Infants later diagnosed with autism have lower canonical babbling ratios in the first year of life.

BACKGROUND: Canonical babbling-producing syllables with a mature consonant, full vowel, and smooth transition-is an important developmental milestone that typically occurs in the first year of life. Some studies indicate delayed or reduced canonical babbling in infants at high familial likelihood for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or who later receive an ASD diagnosis, but evidence is mixed. More refined characterization of babbling in the first year of life in infants with high likelihood for ASD is needed. METHODS: Vocalizations produced at 6 and 12 months by infants (n = 267) taking part in a longitudinal study were coded for canonical and non-canonical syllables. Infants were categorized as low familial likelihood (LL), high familial likelihood diagnosed with ASD at 24 months (HL-ASD) or not diagnosed (HL-Neg). Language delay was assessed based on 24-month expressive and receptive language scores. Canonical babble ratio (CBR) was calculated by dividing the number of canonical syllables by the number of total syllables. Generalized linear (mixed) models were used to assess the relationship between group membership and CBR, controlling for site, sex, and maternal education. Logistic regression was used to assess whether canonical babbling ratios at 6 and 12 months predict 24-month diagnostic outcome. RESULTS: No diagnostic group differences in CBR were detected at 6 months, but HL-ASD infants produced significantly lower CBR than both the HL-Neg and LL groups at 12 months. HL-Neg infants with language delay also showed reduced CBR at 12 months. Neither 6- nor 12-month CBR was significant predictors of 24-month diagnostic outcome (ASD versus no ASD) in logistic regression. LIMITATIONS: Small numbers of vocalizations produced by infants at 6 months may limit the reliability of CBR estimates. It is not known if results generalize to infants who are not at high familial likelihood, or infants from more diverse racial and socioeconomic backgrounds. CONCLUSIONS: Lower canonical babbling ratios are apparent by the end of the first year of life in ASD regardless of later language delay, but are also observed for infants with later language delay without ASD. Canonical babbling may lack specificity as an early marker when used on its own.

Language delay aggregates in toddler siblings of children with autism spectrum disorder.

BACKGROUND: Language delay is extremely common in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), yet it is unclear whether measurable variation in early language is associated with genetic liability for ASD. Assessment of language development in unaffected siblings of children with ASD can inform whether decreased early language ability aggregates with inherited risk for ASD and serves as an ASD endophenotype. METHODS: We implemented two approaches: (1) a meta-analysis of studies comparing language delay, a categorical indicator of language function, and language scores, a continuous metric, in unaffected toddlers at high and low familial risk for ASD, and (2) a parallel analysis of 350 unaffected 24-month-olds in the Infant Brain Imaging Study (IBIS), a prospective study of infants at high and low familial risk for ASD. An advantage of the former was its detection of group differences from pooled data across unique samples; an advantage of the latter was its sensitivity in quantifying early manifestations of language delay while accounting for covariates within a single large sample. RESULTS: Meta-analysis showed that high-risk siblings without ASD (HR-noASD) were three to four times more likely to exhibit language delay versus low-risk siblings without ASD (LR-noASD) and had lower mean receptive and expressive language scores. Analyses of IBIS data corroborated that language delay, specifically receptive language delay, was more frequent in the HR-noASD (n = 235) versus LR-noASD group (n = 115). IBIS language scores were continuously and unimodally distributed, with a pathological shift towards decreased language function in HR-noASD siblings. The elevated inherited risk for ASD was associated with lower receptive and expressive language scores when controlling for sociodemographic factors. For receptive but not expressive language, the effect of risk group remained significant even when controlling for nonverbal cognition. CONCLUSIONS: Greater frequency of language delay and a lower distribution of language scores in high-risk, unaffected toddler-aged siblings support decreased early language ability as an endophenotype for ASD, with a more pronounced effect for receptive versus expressive language. Further characterization of language development is warranted to refine genetic investigations of ASD and to elucidate factors influencing the progression of core autistic traits and related symptoms.

Results of parathyroidectomy for autonomous hyperparathyroidism.

Autonomous hyperparathyroidism occurred in 15% of 152 patients maintained by long-term home dialysis during the past nine years. Twenty-two patients with elevated serum parathormone levels and progressive bone disease in the presence of normal serum phosphate and calcium levels were treated by subtotal parathyroidectomy. All had parathyroid hyperplasia. Eighteen of the 22 patients are presently alive and undergo dialysis. Symptoms of bone pain, pruritus, and muscle cramps had improved in three fourths of the patients. The serum parathormone level decreased from a preoperative average of 576 muLEq/mL to an average of 188 muLEq/mL postoperatively. All 18 patients, observed for six to 77 months, showed improvement in x-ray films of their bone disease. The autonomous hyperparathyroidism of end-stage renal disease is corrected by subtotal parathyroidectomy, and the effect is sustained.

Papillary-cystic neoplasm of the pancreas.

A case of an unusual pancreatic tumor with a characteristic papillary-cystic microscopic morphology is presented. Review of four previously reported similar cases suggests a distinct clinical picture of a large abdominal mass occurring in a young person which apparently, after resection, does not rapidly recur. The histopathology of this tumor consists of papillary and cystic patterns, regular homogeneous cells with a few mitoses, glassy eosinophilic cytoplasm, and mucin and PAS positivity. Ultrastructural detail, including eccentric nucleoli, numerous mitochondria, sparse endoplasmic reticulum, and little evidence of secretory activity, suggests a duct cell origin for this rare tumor.

Computer analysis as an aid in identification of mycobacteria.

One hundred eighty-four isolates representing 23 species of mycobacteria were identified using computer-assisted analysis. All isolates were examined using a standard series of 12 biochemical tests. These tests were selected because of their reproducibility and ease of performance in the laboratory. Data from these tests were analyzed by a computer that had been previously programmed to process the information and make a species determination. Identifications from the probability model were compared to identifications from conventional methods. There was 96.7% agreement between the 2 methods. The computer-assisted data analysis for identification provides increased accuracy over conventional methods because a statistical probability is applied. It also requires less time. Differences in computer data between mycobacterial species are discussed.

Antibiotic resistance of members of the genus Salmonella isolated from chickens, turkeys, cattle, and swine in the United States during October 1981 through September 1982.

Members of the genus Salmonella isolated from chickens, turkeys, cattle, and swine and submitted to the National Veterinary Services Laboratories for serotyping during October 1981 through September 1982 were tested for sensitivity to 12 antibacterial drugs. A total of 3,500 isolates was tested. A high rate of drug resistance was observed. Three cultures were resistant to each of the drugs and 30% were resistant to each drug except chloramphenicol, cephalothin, and gentamicin. Multiple resistance patterns were observed for 80% of the cultures with an even higher percentage in cultures from swine.

Validation of addition and subtraction of ABR waveforms.

Procedures that use the auditory brainstem response (ABR) to demonstrate binaural interaction, phasic differences, narrow-band derived responses, and adaptation rely on additions and subtractions of waveforms to demonstrate effects that are not evident in the raw waveforms. The purpose of this study was to validate these data manipulations by performing additions and subtractions of waveforms in cases in which the theoretical result should be no difference potential and in cases in which the theoretical result should be a difference potential. The results indicate that additions and subtractions of ABR waveforms are valid data manipulations.

The 40-Hz potential and SN10 as measures of low-frequency thresholds.

This study investigated the accuracy of threshold estimates using the 40-Hz Potential and the SN10 in the presence of elevated low-frequency thresholds. In Experiment 1, subjects with normal hearing were evaluated with ipsilateral low-pass masking to elevate low-frequency thresholds and in Experiment 2, subjects with low-frequency sensory hearing losses were evaluated. The stimuli were 500-, 1500-, and 3,000-Hz tone pips. The 40-Hz Potential and the SN10 were equally good predictors of the behavioral threshold when the low-frequency, pure-tone thresholds were elevated.

Haemagglutination-inhibiting antibodies against swine influenza and Hong Kong influenza viruses in swine sera in the USA.

Previous reports have established that swine in the midwestern states of the USA have a high incidence of classical swine influenza and that swine become infected with Hong Kong-like influenza viruses when these are prevalent in the human population. This investigation was undertaken to estimate, on the basis of 2245 sera collected randomly from swine going to slaughter in the USA during the summer months of 1974, how many of the animals had haemagglutination-inhibiting (HI) antibodies against swine influenza and Hong Kong influenza viruses. Based on HI titres of 20 or greater, our serological survey revealed that swine influenza virus infection was widespread throughout the USA, since 20.45% of the sera tested had positive HI titres. However, serological evidence of infection of swine with Hong Kong-like viruses was present in only 2.63% of the sera tested.