Clinical stance on response initiation in autistic adults:co-creating an integrative approach based on theory and lived experiences to act from language, via motor movement to wellbeing

Getting ‘stuck’, literally and figuratively, is a common experience for autistic people. Literally ‘stuck’ means exhibiting limited response initiation due to immobility with tense muscles and inability to move. Figuratively ‘stuck’ means loneliness, passivity or captivity in activities that do not offer long-term satisfaction. To further conceptualize this complex phenomenon of limited response initiation in autistic individuals, we performed qualitative interviews and focus groups with autistic people and their family members, followed by brainstorm sessions and a Delphi study with input from a larger panel of experts from multiple backgrounds. We aimed to co-create the outline of an integrative approach to support autistic people in moving away from this ‘stuck state’ to more flexible, limber ‘supple states’ in order to live freer, more meaningful, satisfying and peaceful lives. Over time, in interaction with all participants, our shared insight grew. Based on this, we here stipulate a conceptual framework, in which the described ‘stuck state’ at the micro-level of the muscles/behavior of one individual, probably is caused by feeling/being ‘stuck’ or ‘cramped’ at several overarching (i.e., meso and macro) levels. For instance, stuck in relationships with unhealthy dynamics, stuck at home creating short-term calm, trance-like states (e.g., gaming), stuck at an educational level that might fit the individuals’ current social–emotional state rather than their potential cognitive level, stuck in a job that pays the bills but does not feel meaningful, nor contributes to a satisfying life with opportunities for personal development. Stuck in a mental/public health care system where ever ongoing changes in policies hinder sustained support to suit care-needs. Stuck in a regulated societal system making it likely to repeatedly get stuck. Is this phenomenon specific to autism? Formally we have only conducted interviews with this population, but in another smaller, related project we also spoke to people from the general population with careers that are considered successful in the general society. These people actually voiced similar experiences. Therefore, we hypothesize that this numbing state of being or feeling ‘stuck’ may be a prevalent phenomenon that needs to be addressed. In this article, we discuss several types of interventive approaches (i.e., language-based talking therapies, affective experiential expressive therapies, physical therapies and systemic therapies), prevention as well as intervention programs, directed at different primary stakeholders, that can complement and enrich each other in an integrative policy, that leads to tailor-made, personalized trajectories of interdisciplinary support to enable people to live satisfying, meaningful, dignified and peaceful lives.</p

Shape-Based Tracking Allows Functional Discrimination of Two Immune Cell Subsets Expressing the Same Fluorescent Tag in Mouse Lung Explant

Dendritic Cells (DC) represent a key lung immune cell population, which play a critical role in the antigen presenting process and initiation of the adaptive immune response. The study of DCs has largely benefited from the joint development of fluorescence microscopy and knock-in technology, leading to several mouse strains with constitutively labeled DC subsets. However, in the lung most transgenic mice do express fluorescent protein not only in DCs, but also in closely related cell lineages such as monocytes and macrophages. As an example, in the lungs of CX3CR1+/gfp mice the green fluorescent protein is expressed mostly by both CD11b conventional DCs and resident monocytes. Despite this non-specific staining, we show that a shape criterion can discriminate these two particular subsets. Implemented in a cell tracking code, this quantified criterion allows us to analyze the specific behavior of DCs under inflammatory conditions mediated by lipopolysaccharide on lung explants. Compared to monocytes, we show that DCs move slower and are more confined, while both populations do not have any chemotactism-associated movement. We could generalize from these results that DCs can be automatically discriminated from other round-shaped cells expressing the same fluorescent protein in various lung inflammation models

Clinical stance on response initiation in autistic adults: co-creating an integrative approach based on theory and lived experiences to act from language, via motor movement to wellbeing

Getting ‘stuck’, literally and figuratively, is a common experience for autistic people. Literally ‘stuck’ means exhibiting limited response initiation due to immobility with tense muscles and inability to move. Figuratively ‘stuck’ means loneliness, passivity or captivity in activities that do not offer long-term satisfaction. To further conceptualize this complex phenomenon of limited response initiation in autistic individuals, we performed qualitative interviews and focus groups with autistic people and their family members, followed by brainstorm sessions and a Delphi study with input from a larger panel of experts from multiple backgrounds. We aimed to co-create the outline of an integrative approach to support autistic people in moving away from this ‘stuck state’ to more flexible, limber ‘supple states’ in order to live freer, more meaningful, satisfying and peaceful lives. Over time, in interaction with all participants, our shared insight grew. Based on this, we here stipulate a conceptual framework, in which the described ‘stuck state’ at the micro-level of the muscles/behavior of one individual, probably is caused by feeling/being ‘stuck’ or ‘cramped’ at several overarching (i.e., meso and macro) levels. For instance, stuck in relationships with unhealthy dynamics, stuck at home creating short-term calm, trance-like states (e.g., gaming), stuck at an educational level that might fit the individuals’ current social–emotional state rather than their potential cognitive level, stuck in a job that pays the bills but does not feel meaningful, nor contributes to a satisfying life with opportunities for personal development. Stuck in a mental/public health care system where ever ongoing changes in policies hinder sustained support to suit care-needs. Stuck in a regulated societal system making it likely to repeatedly get stuck. Is this phenomenon specific to autism? Formally we have only conducted interviews with this population, but in another smaller, related project we also spoke to people from the general population with careers that are considered successful in the general society. These people actually voiced similar experiences. Therefore, we hypothesize that this numbing state of being or feeling ‘stuck’ may be a prevalent phenomenon that needs to be addressed. In this article, we discuss several types of interventive approaches (i.e., language-based talking therapies, affective experiential expressive therapies, physical therapies and systemic therapies), prevention as well as intervention programs, directed at different primary stakeholders, that can complement and enrich each other in an integrative policy, that leads to tailor-made, personalized trajectories of interdisciplinary support to enable people to live satisfying, meaningful, dignified and peaceful lives

Characterization of the ability of a, second-generation SST-DA chimeric molecule, TBR-065, to suppress GH secretion from human GH-secreting adenoma cells

International audienceSomatostatin (SST) and dopamine (DA) inhibit growth hormone (GH) secretion and proliferation of GH-secreting pituitary adenomas (GHomas) through binding to SSTR2 and D2R receptors. Chimeric SST-DA compounds (Dopastatins) display increased potency in inhibiting GH secretion, as compared with individual SST or DA analogs (alone or combined)