Neurobiology of social behavior abnormalities in autism and Williams syndrome

Social behavior is a basic behavior mediated by multiple brain regions and neural circuits, and is crucial for the survival and development of animals and humans. Two neuropsychiatric disorders that have prominent social behavior abnormalities are autism spectrum disorders (ASD), which is characterized mainly by hyposociability, and Williams syndrome (WS), whose subjects exhibit hypersociability. Here we review the unique properties of social behavior in ASD and WS, and discuss the major theories in social behavior in the context of these disorders. We conclude with a discussion of the research questions needing further exploration to enhance our understanding of social behavior abnormalities

Reconstruction of metabolic pathways for the cattle genome

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Metabolic reconstruction of microbial, plant and animal genomes is a necessary step toward understanding the evolutionary origins of metabolism and species-specific adaptive traits. The aims of this study were to reconstruct conserved metabolic pathways in the cattle genome and to identify metabolic pathways with missing genes and proteins. The MetaCyc database and PathwayTools software suite were chosen for this work because they are widely used and easy to implement.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>An amalgamated cattle genome database was created using the NCBI and Ensembl cattle genome databases (based on build 3.1) as data sources. PathwayTools was used to create a cattle-specific pathway genome database, which was followed by comprehensive manual curation for the reconstruction of metabolic pathways. The curated database, CattleCyc 1.0, consists of 217 metabolic pathways. A total of 64 mammalian-specific metabolic pathways were modified from the reference pathways in MetaCyc, and two pathways previously identified but missing from MetaCyc were added. Comparative analysis of metabolic pathways revealed the absence of mammalian genes for 22 metabolic enzymes whose activity was reported in the literature. We also identified six human metabolic protein-coding genes for which the cattle ortholog is missing from the sequence assembly.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>CattleCyc is a powerful tool for understanding the biology of ruminants and other cetartiodactyl species. In addition, the approach used to develop CattleCyc provides a framework for the metabolic reconstruction of other newly sequenced mammalian genomes. It is clear that metabolic pathway analysis strongly reflects the quality of the underlying genome annotations. Thus, having well-annotated genomes from many mammalian species hosted in BioCyc will facilitate the comparative analysis of metabolic pathways among different species and a systems approach to comparative physiology.</p

Prenatal Immune Challenge Is an Environmental Risk Factor for Brain and Behavior Change Relevant to Schizophrenia: Evidence from MRI in a Mouse Model

Objectives: Maternal infection during pregnancy increases risk of severe neuropsychiatric disorders, including schizophrenia and autism, in the offspring. The most consistent brain structural abnormality in patients with schizophrenia is enlarged lateral ventricles. However, it is unknown whether the aetiology of ventriculomegaly in schizophrenia involves prenatal infectious processes. The present experiments tested the hypothesis that there is a causal relationship between prenatal immune challenge and emergence of ventricular abnormalities relevant to schizophrenia in adulthood. Method: We used an established mouse model of maternal immune activation (MIA) by the viral mimic Polyl:C administered in early (day 9) or late (day 17) gestation. Automated voxel-based morphometry mapped cerebrospinal fluid across the whole brain of adult offspring and the results were validated by manual region-of-interest tracing of the lateral ventricles. Parallel behavioral testing determined the existence of schizophrenia-related sensorimotor gating abnormalities. Results: Polyl:C-induced immune activation, in early but not late gestation, caused marked enlargement of lateral ventricles in adulthood, without affecting total white and grey matter volumes. This early exposure disrupted sensorimotor gating, in the form of prepulse inhibition. Identical immune challenge in late gestation resulted in significant expansion of 4th ventricle volume but did not disrupt sensorimotor gating. Conclusions: Our results provide the first experimental evidence that prenatal immune activation is an environmental risk factor for adult ventricular enlargement relevant to schizophrenia. The data indicate immune-associated environmental insults targeting early foetal development may have more extensive neurodevelopmental impact than identical insults in late prenatal life. © 2009 Li et al.published_or_final_versio

Consensus Paper: Cerebellum and Social Cognition.

The traditional view on the cerebellum is that it controls motor behavior. Although recent work has revealed that the cerebellum supports also nonmotor functions such as cognition and affect, only during the last 5 years it has become evident that the cerebellum also plays an important social role. This role is evident in social cognition based on interpreting goal-directed actions through the movements of individuals (social "mirroring") which is very close to its original role in motor learning, as well as in social understanding of other individuals' mental state, such as their intentions, beliefs, past behaviors, future aspirations, and personality traits (social "mentalizing"). Most of this mentalizing role is supported by the posterior cerebellum (e.g., Crus I and II). The most dominant hypothesis is that the cerebellum assists in learning and understanding social action sequences, and so facilitates social cognition by supporting optimal predictions about imminent or future social interaction and cooperation. This consensus paper brings together experts from different fields to discuss recent efforts in understanding the role of the cerebellum in social cognition, and the understanding of social behaviors and mental states by others, its effect on clinical impairments such as cerebellar ataxia and autism spectrum disorder, and how the cerebellum can become a potential target for noninvasive brain stimulation as a therapeutic intervention. We report on the most recent empirical findings and techniques for understanding and manipulating cerebellar circuits in humans. Cerebellar circuitry appears now as a key structure to elucidate social interactions

THREE WEEKS OF CROSSFIT® TRAINING DOES NOT CONTRIBUTE TO OVERTRAINING SYNDROME IN RECREATIONALLY TRAINED MALES: A PILOT STUDY

Derek. A. Crawford1, Josh. Smeed1, and Michael. J. Carper2 1Applied Movement Science Laboratory, and 2Applied Physiology Laboratory. Department of Health, Human Performance and Recreation, Pittsburg State University, Pittsburg, KS, USA Physical inactivity remains a significant public health concern. CrossFit® (CF) is currently one of the most popular health and fitness activities. However, CF faces strong opposition and criticism claiming it causes injury. PURPOSE: Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate if CF participation contributes to overtraining syndrome. A secondary purpose was to determine if there are differences between CF original methodologies and real-world practice. METHODS: Six recreationally trained males (height, 182.8 ± 8.6 cm; weight, 84.3 ± 12.4 kg, and age, 25.0 ± 5.4 years) were randomized into two groups, either theoretical (TH) or real-world (RW) prior to the intervention. Both groups completed pre-testing assessment of body composition, physiological, biochemical, psychological, and performance-based data. Both groups participated in CF training 5 days/week. However, the TH group completed training designed to follow original CF methodology while the RW group followed programming designed by a randomly selected CF affiliate. At the beginning and end of each week blood was collected for serum analyses and select joint range-of-motions (ROM) were measured. Additionally, prior to each training session, resting heart rate (RHR), blood pressure (BP), muscle soreness (DOMS), and select training variables were collected. Following the completion of each training session, HR and perceived exertion (RPE) were collected. RESULTS: There are no significant differences in physiological, biochemical, immunological, psychological, or performance outcome variables assessed in this study for both between groups and pre-post testing (all p \u3e .05). However, there are differences in intervention programming between TR and RW groups. In practice, there were significantly less element priority sessions in practice compared to what is recommended (40% vs 0%; χ2=8.25; p=.016). Further, these element priority sessions had significantly lower associated training heart rates (127.4 vs 167.0, 172.4 bpm; F=8.63; p=.001) and ratings of perceived exertions (9.4 vs 14.8, 14.7; F=15.26; p=.000) than other session designs common in CF. CONCLUSION: These data suggest that short-term CF participation does not contribute to the development of overtraining syndrome in recreationally trained males. Questions still remain on the potential for where CF may have the greatest impact on health and fitness and its implementation in practice. This project was funded through an Independent Faculty Research Award provided by the Council for Research and Discovery at Pittsburg State University

EFFECTS OF HEART RATE VARIABILITY-GUIDED PRESCRIPTIONS ON THE FITNESS OUTCOMES OF HIGH INTENSITY FUNCTIONAL TRAINING

Nicholas Drake1, Michael J. Carper1, & Derek A. Crawford1 1Pittsburg State University, Pittsburg, KS. High intensity functional training (HIFT) is predicated on individuals giving constant maximum effort/intensity each session; constant maximal effort can result in maladaptation such as overreaching or overtraining. PURPOSE: To determine the effectiveness of heart rate variability (HRV) as a tool to optimize training stimuli and recovery during HIFT. METHODS: Twenty-five recreationally-trained males and females were randomized to either an experimental (EXP; n=10) or control (CON; n=15) group and a 14-day baseline of HRV was established prior to study commencement. Participants then completed a two three-week (5 days/week) HIFT intervention with outcomes assessed pre-, mid (i.e., after week 3), and post-intervention. HRV status was monitored continuously using the root mean square of successive R-R interval deviations (RMSSD7-day)throughout the study duration. Daily training intensity was determined for EXP according to the magnitude of deviation from individuals’ baseline mean RMSSD7-day;resulting in training prescriptions of full effort (within 0.5 standard deviation), moderate effort (±0.51 – 1.0 standard deviation), or active recovery (greater than ±1.0 standard deviation). CON performed every session at maximum effort/intensity. Outcomes of interest were physical work capacity (WC) and the summation of one-repetition maximums for back squat, standing shoulder press, and deadlift exercises (Total). RESULTS: No significant group by time interaction for either outcome variable was observed, however there were significant main effects for time for both. WC increased for CON (F = 9.70; p \u3c 0.01; mean diff. = 15.7 reps; 95% CI = 4.49, 27.07) and EXP (F = 37.18; p \u3c 0.001; mean diff. = 14.2 reps; 95% CI = 8.50, 19.89). Similarly, Total increased within both groups (CON: mean diff. = 13.84 kg, 95% CI = 7.47, 20.20, F = 23.44, p \u3c 0.001; EXP: mean diff. = 14.14 kg, 95% CI = 4.65, 23.63, F = 2.61; p = 0.018). In addition, there was a significant difference in days spent training at full effort/intensity between groups (EXP:15.4 ± 6.75 days; CON: 25.67 ± 2.94 days; F = 27.355, p \u3c 0.001). CONCLUSION: Individualized HIFT prescriptions, based on RMSSD7-day of HRV, resulted in comparable fitness outcomes between EXP and CON groups. However, EXP spent significantly less time training at maximum effort/intensity