Search

Assessing cognitive development is critical in clinical research of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, collecting cognitive data from clinically administered assessments can add a significant burden to clinical research in ASD due to the substantial cost and time required, and it is often prohibitive in large-scale studies. There is a need for more efficient, but reliable, methods to estimate cognitive functioning for researchers, clinicians, and families. To examine the degree to which caregiver estimates of cognitive level agree with actual measured intelligence/developmental scores and understand factors that may impact that agreement, 1,555 autistic individuals (81.74% male; age 18 months-18 years) were selected from a large cohort (Simons Foundation Powering Autism Research for Knowledge, SPARK). Results suggest that querying parents about recent testing results and developmental diagnoses can provide valid and useful information on cognitive ability. The agreement of parental estimates varied with age, measured cognitive ability, autistic traits, and adaptive skills. In the context of large-scale research efforts, parent-reported cognitive impairment may be a good proxy for categorical IQ range for survey-based studies when specific IQ scores are not available, circumventing the logistical and financial obstacles of obtaining neuropsychological or neurodevelopmental testing., (© 2023 The Authors. Autism Research published by International Society for Autism Research and Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Background: Abnormal responses to tactile stimuli are a common feature of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Several lines of evidence suggest that GABAergic function, which has a crucial role in tactile processing, is altered in ASD. In this study, we determine whether in vivo GABA levels are altered in children with ASD, and whether alterations in GABA levels are associated with abnormal tactile function in these children., Methods: GABA-edited magnetic resonance spectroscopy was acquired in 37 children with Autism and 35 typically developing children (TDC) from voxels over primary sensorimotor and occipital cortices. Children performed tactile tasks previously shown to be altered in ASD, linked to inhibitory mechanisms. Detection threshold was measured with- and without the presence of a slowly increasing sub-threshold stimulus. Amplitude discrimination was measured with- and without the presence of an adapting stimulus, and frequency discrimination was measured., Results: Sensorimotor GABA levels were significantly reduced in children with autism compared to healthy controls. Occipital GABA levels were normal. Sensorimotor GABA levels correlated with dynamic detection threshold as well as with the effect of sub-threshold stimulation. Sensorimotor GABA levels also correlated with amplitude discrimination after adaptation (an effect absent in autism) and frequency discrimination in controls, but not in children with autism., Conclusions: GABA levels correlate with behavioral measures of inhibition. Children with autism have reduced GABA, associated with abnormalities in tactile performance. We show here that altered in vivo GABA levels might predict abnormal tactile information processing in ASD and that the GABA system may be a future target for therapies. Autism Res 2016. © 2016 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc., (© 2016 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)