Time-based prospective memory in children and adolescents with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome.

OBJECTIVE: 22q11.2 deletion syndrome, also known as velo-cardio-facial syndrome (VCFS) is a genetic disorder caused by a microdeletion on chromosome 22q11.2 and characterized by marked impairment in visual attention and executive function. The present study examined if this cognitive deficit extends to prospective memory (the type of memory involved in remembering to perform actions in the future). METHOD: 20 participants with 22q11.2DS aged between 6 and 14 were included in the study as well as 22 typically developing individuals (TDC) aged 6-12. To measure prospective memory, participants were asked to play a driving game (the Dresden Cruiser). This time-based prospective memory task required children to remember to refuel their car when the fuel level was low by pressing a refuel button while driving. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Participants with 22q11.2DS remembered less often to refuel the car. Furthermore, participants with 22q11.2DS checked the fuel gage significantly less often than the controls. CONCLUSIONS: Participants with 22q11.2DS therefore demonstrate difficulties completing a time-based prospective memory task. This can be explained by a generally less frequent time checking behavior in comparison to TDC.

Does Embryo Culture Medium Influence the Health and Development of Children Born after In Vitro Fertilization?

In animal studies, extensive data revealed the influence of culture medium on embryonic development, foetal growth and the behaviour of offspring. However, this impact has never been investigated in humans. For the first time, we investigated in depth the effects of embryo culture media on health, growth and development of infants conceived by In Vitro Fertilization until the age of 5 years old. This single-centre cohort study was based on an earlier randomized study. During six months, in vitro fertilization attempts (No. 371) were randomized according to two media (Single Step Medium--SSM group) or Global medium (Global group). This randomized study was stopped prematurely as significantly lower pregnancy and implantation rates were observed in the SSM group. Singletons (No. 73) conceived in the randomized study were included (42 for Global and 31 for SSM). The medical data for gestational, neonatal and early childhood periods were extracted from medical records and parental interviews (256 variables recorded). The developmental profiles of the children in eight domains (social, self-help, gross motor, fine motor, expressive language, language comprehension, letter knowledge and number knowledge--270 items) were compared in relation to the culture medium. The delivery rate was significantly lower in the SSM group than in the Global group (p<0.05). The culture medium had no significant effect on birthweight, risk of malformation (minor and major), growth and the frequency of medical concerns. However, the children of the Global group were less likely than those of the SSM group to show developmental problems (p = 0.002), irrespective of the different domains. In conclusion, our findings showed that the embryo culture medium may have an impact on further development.