It doesn\u27t hurt to smile ...Or Does It? Tend and Befriend Reactions to Stress During Hookups

Acquiring clear consent during hookups can be challenging. Previous research suggested that humans engage in a fight or flight response under stress. More recently, a tend and befriend model was hypothesized by Taylor (2000, 2002) to explain how many people, especially women, respond with friendly or nurturant behavior in stressful situations. Young adults completed a survey assessing their various behaviors during stressful hookup encounters. Behaviors were categorized as either tend and befriend or fight or flight response. Tend and befriend behaviors included smiling nervously and more. This study looked at gender differences in regards to stressful hookup situations.https://orb.binghamton.edu/research_days_posters_spring2020/1028/thumbnail.jp

Intranasal oxytocin in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder

BACKGROUND Experimental studies and small clinical trials have suggested that treatment with intranasal oxytocin may reduce social impairment in persons with autism spectrum disorder. Oxytocin has been administered in clinical practice to many children with autism spectrum disorder. METHODS We conducted a 24-week, placebo-controlled phase 2 trial of intranasal oxytocin therapy in children and adolescents 3 to 17 years of age with autism spectrum disorder. Participants were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio, with stratification according to age and verbal fluency, to receive oxytocin or placebo, administered intranasally, with a total target dose of 48 international units daily. The primary outcome was the least-squares mean change from baseline on the Aberrant Behavior Checklist modified Social Withdrawal subscale (ABC-mSW), which includes 13 items (scores range from 0 to 39, with higher scores indicating less social interaction). Secondary outcomes included two additional measures of social function and an abbreviated measure of IQ. RESULTS Of the 355 children and adolescents who underwent screening, 290 were enrolled. A total of 146 participants were assigned to the oxytocin group and 144 to the placebo group; 139 and 138 participants, respectively, completed both the baseline and at least one postbaseline ABC-mSW assessments and were included in the modified intention-to-treat analyses. The least-squares mean change from baseline in the ABC-mSW score (primary outcome) was −3.7 in the oxytocin group and −3.5 in the placebo group (least-squares mean difference, −0.2; 95% confidence interval, −1.5 to 1.0; P=0.61). Secondary outcomes generally did not differ between the trial groups. The incidence and severity of adverse events were similar in the two groups. CONCLUSIONS This placebo-controlled trial of intranasal oxytocin therapy in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder showed no significant between-group differences in the least-squares mean change from baseline on measures of social or cognitive functioning over a period of 24 weeks

Social visual attentional engagement and memory in Phelan-McDermid syndrome and autism spectrum disorder: a pilot eye tracking study

Background The current study used eye tracking to investigate attention and recognition memory in Phelan-McDermid syndrome (PMS), a rare genetic disorder characterized by intellectual disability, motor delays, and a high likelihood of comorbid autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Social deficits represent a core feature of ASD, including decreased propensity to orient to or show preference for social stimuli. Methods We used a visual paired-comparison task with both social and non-social images, assessing looking behavior to a novel image versus a previously viewed familiar image to characterize social attention and recognition memory in PMS (n = 22), idiopathic ASD (iASD, n = 38), and typically developing (TD) controls (n = 26). The idiopathic ASD cohort was divided into subgroups with intellectual disabilities (ID; developmental quotient 70) and the PMS group into those with and without a co-morbid ASD diagnosis. Results On measures of attention, the PMS group with a comorbid ASD diagnosis spent less time viewing the social images compared to non-social images; the rate of looking back and forth between images was lowest in the iASD with ID group. Furthermore, while all groups demonstrated intact recognition memory when novel non-social stimuli were initially presented (pre-switch), participants with PMS showed no preference during the post-switch memory presentation. In iASD, the group without ID, but not the group with ID, showed a novelty preference for social stimuli. Across indices, individuals with PMS and ASD performed more similarly to PMS without ASD and less similarly to the iASD group. Conclusion These findings demonstrate further evidence of differences in attention and memory for social stimuli in ASD and provide contrasts between iASD and PMS

Examining agency governance in the European Union financial sector – a case-study of the European Securities and Markets Authority

Ever since the outset of the financial crisis of 2009, agencies have emerged as key actors of European Union (EU) financial sector governance. As an organisational form that can be insulated from national political pressures, and committed to the Union interest, agencies proliferated in the financial sector ushering the agencification trend in finance. In this sense, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) – as part of the European Supervisory Authorities – practically embodies this trend. ESMA presents a radical shift in financial markets’ governance due to the nature of its soft law regulations and the direct impact it exerts on addressees’ behaviour in emergency circumstances. But ESMA’s success in optimising financial sector governance largely depends on its legitimacy, which is centred on independence. At the same time independence demands wider participation and inclusiveness of the decision-making process. This is not easy to achieve in a complex system with multiple stakeholders as is the governance of the EU financial sector (e.g., EU institutions, national actors, private sector). This paper examines ESMA’s interinstitutional relations and independence in light of publicly voiced criticism. We find that ESMA’s main executive bodies are still susceptible to influences by Member States as well as EU institutions (i.e., Commission), which undermines its operational independence

Delineation of the genetic and clinical spectrum of Phelan-McDermid syndrome caused by SHANK3 point mutations

Abstract Background Phelan-McDermid syndrome (PMS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by psychiatric and neurological features. Most reported cases are caused by 22q13.3 deletions, leading to SHANK3 haploinsufficiency, but also usually encompassing many other genes. While the number of point mutations identified in SHANK3 has increased in recent years due to large-scale sequencing studies, systematic studies describing the phenotype of individuals harboring such mutations are lacking. Methods We provide detailed clinical and genetic data on 17 individuals carrying mutations in SHANK3. We also review 60 previously reported patients with pathogenic or likely pathogenic SHANK3 variants, often lacking detailed phenotypic information. Results SHANK3 mutations in our cohort and in previously reported cases were distributed throughout the protein; the majority were truncating and all were compatible with de novo inheritance. Despite substantial allelic heterogeneity, four variants were recurrent (p.Leu1142Valfs*153, p.Ala1227Glyfs*69, p.Arg1255Leufs*25, and c.2265+1G>A), suggesting that these are hotspots for de novo mutations. All individuals studied had intellectual disability, and autism spectrum disorder was prevalent (73%). Severe speech deficits were common, but in contrast to individuals with 22q13.3 deletions, the majority developed single words, including 41% with at least phrase speech. Other common findings were consistent with reports among individuals with 22q13.3 deletions, including hypotonia, motor skill deficits, regression, seizures, brain abnormalities, mild dysmorphic features, and feeding and gastrointestinal problems. Conclusions Haploinsufficiency of SHANK3 resulting from point mutations is sufficient to cause a broad range of features associated with PMS. Our findings expand the molecular and phenotypic spectrum of PMS caused by SHANK3 point mutations and suggest that, in general, speech impairment and motor deficits are more severe in the case of deletions. In contrast, renal abnormalities associated with 22q13.3 deletions do not appear to be related to the loss of SHANK3

Visual evoked potential abnormalities in Phelan-McDermid syndrome.

The current study utilized visual evoked potentials (VEPs) to examine excitatory and inhibitory postsynaptic activity in children with Phelan-McDermid syndrome (PMS) and the association with genetic factors. PMS is caused by haploinsufficiency of SHANK3 on chromosome 22 and represents a common single-gene cause of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and intellectual disability. Transient VEPs were obtained from 175 children, including 31 with PMS, 79 with idiopathic ASD, 45 typically developing controls, and 20 unaffected siblings of children with PMS. Stimuli included standard and short-duration contrast-reversing checkerboard conditions and the reliability between these two conditions was assessed. Test-retest reliability and correlations with deletion size were explored in the group with PMS. Children with PMS and, to a lesser extent, those with idiopathic ASD, displayed significantly smaller amplitudes and decreased beta and gamma band activity relative to TD controls and PMS siblings. Across groups, high intraclass correlation coefficients were obtained between standard and short-duration conditions. In children with PMS, test-retest reliability was strong. Deletion size was significantly correlated with P -N amplitude for both conditions. Children with PMS displayed distinct transient VEP waveform abnormalities in both time and frequency domains that might reflect underlying glutamatergic deficits which were associated with deletion size. A similar response pattern was observed in a subset of children with idiopathic ASD. VEPs offer a noninvasive measure of excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmission that holds promise for stratification and surrogate endpoints in ongoing clinical trials in PMS and ASD

Additional file 2: of Delineation of the genetic and clinical spectrum of Phelan-McDermid syndrome caused by SHANK3 point mutations

Table S5. Descriptive and diagnostic data by patient. Table S6. ASD and intellectual ability classifications in individuals with SHANK3 mutations. Table S7. Language and motor functioning in individuals with SHANK3 mutations. (PDF 132 kb

Additional file 1: of Delineation of the genetic and clinical spectrum of Phelan-McDermid syndrome caused by SHANK3 point mutations

Table S1. Loss of function and de novo missense variants in SHANK3 reported previously. Table S2. Clinical features of individuals with pathogenic or likely pathogenic SHANK3 variants reported in the literature. Table S3. In silico prediction of pathogenicity of missense variants in SHANK3 identified in this study and in the literature. Table S4. Reported truncating and in-frame variants in SHANK3 unlikely to be pathogenic. (XLSX 84 kb