilities in community-based apartments.

Evaluated a supervision program that was designed to improve the quality of engagement of activities for adults with severe disabilities who are living in community based apartments. Ss were adults (aged 24–44 yrs) diagnosed with severe mental retardation, autism, childhood schizophrenia, personality disturbance, organic bipolar affective disorder, attention deficit disorder, or recurrent depression. A program involving feedback was implemented in a multiple-baseline design across individuals. Results show that after the supervision program was implemented, adult participation increased across activities related to learning short-term objectives as designated on the person's individualized habilitation plan, scheduled activities, activities promoting independence, and age-appropriate activities. Feedback provided once a week was equally as effective as feedback provided 3 times a week in the community-based settings. Follow-up done 1 yr later revealed maintenance of these gains in the community settings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

What is associated with the fragile X syndrome?

In addition to mental retardation (MR), fragile X[fra(X)] syndrome has been associated with a variety of other disorders. Despite earlier reports, it has been shown that MR fra(X) males are at no greater risk for autism than is any MR male. Therefore, studies in which fra(X) has been associated with behavioral, developmental, and psychopathological disabilities were examined to determine whether fra(X) individuals were at an increased risk for these dysfunctions as well. Psychiatric disorders among fra(X) individuals were found not to occur more frequently than in other individuals with cognitive deficits. It was also observed that hyperactivity and attention deficit disorder among MR fra(X) individuals do not occur more frequently than in other MR individuals. Pooled results from studies of cognitive profiles used to characterize fra(X) phenotypes also indicated that there are no consistent patterns in either males or females. Plausible explanations for a variable phenotype include allelic heterogeneity and pleitropy.     

Restricted stimulus control and inferred attentional deficits in autistic and retarded children.

Seven autistic, 7 Down's syndrome, and 7 normal children (mean CAs 83.1, 65.7, and 45.3 mo; mean MAs 42, 36.7, and 50.6 mo; mean IQs 46.3, 45.3, and 98.6, respectively) were initially trained on a single dimension, simultaneous match-to-sample problem. Following criterion performance, each S's simultaneous matching of 4 new dimensions (2 attributes/dimension) was assessed in order to clarify the relation between autism, retardation, and attentional deficits. The Down's syndrome Ss matched significantly fewer attributes than did the autistic and normal Ss, who were equivalent in their performances. Based on these results, it is suggested that Down's syndrome and not autistic children suffer from attentional deficits. Performance in this simultaneous match-to-sample paradigm, which better assesses attentional mechanisms, was related to performances in previous serial and simultaneous discrimination paradigms, in which autistic children reportedly evidenced overselective attention. (23 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

High-level production of human growth hormone in Escherichia coli by a simple recombinant process

Diagnoses for autism based on the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R) and the Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS) were examined for 83 individuals with suspected autism. Agreement between systems reached 85.7%. Participants receiving diagnosis of autism based on only one system were significantly younger in age than individuals receiving diagnoses according to both systems. Individuals who did not receive diagnosis of autism on the ADI-R had lower chronological and mental ages and lower CARS scores compared to individuals who received diagnosis of autism based on the ADI-R. Eighteen females and 18 males were matched to examine possible gender differences. No significant findings were revealed, suggesting that the symptoms of autism according to the ADI-R and CARS do not differ between males and females when matched for chronological and mental ages.