[Formula: see text]Executive functioning and its relation to ASD and ADHD symptomatology in 22q11.2 deletion syndrome.

Children with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome (22q11DS; velo-cardio-facial-syndrome) are at risk for the developmental disorders, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). In this study, the relation between executive functioning (EF) and the severity of ADHD and ASD symptoms is examined, since EF is known to be important in relation to emotional and behavioral problems. The participants consist of 58 children (38 females) with a mean age of 13.5 years (SD 2.6). Standardized assessment was used to evaluate the severity of ASD and ADHD symptomatology. The major aspects of EF, i.e., cognitive flexibility, inhibition, sustained attention, distractibility, working memory and reaction speed, were evaluated. The profile of EF in 22q11DS was found to be characterized by weaker performance compared to the norms on all subdomains of EF. Poor cognitive flexibility and inhibition, as well as high distractibility, were found to be related to more severe ASD symptoms, while poor quality of sustained attention and high distractibility were found to be related to more severe ADHD symptoms. It is concluded that children with 22q11DS experience impairments in EF, and that the degree of impairment on specific EF subdomains is related to the severity of ASD and/or ADHD symptomatology. These results may help in defining the mediating role of neurocognitive dysfunctions in the development of social and behavioral problems in 22q11DS.

Individual prediction of long-term outcome in adolescents at ultra-high risk for psychosis: Applying machine learning techniques to brain imaging data.

An important focus of studies of individuals at ultra-high risk (UHR) for psychosis has been to identify biomarkers to predict which individuals will transition to psychosis. However, the majority of individuals will prove to be resilient and go on to experience remission of their symptoms and function well. The aim of this study was to investigate the possibility of using structural MRI measures collected in UHR adolescents at baseline to quantitatively predict their long-term clinical outcome and level of functioning. We included 64 UHR individuals and 62 typically developing adolescents (12-18 years old at recruitment). At six-year follow-up, we determined resilience for 43 UHR individuals. Support Vector Regression analyses were performed to predict long-term functional and clinical outcome from baseline MRI measures on a continuous scale, instead of the more typical binary classification. This led to predictive correlations of baseline MR measures with level of functioning, and negative and disorganization symptoms. The highest correlation (r = 0.42) was found between baseline subcortical volumes and long-term level of functioning. In conclusion, our results show that structural MRI data can be used to quantitatively predict long-term functional and clinical outcome in UHR individuals with medium effect size, suggesting that there may be scope for predicting outcome at the individual level. Moreover, we recommend classifying individual outcome on a continuous scale, enabling the assessment of different functional and clinical scales separately without the need to set a threshold. Hum Brain Mapp 38:704-714, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Brain development in adolescents at ultra-high risk for psychosis: Longitudinal changes related to resilience.

BACKGROUND: The main focus of studies of individuals at ultra-high risk for psychosis (UHR) has been on identifying brain changes in those individuals who will develop psychosis. However, longitudinal studies have shown that up to half of UHR individuals are resilient, with symptomatic remission and good functioning at follow-up. Yet little is known about brain development in resilient individuals. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate differences in brain development between resilient and non-resilient individuals. METHODS: A six-year longitudinal structural MRI study was performed with up to three scans per individual. The final sample consisted of 48 UHR individuals and 48 typically developing controls with a total of 225 MRI-scans, aged 12-20 years at the time of the first MRI-scan and matched for age, gender and number of follow-up scans. At six-year follow-up, 35 UHR individuals were divided in resilient (good functional outcome) and non-resilient (poor functional outcome) subgroups, defined by the modified Global Assessment of Functioning. The main outcome measures were developmental changes in MR-based measures of cortical and subcortical anatomy. RESULTS: We found widespread differences in volume of frontal, temporal and parietal cortex between resilient and non-resilient individuals. These were already present at baseline and remained stable over development (12-24 years). Furthermore, there were differences in the development of cortical surface area in frontal regions including cingulate gyrus. CONCLUSIONS: Developmental differences may reflect compensatory neural mechanisms, where better functioning in resilient individuals leads to less tissue loss over development.

New Interview and Observation Measures of the Broader Autism Phenotype: Description of Strategy and Reliability Findings for the Interview Measures.

Clinical genetic studies confirm the broader autism phenotype (BAP) in some relatives of individuals with autism, but there are few standardized assessment measures. We developed three BAP measures (informant interview, self-report interview, and impression of interviewee observational scale) and describe the development strategy and findings from the interviews. International Molecular Genetic Study of Autism Consortium data were collected from families containing at least two individuals with autism. Comparison of the informant and self-report interviews was restricted to samples in which the interviews were undertaken by different researchers from that site (251 UK informants, 119 from the Netherlands). Researchers produced vignettes that were rated blind by others. Retest reliability was assessed in 45 participants. Agreement between live scoring and vignette ratings was very high. Retest stability for the interviews was high. Factor analysis indicated a first factor comprising social-communication items and rigidity (but not other repetitive domain items), and a second factor comprised mainly of reading and spelling impairments. Whole scale Cronbach's alphas were high for both interviews. The correlation between interviews for factor 1 was moderate (adult items 0.50; childhood items 0.43); Kappa values for between-interview agreement on individual items were mainly low. The correlations between individual items and total score were moderate. The inclusion of several factor 2 items lowered the overall Cronbach's alpha for the total set. Both interview measures showed good reliability and substantial stability over time, but the findings were better for factor 1 than factor 2. We recommend factor 1 scores be used for characterising the BAP.

Differences in ADHD medication usage patterns in children and adolescents from different cultural backgrounds in the Netherlands.

PURPOSE: Differences in incidence and prevalence of ADHD medication use between ethnic groups have been reported. Goal of this study was to determine whether there are also differences in usage patterns of ADHD medication among native Dutch children and adolescents and those with a Moroccan, Turkish and Surinam cultural background in the Netherlands between 1999 and 2010. METHODS: In a cohort of ADHD patients <19 years (N = 817) incident use and discontinuation of ADHD medication were measured for ethnicity and adjusted for age, gender and socio-economic status. RESULTS: A significant higher proportion of ADHD-diagnosed patients from Moroccan (32 %) and Turkish (42 %) cultural background never used ADHD medication compared to Dutch natives (21 %). One-fifth of native Dutch and Turkish patients already used ADHD medication before the ADHD diagnosis date. Discontinuation of ADHD medication within 5 years was significantly higher in Moroccan [HR 2.4 (95 % CI 1.8-3.1)] and Turkish [HR 1.7 (95 % CI 1.1-2.6)] patients. A sensitivity analysis with a zip code-matched comparison between Dutch natives and non-natives showed similar results, suggesting this effect is probably not explained by socio-economic status (SES). CONCLUSION: Differences are found in prescribing and use of ADHD medication between patients with a different cultural background. Native Dutch and Turkish patients start more frequently with ADHD medication before the ADHD diagnose date, which can be an indication of differences in either referral patterns and/or access to care. A higher percentage of patients with a Moroccan and Turkish cultural background never start using ADHD medication at all and discontinuation rate is higher compared to Dutch natives and Surinamese.

Genetic Mapping in Mice Reveals the Involvement of Pcdh9 in Long-Term Social and Object Recognition and Sensorimotor Development.

BACKGROUND: Quantitative genetic analysis of basic mouse behaviors is a powerful tool to identify novel genetic phenotypes contributing to neurobehavioral disorders. Here, we analyzed genetic contributions to single-trial, long-term social and nonsocial recognition and subsequently studied the functional impact of an identified candidate gene on behavioral development. METHODS: Genetic mapping of single-trial social recognition was performed in chromosome substitution strains, a sophisticated tool for detecting quantitative trait loci (QTL) of complex traits. Follow-up occurred by generating and testing knockout (KO) mice of a selected QTL candidate gene. Functional characterization of these mice was performed through behavioral and neurological assessments across developmental stages and analyses of gene expression and brain morphology. RESULTS: Chromosome substitution strain 14 mapping studies revealed an overlapping QTL related to long-term social and object recognition harboring Pcdh9, a cell-adhesion gene previously associated with autism spectrum disorder. Specific long-term social and object recognition deficits were confirmed in homozygous (KO) Pcdh9-deficient mice, while heterozygous mice only showed long-term social recognition impairment. The recognition deficits in KO mice were not associated with alterations in perception, multi-trial discrimination learning, sociability, behavioral flexibility, or fear memory. Rather, KO mice showed additional impairments in sensorimotor development reflected by early touch-evoked biting, rotarod performance, and sensory gating deficits. This profile emerged with structural changes in deep layers of sensory cortices, where Pcdh9 is selectively expressed. CONCLUSIONS: This behavior-to-gene study implicates Pcdh9 in cognitive functions required for long-term social and nonsocial recognition. This role is supported by the involvement of Pcdh9 in sensory cortex development and sensorimotor phenotypes.

New interview and observation measures of the broader autism phenotype: group differentiation.

To identify the broader autism phenotype (BAP), the Family History Interview subject and informant versions and an observational tool (Impression of Interviewee), were developed. This study investigated whether the instruments differentiated between parents of children with autism, and parents of children with Down syndrome (DS). The BAP scores of parents of 28 multiplex autism families were compared with parents from, 32 DS families. The BAP measures provided good group differentiation but when considered together, the subject interview did not improve group differentiation. The differentiation was better for fathers than mothers. The measures do carry an important degree of validity; whether they can differentiate the BAP from other social disorders should be tested.

Video-feedback Intervention to promote Positive Parenting adapted to Autism (VIPP-AUTI): A randomized controlled trial.

In a randomized controlled trial, we evaluated the early intervention program Video-feedback Intervention to promote Positive Parenting adapted to Autism (VIPP-AUTI) with 78 primary caregivers and their child (16-61 months) with Autism Spectrum Disorder. VIPP-AUTI is a brief attachment-based intervention program, focusing on improving parent-child interaction and reducing the child's individual Autism Spectrum Disorder-related symptomatology in five home visits. VIPP-AUTI, as compared with usual care, demonstrated efficacy in reducing parental intrusiveness. Moreover, parents who received VIPP-AUTI showed increased feelings of self-efficacy in child rearing. No significant group differences were found on other aspects of parent-child interaction or on child play behavior. At 3-months follow-up, intervention effects were found on child-initiated joint attention skills, not mediated by intervention effects on parenting. Implementation of VIPP-AUTI in clinical practice is facilitated by the use of a detailed manual and a relatively brief training of interveners.

Cross-sectional evidence for a decrease in cognitive function with age in children with autism spectrum disorders?

Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are associated with early disturbances in brain maturation processes and these interferences presumably have their consequences for the progressive emergence of cognitive deficits later in life, as expressed in intelligence profiles. In this study, we addressed the impact of age on cognitive functioning of 6- to 15-year-old children and adolescents with ASD. Intelligence profiles were measured by the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children and compared among four consecutive age cohorts (children aged 6.17-8.03 years, 8.04-9.61 years, and 9.68-11.50 years and adolescents aged 11.54-15.85 years) of 237 high-functioning boys with ASD. The results clearly demonstrated that the global intelligence level was lower in children aged 8 years and older, when compared with 6- and 7-year-old children with ASD. This is mostly due to the Freedom From Distractibility factor, suggesting that older children were less able to sustain their attention, they were more distractible, or had more graph motor difficulties. Moreover, an effect of age was also found with respect to the relatively poor performance on the subtest Comprehension when compared with other verbal comprehension subtests, indicating that specifically the impairments in verbal comprehension and social reasoning abilities were more profound in older children when compared with 6- and 7-year-old children with ASD. Findings of this cross-sectional study showed that it is relevant to take age into account when evaluating the impact of cognitive impairments on intelligence in children with ASD, because the impact of these developmental disorders might be different at different ages.

Development of a Video-feedback Intervention to promote Positive Parenting for Children with Autism (VIPP-AUTI).

In this paper we describe the development and content of Video-feedback Intervention to promote Positive Parenting for Children with Autism (VIPP-AUTI). VIPP-AUTI is an adapted version of the evidence-based intervention VIPP. The lack of social responsiveness in children with autism often lowers the quality of the parent-child interaction. A wide range of early interventions exist to cope with the disorder. The majority of early interventions for children with autism focus on their deficits of (social) skills, but the number of evidence-based interventions to improve early parent-child interaction patterns is limited. The aim of VIPP-AUTI is to enhance parental sensitivity to children's autistic characteristics, in order to improve child developmental outcome by increased parental support.

Neurocognitive and clinical predictors of long-term outcome in adolescents at ultra-high risk for psychosis: a 6-year follow-up.

BACKGROUND: Most studies aiming to predict transition to psychosis for individuals at ultra-high risk (UHR) have focused on either neurocognitive or clinical variables and have made little effort to combine the two. Furthermore, most have focused on a dichotomous measure of transition to psychosis rather than a continuous measure of functional outcome. We aimed to investigate the relative value of neurocognitive and clinical variables for predicting both transition to psychosis and functional outcome. METHODS: Forty-three UHR individuals and 47 controls completed an extensive clinical and neurocognitive assessment at baseline and participated in long-term follow-up approximately six years later. UHR adolescents who had converted to psychosis (UHR-P; n = 10) were compared to individuals who had not (UHR-NP; n = 33) and controls on clinical and neurocognitive variables. Regression analyses were performed to determine which baseline measures best predicted transition to psychosis and long-term functional outcome for UHR individuals. RESULTS: Low IQ was the single neurocognitive parameter that discriminated UHR-P individuals from UHR-NP individuals and controls. The severity of attenuated positive symptoms was the only significant predictor of a transition to psychosis and disorganized symptoms were highly predictive of functional outcome. CONCLUSIONS: Clinical measures are currently the most important vulnerability markers for long-term outcome in adolescents at imminent risk of psychosis.

Convergence of genes and cellular pathways dysregulated in autism spectrum disorders.

Rare copy-number variation (CNV) is an important source of risk for autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). We analyzed 2,446 ASD-affected families and confirmed an excess of genic deletions and duplications in affected versus control groups (1.41-fold, p = 1.0 × 10(-5)) and an increase in affected subjects carrying exonic pathogenic CNVs overlapping known loci associated with dominant or X-linked ASD and intellectual disability (odds ratio = 12.62, p = 2.7 × 10(-15), ∼3% of ASD subjects). Pathogenic CNVs, often showing variable expressivity, included rare de novo and inherited events at 36 loci, implicating ASD-associated genes (CHD2, HDAC4, and GDI1) previously linked to other neurodevelopmental disorders, as well as other genes such as SETD5, MIR137, and HDAC9. Consistent with hypothesized gender-specific modulators, females with ASD were more likely to have highly penetrant CNVs (p = 0.017) and were also overrepresented among subjects with fragile X syndrome protein targets (p = 0.02). Genes affected by de novo CNVs and/or loss-of-function single-nucleotide variants converged on networks related to neuronal signaling and development, synapse function, and chromatin regulation.

School-associated problem behavior in childhood and adolescence and development of adult schizotypal symptoms: a follow-up of a clinical cohort.

How school-associated behavioral problems in childhood and adolescence precede distinctive adult schizotypal symptoms was examined. Gender specific findings were explored. After 11.6 (SD = 3.1) years, 159 patients of the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry of the University Medical Centre Utrecht, the Netherlands were reassessed for adult schizotypal symptoms. Severity of behavioral symptoms in childhood and adolescence using Teacher Report Form (TRF; Verhulst et al. 1997) and adult schizotypal symptoms using Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire-Revised (Raine in Schizophrenia Bulletin 17:555-564, 1991) were examined by Spearman's bivariate correlations. Multiple regression analyses were performed to determine the combined predictive value of significant TRF subscales for schizotypal symptomatology. Moderation was tested by adding the interactions of gender with TRF subscales to the models. Disregarding gender, correlational analyses revealed that TRF Total problems, in specific thought problems, social problems, and attentional problems were associated with disorganized schizotypal symptoms in adult life. TRF thought problems was also associated with future positive schizotypal symptoms. When gender was taken into account, for boys only thought problems was associated with adult positive schizotypal symptoms, whereas for girls externalizing problems, specifically attentional and aggressive problems, were associated with the higher levels of adult disorganized schizotypal symptoms. Moderated regression analyses provided trend significant evidence confirming that in girls externalizing problems were positively associated with general and disorganized schizotypal symptoms. When using teachers as informants, it was found that juvenile behavioral abnormalities were differentially associated with type of adult schizotypal symptoms, with these associations being further modified by gender.

Quality of life: a case-controlled long-term follow-up study, comparing young high-functioning adults with autism spectrum disorders with adults with other psychiatric disorders diagnosed in childhood.

BACKGROUND: Long term outcome in childhood autism spectrum disorders (ASD) was evaluated by studying quality of life (QoL) in young adulthood in comparison to the outcome of other child psychiatric disorders. METHODS: In this follow-up study, objective and subjective QoL of 169 high-functioning (IQ>70) adults with ASD (19 to 30 years) was contrasted with QoL data of age matched adults diagnosed with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (N=85), disruptive behaviour disorders (N=83), and affective disorders (N=85) during childhood. The mean follow-up period of the ASD patients was 13.9 years. Objective QoL included marital status, living arrangements, level of education, employment, and usage of mental health care. Subjective QoL included satisfaction concerning living arrangements, work or education, physical condition, partner relationship, social relationships, state of mind, and future perspective. RESULTS: QoL was more compromised in adults diagnosed with ASD in childhood than in adults with other psychiatric disorders in childhood. A relatively large proportion of the adults with ASD were single, few lived with a partner or a family and many of them were institutionalized. Adults with ASD had lower educational levels, relatively few had paid employment and many were social security recipients, as compared to the other psychiatric patients. In case the adults with ASD used medication, 47% used anti-psychotics. Regarding the subjective QoL, the adults with ASD were less satisfied about their work or education, partner relationship, and future perspective than the other groups. Even when highly educated adults with ASD were compared to highly educated adults diagnosed with other childhood disorders, the QoL appeared to be more disadvantageous in adults with ASD. CONCLUSION: Many studies have shown that QoL is threatened in psychiatric patients, but findings of this study indicate that young high-functioning adults diagnosed with ASD in childhood are at relatively high risk for poor QoL compared to other childhood psychiatric disorders.

Changes in the development of striatum are involved in repetitive behavior in autism.

BACKGROUND: Repetitive behavior is a core feature of autism and has been linked to differences in striatum. In addition, the brain changes associated with autism appear to vary with age. However, most studies investigating striatal differences in autism are cross-sectional, limiting inferences on development. In this study, we set out to 1) investigate striatal development in autism, using a longitudinal design; and 2) examine the relationship between striatal development and repetitive behavior. METHODS: We acquired longitudinal structural magnetic resonance imaging scans from 86 individuals (49 children with autism, 37 matched control subjects). Each individual was scanned twice, with a mean scan interval time of 2.4 years. Mean age was 9.9 years at time 1 and 12.3 years at time 2. Striatal structures were traced manually with high reliability. Multivariate analyses of variance were used to investigate differences in brain development between diagnostic groups. To examine the relationship with behavior, correlations between changes in brain volumes and clinical measures were calculated. RESULTS: Our results showed an increase in the growth rate of striatal structures for individuals with autism compared with control subjects. The effect was specific to caudate nucleus, where growth rate was doubled. Second, faster striatal growth was correlated with more severe repetitive behavior (insistence on sameness) at the preschool age. CONCLUSIONS: This longitudinal study of brain development in autism confirms the involvement of striatum in repetitive behavior. Furthermore, it underscores the significance of brain development in autism, as the severity of repetitive behavior was related to striatal growth, rather than volume per se.

Parental reaction to early diagnosis of their children's autism spectrum disorder: an exploratory study.

This study explores parental reactions subsequent to receiving their child's autism spectrum disorder (ASD)-diagnosis. Seventy seven parents of recently diagnosed children participated in the Reaction to Diagnosis Interview. Within this group, associations between parental reaction to diagnosis, parental and child characteristics and prediagnostic circumstances were analysed. In a sub-sample, the stability of reaction to diagnosis was examined. The majority of parents were classified as 'resolved' regarding their child's diagnosis. Conversely, parents of children with more severe ASD symptoms or non-Dutch parents were more likely to be classified as 'unresolved'. Sub-sample analysis revealed stability of reaction to ASD-diagnosis. The majority of parents adapted well to the circumstances and the care for their child. Autism severity and parental nationality were significant factors affecting parental reactions. Thus, early identification of parental reaction to children's ASD-diagnosis may aid in providing more tailored parental support programs.

Association between ADHD drug use and injuries among children and adolescents.

To study the association between attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) drug use and the incidence of hospitalization due to injuries. A random sample of 150,000 persons (0-18 years) was obtained from the Dutch PHARMO record linkage system. An ADHD medication cohort as well as an up to six age/sex/index date sampled control cohort with no history of ADHD drug use was formed. Differences in incidence of hospitalization due to injuries were stratified for age and sex and compared prior, during and after exposure on ADHD drugs. The overall incidence of hospital admissions for injuries was two times higher in the ADHD medication cohort [incidence rate ratios (IRR) 2.2 (95 % CI 1.6-2.9)]. The incidence rate for injuries during exposure to ADHD drugs was lower in the exposed period compared to the period prior to ADHD drug use, although the difference was not statistically significant [IRR 0.68 (95 % CI 0.29-1.60)]. The relative risk for injuries was almost five times higher in the ADHD medication cohort among those who concomitantly used other psychotropics [IRR 4.8 (95 % CI 1.4-16.9)]. Risk for injuries was highest in 12-18 years olds. Children and adolescents using ADHD medication showed a twofold risk for hospital admissions for injuries. ADHD drug use might diminish the increased injury risk, but still overall risk is higher than in age/sex sampled children and adolescents without treatment with ADHD drugs. Use of ADHD and concomitant psychotropics increases the risk for injuries compared to only ADHD drug use.

Development of schizotypal symptoms following psychiatric disorders in childhood or adolescence.

It was examined how juvenile psychiatric disorders and adult schizotypal symptoms are associated. 731 patients of the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry of the University Medical Centre Utrecht, the Netherlands, with mean age of 12.1 years (SD = 4.0) were reassessed at the mean age of 27.9 years (SD = 5.7) for adult schizotypal symptoms using the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire-Revised (Vollema, Schizophr Bull 26(3):565-575, 2000). Differences between 13 juvenile DSM categories and normal controls (n = 80) on adult schizotypal total and factor scores were analyzed, using (M)ANCOVA. Pervasive developmental disorders (PDD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorders (ADHD), deferred diagnosis, sexual and gender identity disorders and depressive disorders had higher SPQ total scores when compared to normal controls (p < 0.001). Higher levels of disorganized schizotypal symptoms were found for PDD, ADHD, and deferred diagnosis (p < 0.001). The same diagnostic groups showed higher level of negative schizotypal symptoms, which was likewise true for sexual and gender identity disorders, depressive disorders, disruptive disorders, and the category of 'Other conditions that may be a focus of clinical attention' (p < 0.001). No differences with normal controls were found for adult positive schizotypal symptoms (p < 0.110). The current findings are suggestive of the idea that psychiatric disorders in childhood or adolescence are a more general expression of a liability to schizophrenia spectrum pathology in future life. In addition, specific patterns of adult schizotypal symptomatology are associated with different types of juvenile psychiatric disorder.

How to use the ADI-R for classifying autism spectrum disorders? Psychometric properties of criteria from the literature in 1,204 Dutch children.

The algorithm of the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised provides criteria for autism versus non-autism according to DSM-IV. Criteria for the broader autism spectrum disorders are needed. This study investigated the validity of seven sets of criteria from the literature, in 1,204 Dutch children (aged 3-18 years) with and without mental retardation. The original criteria (Rutter et al. in ADI-R Autism Diagnostic Interview Revised. Manual. Western Psychological Services, Los Angeles, 2003) well discriminated ASD from non-ASD in MR. All other criteria (IMGSAC in Am Soc Hum Genet 69:570-581 2001; Sung et al. in Am J Hum Genet 76: 68-81, 2005; Risi et al. in J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 45: 1094-1103, 2006) were sensitive at the cost of specificity, bearing the risk of overinclusiveness. In the group without MR, clinicians should decide whether sensitivity or specificity is aimed for, to choose the appropriate criteria. Including the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule revised algorithms in the classification, the specificity increases, at the cost of sensitivity. This study adds to a more valid judgment on which criteria to use for specific objectives.

Impaired response inhibition in autism spectrum disorders, a marker of vulnerability to schizophrenia spectrum disorders?

In this study, we addressed the relation between specific deficits in cognitive control and schizotypal symptomatology in adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) diagnosed in childhood. We aimed to identify cognitive control deficits as markers of vulnerability to the development of schizophrenia spectrum pathology in ASD. Symptoms of autism and the risk for schizotypal symptomatology were assessed in 29 high-functioning adolescents with ASD, and compared with 40 typically developing adolescents. Cognitive control (response inhibition, mental flexibility, visuo-motor control, interference control, and perseveration) was evaluated for specific association with schizotypal symptomatology. Impaired response inhibition appeared to be strongly and specifically associated with schizotypal symptomatology in adolescents with ASD, especially those with positive and disorganized symptoms. Response inhibition problems could indicate vulnerability to the development of schizotypal symptomatology in ASD.