Predictors of age at diagnosis in autism spectrum disorders: the use of multiple regression analyses and a classification tree on a clinical sample.

The increasing prevalence of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) has led to worldwide interest in factors influencing the age of ASD diagnosis. Parents or caregivers of 237 ASD children (193 boys, 44 girls) diagnosed using the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) completed a simple descriptive questionnaire. The data were analyzed using the variable-centered multiple regression analysis and the person-centered classification tree method. We believed that the concurrent use of these two methods could produce robust results. The mean age at diagnosis was 5.8 ± 2.2 years (median 5.3 years). Younger ages for ASD diagnosis were predicted (using multiple regression analysis) by higher scores in the ADOS social domain, higher scores in ADOS restrictive and repetitive behaviors and interest domain, higher maternal education, and the shared household of parents. Using the classification tree method, the subgroup with the lowest mean age at diagnosis were children, in whom the summation of ADOS communication and social domain scores was ≥ 17, and paternal age at the delivery was ≥ 29 years. In contrast, the subgroup with the oldest mean age at diagnosis included children with summed ADOS communication and social domain scores < 17 and maternal education at the elementary school level. The severity of autism and maternal education played a significant role in both types of data analysis focused on age at diagnosis.

Colour Categorization and its Effect on Perception: A Conceptual Replication.

The presented study examines the question of colour categorization in relation to the hypothesis of linguistic relativity. The study is based on research conducted by Gilbert et al. (2006) and their claim that linguistic colour categorization in a particular language helps colour recognition and speeds the process of colour discrimination for colours from different linguistic categories but only for the right visual field. Our study approached the research question differently. We used the same methodology as Gilbert's team et al. (2006), but we used different colour categories in the Czech language and significantly enlarged the number of participants to 106 undergraduate psychology students. Our results show that the fastest reaction times were in trials when the target was located in the left visual field, quite opposite from the Gilbert's et al. (2006) study. We argue that this finding is based on different processes than simple colour linguistic categorisation and attentional processes actually play an important role in the task.

Rifampicin Nanoformulation Enhances Treatment of Tuberculosis in Zebrafish.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the etiologic agent of tuberculosis, is an intracellular pathogen of alveolar macrophages. These cells avidly take up nanoparticles, even without the use of specific targeting ligands, making the use of nanotherapeutics ideal for the treatment of such infections. Methoxy poly(ethylene oxide)- block-poly(ε-caprolactone) nanoparticles of several different polymer blocks' molecular weights and sizes (20-110 nm) were developed and critically compared as carriers for rifampicin, a cornerstone in tuberculosis therapy. The polymeric nanoparticles' uptake, consequent organelle targeting and intracellular degradation were shown to be highly dependent on the nanoparticles' physicochemical properties (the cell uptake half-lives 2.4-21 min, the degradation half-lives 51.6 min-ca. 20 h after the internalization). We show that the nanoparticles are efficiently taken up by macrophages and are able to effectively neutralize the persisting bacilli. Finally, we demonstrate, using a zebrafish model of tuberculosis, that the nanoparticles are well tolerated, have a curative effect, and are significantly more efficient compared to a free form of rifampicin. Hence, these findings demonstrate that this system shows great promise, both in vitro and in vivo, for the treatment of tuberculosis.

Déjà Vu Experiences in Healthy Czech Adults.

The study examines the prevalence of déjà vu in healthy Czech adults and explores its relationships with a number of variables: age, sex, neuroticism, depression, the degree of irritability in the limbic system, perceived stress, and finally attachment avoidance and anxiety. The participants were 365 healthy adults ranging from 18 to 70 years recruited in the Czech Republic (mean age = 29.05; SD = 11.17) who filled out online questionnaires. Déjà vu experiences were reported by 324 (88.8%) of them. Persons who experienced déjà vu were younger than the persons who had not experienced it. We found that sex, levels of neuroticism, depression, perceived stress, and attachment did not serve as predictors of experiences of déjà vu phenomena. Finally, those who had reported déjà vu experiences reported more limbic system irritability symptoms. We discuss the possibility that déjà vu reports together with other studied variables mainly reflect the participants' willingness to report "extraordinal" experiences.

Investigating the effectiveness of working memory training in the context of Personality Systems Interaction theory.

Previous research has shown mixed results for the ability of working memory training to improve fluid intelligence. The aims of this study were first to replicate these improvements, and then to explore the moderating role of Personality Systems Interaction (PSI) personality factors. By using three different training methods and an active-contact control group, we examined the effects of 25 days of cognitive training on 142 participants. After examining our results in context of PSI theory, we found that different training methods yielded different IQ gains in participants, depending on their personality styles. In addition, these correlations suggested a meaningful pattern, indicating that PSI theory may be able to account for the different outcomes of cognitive training studies. Our findings may facilitate tailor-made cognitive training interventions in the future, and can contribute to explaining the mechanisms underlying the far transfer of working memory training to fluid intelligence.

An evaluation of traffic-awareness campaign videos: empathy induction is associated with brain function within superior temporal sulcus.

Acting appropriately within social contexts requires an ability to appreciate others' mental and emotional states. Indeed, some campaign programs designed to reduce anti-social behaviour seek to elicit empathy for the victims. The effectiveness of these campaigns can be evaluated according to the degree to which they induce such responses, but by applying neuroscientific techniques this can be done at the behavioural and neurophysiological level. Neuroimaging studies aimed at identifying the neural mechanisms behind such socio-cognitive and -emotional processes frequently reveal the role of the superior temporal sulcus (STS). We applied this knowledge to assess the effectiveness of traffic-awareness campaign adverts to induce empathic expression. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data were acquired from 20 healthy male volunteers as they watched these campaign videos consisting of a dramatic sequence of events and catastrophic endings, and control videos without such dramatic endings. Among other structures, a significantly greater neural response was observed within bilateral STS, particularly within the right hemisphere, during the observation of campaign relative to control videos. Furthermore, activation in these brain regions correlated with the subjects' empathic expression. Our results develop our understanding of the role of STS in social cognition. Moreover, our data demonstrate the utility of neuroscientific methods when evaluating the effectiveness of campaign videos in terms of their ability to elicit empathic responses. Our study also demonstrates the utility of these specific stimuli for future neuroscientific research.

Superior temporal sulcus and social cognition in dangerous drivers.

Understanding the neural systems underpinning social cognition is a primary focus of contemporary social neuroscience. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), the present study asked if brain activity reflecting socio-cognitive processes differs between individuals according to their social behavior; namely, between a group of drivers with frequent traffic offenses and a group with none. Socio-cognitive processing was elicited by employing videos from a traffic awareness campaign, consisting of reckless and anti-social driving behavior ending in tragic consequences, and control videos with analogous driving themes but without such catastrophic endings. We investigated whether relative increases in brain function during the observation of these campaign stimuli compared with control videos differed between these two groups. To develop the results of our previous study we focused our analyses on superior temporal sulcus/gyrus (STS/STG). This revealed a bigger increase in brain activity within this region during the campaign stimuli in safe compared with dangerous drivers. Furthermore, by thematically coding drivers' verbal descriptions of the stimuli, we also demonstrate differences in STS reactivity according to drivers' scores on two indices of socio-cognitive processing: subjects' perceived consequences of actors' actions, and their affective evaluation of the clips. Our results demonstrate the influence of social behavior and socio-cognitive processing on STS reactivity to social stimuli, developing considerably our understanding of the role of this region in social cognition.

Functional anatomy of outcome evaluation during Iowa Gambling Task performance in patients with Parkinson's disease: an fMRI study.

The aim of this study was to investigate the functional anatomy of decision-making during the Iowa Gambling Task in patients with Parkinson's disease. We used event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during a computerized version of IGT to compare 18 PD patients on dopaminergic medication in the ON state and 18 healthy control subjects. Our analyses focused on outcome evaluation following card selection, because we expected this aspect of decision-making to be impaired in PD patients. The PD patients exhibited lower activation of the left putamen than the control group as a reaction to penalty. Using psychophysiological interaction analysis, we identified decreased functional connectivity between the right globus pallidus internus and the left anterior cingulate gyrus in the PD group. In contrast, increased connectivity between these structures was observed after penalty in the control group. Our results suggest altered functioning of the basal ganglia and their connections with the cortical structures involved in the limbic loop (e.g., the limbic fronto-striatal circuit of the basal ganglia) during decision-making in PD patients. Differences in the response to loss could be associated with insufficient negative reinforcement after a loss in PD patients in the ON state in comparison to a healthy population.

What is the quality of pre-dialysis healthcare in the Czech Republic?

AIM: The PREPARE study (PRE-dialysis healthcare in PAtients initiating Renal rEplacement therapy and its consequences) evaluates the quality of pre-dialysis healthcare in patients commencing dialysis treatment in the Czech Republic. METHODS: 48% of Czech dialysis centers participating in this prospective multicenter observational study provided data on all consecutive patients starting renal replacement therapy during 24 weeks. RESULTS: 68% out of 303 patients had nephrological pre-dialysis care lasting >6 months (57% diabetics). Peritoneal dialysis (PD) was chosen by 11.2%. 23.6% of patients were receiving erythropoiesis-stimulating agents while the mean hemoglobin level was 98.3 ±15.6 g/l. 36.1% of patients were taking phosphate binders while serum phosphates reached 1.90 ±0.61 mmol/l. 64.4% of patients had a functional arteriovenous fistula or PD catheter. 91.8% of the patients felt they were well informed about hemodialysis and 51.6% about PD. Physicians reported poor compliance of patients in 15.1% of cases, while the patients evaluated their own compliance as 9.4%. CONCLUSIONS: To conclude: (1) better pre-dialysis care and information are needed; (2) higher awareness on PD might increase its low popularity; (3) particular attention should be paid to diabetics due to their higher morbidity, a lower proportion considered for transplantation and a lower proportion referred to nephrologists by diabetologists, and (4) preemptive transplantation should be considered more often.

Iowa Gambling Task in patients with early-onset Parkinson's disease: strategy analysis.

The aim of our study was to analyse decision making in early-onset Parkinson's disease (PD) patients performing the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT). We compared 19 patients with early-onset PD (≤ 45 years) on dopaminergic medication (no evidence of depression, dementia, executive dysfunction according to the Tower of London test and the Stroop test, or pathological gambling) with 20 age-matched controls. A computer version of the IGT was employed. The PD patients achieved slightly lower IGT scores than the control group. A detailed analysis based on 'shift frequencies' between the individual decks showed that the patients tended to change their preferences for the decks more frequently, with a higher preference for the 'disadvantageous' deck B. Control subjects seemed to develop a more effective strategy. These differences could be caused by the poorer ability of the patients to develop any strategy at all. We observed changes in decision making during IGT performance in patients with early-onset PD, although they had no executive dysfunction as measured by established neuropsychological tests. The more detailed analysis employed in the present study could lead to a more accurate study of IGT performance and application of IGT in clinical practice.

Nanocrystalline chloroxine possesses broad-spectrum antimicrobial activities and excellent skin tolerability in mice.

Background: Antimicrobial submicrometer particles are being studied as promising interventions against a wide range of skin conditions, such as fungal or bacterial infections. Aims: To submicronize chloroxine, the crystalline compound 5,7-dichloro-8-hydroxyquinoline, by nanoprecipitation and characterize the resulting assemblies. Methods: The chloroxine particles were stabilized by a nonionic surfactant and were studied by a broth microdilution assay against 20 medically important bacteria and fungi. The intervention was studied using a murine model of skin irritation. Results & conclusion: Chloroxine nanoparticles with a diameter of 600-800 nm exhibit good tolerability in terms of skin irritation in vivo and good antimicrobial activity. Thus, the fabricated formulation shows great promise for interventions for both cutaneous infection control and prophylaxis.

Odor detection threshold, but not odor identification, is impaired in children with autism.

The aim of our study was to examine odor detection thresholds and odor identification in autistic subjects. Thirty-five patients with Asperger's syndrome and high functioning autism (mean age 10.8 ± 3.6 years; 31 boys) were compared with 35 healthy control subjects (mean age 10.4 ± 2.4 years; 28 boys). There were no significant differences between groups with regard to mean age (p = 0.598) and gender proportion (p = 0.324). Olfactory testing used the Sniffin' Sticks test (threshold and identification parts only). Participants with Asperger's syndrome and high functioning autism, in comparison with healthy controls, were significantly impaired relative to odor detection thresholds (6.3 ± 3.1 vs. 7.9 ± 2.0; p = 0.025). Autistic participants were significantly better in correctly identifying the odor of an orange (94 vs. 63%; p < 0.05) and significantly worse at correctly identifying the odor of cloves (40 vs. 74%; p < 0.05). With regard to identification of fourteen other substances, there were no significant differences. There was no significant difference between autistic and control subjects on the total score of olfactory identification (p = 0.799). Odor identification ability (as expressed by this total score) correlated significantly with age in the control group (p = 0.049), but not in the autism group (p = 0.103). We found impaired odor detection and almost normal odor identification in children with autism. Implications for further research are discussed.

Onset of action of atypical and typical antipsychotics in the treatment of adolescent schizophrenic psychoses.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of our study was to assess the time to 'first improvement' associated with specific atypical (AAP) and typical (TAP) antipsychotic drugs in patients with early-onset schizophrenia and other related psychotic disorders. METHODS: This study involved a systematic chart review of all patients receiving routine clinical care in our department, with selected AAPs and TAPs, for schizophrenic psychoses, between 1997 and 2007. During this period, our review identified 296 teenage patients (141 males, 155 females; mean age 16.0 ± 1.5 years). The time to first improvement could be estimated in 258 patients; of these, 195 patients (76%) had been treated with AAPs and 63 patients (24%) with TAPs. We found that most patients were taking risperidone (N = 96), followed by olanzapine (64 patients). Other patient numbers were as follows: ziprasidone (16 patients), quetiapine (12 patients), clozapine (7 patients), haloperidol (15 patients), perphenazine (28 patients), and sulpiride (20 patients). RESULTS: The mean time to first improvement was 6.9 (± 4.2) days in the AAP group and 5.8 (± 3.5) days in the TAP group; the difference was significant at the trend level (p=0.063). With respect to individual drugs, the mean time to first improvement was 7.1 (± 4.1) days for risperidone, 6.7 (± 4.2) days for olanzapine, 6.5 (± 5.2) days for ziprasidone, 6.1 (± 4.4) days for quetiapine, 7.4 (± 3.0) days for clozapine, 5.2 (± 2.4) days for haloperidol, 5.9 (± 3.8) days for perphenazine, and 6.0 (± 3.9) days for sulpiride. Differences among drugs were not significant (p=0.680). CONCLUSIONS: Analysis revealed a significant group level trend indicating that typical antipsychotic drugs have faster onsets of action than atypical antipsychotic drugs.

Psychometric Properties of the Independent and Interdependent Self-Construal Questionnaire: Evidence From the Czech Republic.

This article introduces a validation study of the Czech version of an independent and interdependent self-construal questionnaire (SCS, Vignoles et al., 2016) conducted on 330 Czech subjects. In this study, the reliability, convergent validity and factor validity were verified. However, the confirmatory factor analysis revealed unsatisfactory factor structure (RMSEA = 0.053 [0.048, 0.057], SRMR = 0.080, CFI = 0.775, TLI = 0.755). These results are discussed with respect to other adaptations of individualism/collectivism scales in countries beyond typical West-East dichotomy. Hence, the article not only critically discusses the shortcoming of the Czech and original versions of the questionnaires, but also the general issues of the individualism-collectivism construct in the cross-cultural context as a whole.

Item Analysis of the Czech Version of the WJ IV COG Battery from a Group of Romani Children.

The objective of the article is to present an item analysis of selected subtests of the Czech version of the WJ IV COG battery from a group of Romani children, ages 7-11. The research sample consisted of 400 school-aged Romani children from the Czech Republic who were selected by quota sampling. A partial comparative sample for the analysis was the Czech population collected as norms of the Czech edition of © Propsyco (n = 936). The Woodcock-Johnson IV COG was used as a research tool. Statistical analysis was performed in Winstep software using Differential Item Functioning; differences between groups were expressed in logits and tested via the Rasch-Welch T-test. It was discovered that higher item difficulty was noted in the verbal subtests, although variability in item difficulty was found across all subtests. The analysis of individual items makes it possible to discover which tasks are most culturally influenced.

Cinacalcet - clinical and laboratory effectiveness, concomitant treatment patterns and treatment cost: could we do better and how?

BACKGROUND: The cost and effectiveness patterns in the treatment of secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT) in dialysis patients in the Czech Republic are unknown. METHODS: 52 dialysis patients from 17 centers were followed up in a multicenter prospective study of laboratory and clinical (hospitalization rate, clinical complaints questionnaire) responses to 12-month cinacalcet treatment. Treatment patterns and cost (including phosphate binders, vitamin D, and cinacalcet) were evaluated. RESULTS: The mean s-Ca dropped significantly from 2.36 ± 0.24 to 2.21 ± 0.20 mmol/l, s-P from 2.45 ± 0.54 to 2.01 ± 0.53 mmol/l, Ca×P from 5.79 ± 1.25 to 4.42 ± 1.13 mmol²/l², and iPTH dropped from 919.0 ± 465.6 to 372.1 ± 294.6 pg/ml. The mean cinacalcet dose reached 44.1 ± 23.0 mg/day after 12 months. Itching intensity decreased significantly. No change in hospitalization rate was observed. The direct cost of daily SHPT treatment rose significantly from EUR 8.77 ± 9.59 to 20.62 ± 9.22. CONCLUSIONS: Cinacalcet decreased elevated s-Ca, s-P, Ca×P, and iPTH, alleviated itching, and significantly raised the SHPT treatment cost. A minority of patients reached K/DOQI targets, especially due to poor phosphate control caused by insufficient phosphate binder treatment, cinacalcet underdosing, and advanced SHPT.

γ-Butyrolactone Copolymerization with the Well-Documented Polymer Drug Carrier Poly(ethylene oxide)-block-poly(ε-caprolactone) to Fine-Tune Its Biorelevant Properties.

Polymeric drug carriers exhibit excellent properties that advance drug delivery systems. In particular, carriers based on poly(ethylene oxide)-block-poly(ε-caprolactone) are very useful in pharmacokinetics. In addition to their proven biocompatibility, there are several requirements for the efficacy of the polymeric drug carriers after internalization, e.g., nanoparticle behavior, cellular uptake, the rate of degradation, and cellular localization. The introduction of γ-butyrolactone units into the hydrophobic block enables the tuning of the abovementioned properties over a wide range. In this study, a relatively high content of γ-butyrolactone units with a reasonable yield of ≈60% is achieved by anionic ring-opening copolymerization using 1,5,7-triazabicyclo[4.4.0]dec-5-ene as a very efficient catalyst in the nonpolar environment of toluene with an incorporated γ-butyrolactone content of ≈30%. The content of γ-butyrolactone units can be easily modulated according to the feed ratio of the monomers. This method enables control over the rate of degradation so that when the content of γ-butyrolactone increases, the rate of degradation increases. These findings broaden the application possibilities of polyester-polyether-based nanoparticles for biomedical applications, such as drug delivery systems.

Neural correlates of affective picture processing--a depth ERP study.

Using functional neuroimaging techniques (PET and fMRI), various cortical, limbic, and paralimbic structures have been identified in the last decade as neural substrates of human emotion. In this study we used a novel approach (intracerebral recordings of event-related potentials) to add to our knowledge of specific brain regions involved in affective picture processing. Ten intractable epileptic patients undergoing pre-surgical depth electrode recording viewed pleasant, neutral, and unpleasant pictures and intracerebral event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded. A total of 752 cortical and subcortical sites were investigated. Significant differences in ERPs to unpleasant as compared to neutral or pleasant pictures were frequently and consistently observed in recordings from various brain areas--the mesial temporal cortex (the amygdala, the hippocampus, the temporal pole), the lateral temporal cortex, the mesial prefrontal cortex (ACC and the medial frontal gyrus), and the lateral prefrontal cortex. Interestingly, the mean latencies of responses to emotional stimuli were somewhat shorter in the frontal lobe structures (with evidently earlier activation within lateral prefrontal areas when compared to mesial prefrontal cortex) and longer in the temporal lobe regions. These differences, however, were not significant. Additional clearly positive findings were observed in some rarely investigated regions--in the posterior parietal cortex, the precuneus, and the insula. An approximately equivalent number of positive findings was revealed in the left and right hemisphere structures. These results are in agreement with a multisystem model of human emotion, distributed far beyond the typical limbic system and substantially comprising lateral aspects of both frontal lobes as well.

Weight gain associated with atypical and typical antipsychotics during treatment of adolescent schizophrenic psychoses: A retrospective study.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of the study was to assess weight changes associated with certain atypical (AAP) and typical (TAP) antipsychotic drugs in patients with early-onset schizophrenia and other related psychotic disorders. METHODS: Our retrospective study included 109 patients (52 boys, 57 girls) with a mean age of 15.8 +/- 1.6 years. The patients were evaluated based to their medical records prior to starting therapy, and then after 1, 3, and 6 weeks of treatment. RESULTS: During the first week of treatment, the AAP group (n = 85; risperidone, olanzapine, ziprasidone, and clozapine) gained 1.5% of baseline weight whereas the TAP group (n = 24; haloperidol, perphenazine, and sulpiride) gained only 0.2% (p = 0.049). Differences in relative changes between the two groups were not significant at weeks 3 and 6. Expressed as absolute values, patients in our sample gained an average of 3.4 kg (SD 3.2) on AAP and 2.0 kg (SD 3.9) on TAP during 6 weeks of treatment (p = 0.335). Only the risperidone, olanzapine, and clozapine groups had sufficient numbers of patients to allow a comparison at the endpoint of the study (week 6). The patients gained, on average, 3.6 kg (SD 2.6) on risperidone, 4.4 kg (SD 2.5) on olanzapine, and 2.1 kg (SD 4.0) on clozapine during the six weeks of treatment (p = 0.286). CONCLUSIONS: In our study, we did not find a difference in weight gain between the AAP and TAP groups, as large as has been described in the literature. It also seems plausible that the unique and variable weight changes associated with individual AAPs in the pediatric population are different from those observed in the adult population.