USING EMOTIONS: BIOLOGICAL AND SOCIAL FACTORS INFLUENCING EMOTION UNDERSTANDING AND ANTISOCIALITY

People are guided by their emotions which in turn are a consequence of their understanding of others’ emotion expressions. Their skills to read and accurately identify others’ emotion expressions are a key ingredient for good emotion understanding. That is, accurate emotion identification can be considered as the first frontier of successful emotion understanding, and as the first step of a sequence which results in empathic responding. Impairment within this sequence might mean that the way people respond to their environment may not be appropriate or even cause harm to others. Children and adolescents with callous-unemotional traits have difficulties reading emotional cues correctly, specifically those cues which show others in distress. Such an impairment is thought to underlie a distinct pathway to severe and stable antisocial behaviour. Conventional methods of curbing the antisocial behaviour of children with high callous-unemotional traits such as punishment or time-out do not have the desired effect. Instead, this group of individuals seems to respond well to parental warmth and sensitive responding. Given that children start to learn early how to read and respond to emotions in an empathic manner through interactions, parents have a potential role by intervening early to foster good emotional and social skills even in children with high callous-unemotional traits. Study 1 tested whether adolescent boys with high callous-unemotional traits exhibit an impairment that is specific to distress cues such as fear, sadness or pain as difficulties to recognise such cues in others may impair typical inhibition to behave in an antisocial manner. In Study 2, it was expected that successful parental scaffolding is dependent on parent’s own emotion understanding skills, and therefore, study 2 investigated ways in which parents can scaffold emotion understanding in typically developing children, e.g. through talking about others’ emotion states and through engaging children in mutual eye gaze. Study 3 examined the impact that varying levels of child callous-unemotional traits have on parent-child interaction. Specifically, it was of interest whether children with high callous-unemotional traits are willing to engage with their parents on an emotional level permitting successful parental scaffolding. Parental understanding of emotions was tested in terms of promoting parental sensitive responsiveness. In sum, there are three main points the present thesis contributed: first, findings of Study 1 and 3 support a theory of emotion processing impairment that is not specific to fear or sadness, but describe a broader impairment of a failure to engage with the emotional environment and attend to salient emotional stimuli. Second, this thesis confirms the value of studying callous-unemotional traits in adolescents and young children as well as their parents. Third, findings of Studies 2 and 3 support the important role parents play in the lives of their children with callous-unemotional traits, specifically through their own emotion understanding

CAPE for measuring callous-unemotional traits in disadvantaged families: a cross-sectional validation study [version 1; peer review: awaiting peer review]

Background: Callous-unemotional (CU) traits are important for designating a distinct subgroup of children and adolescents with behaviour problems. As a result, CU traits are now used to form the specifier “with Limited Prosocial Emotions” that is part of the diagnostic criteria for the Conduct Disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5th Edition (DSM-5) and International Classification of Diseases 11th Revision (ICD-11). Given this inclusion in major classification systems, it is important to develop and test methods for assessing these traits that can be used in clinical settings. The present study aimed to validate a clinician rating of CU traits, the Clinical Assessment of Prosocial Emotions, Version 1.1 (CAPE 1.1), in a sample of hard-to-reach families referred to a government program designed to prevent the development of behaviour problems in high risk families. Methods: Clinical ratings of children were obtained from 34 families of children ages 3 to 19 (M=12.2; SD=4.3). The ratings on the CAPE 1.1 were based on interviews with both parent and child. Results: Of the sample, 21% (100% male) met the diagnostic cut-off for the specifier according to the CAPE 1.1, and CAPE 1.1 scores were associated with parent ratings of CU traits, psychopathic traits, and externalising behaviours. CAPE 1.1 ratings were also associated with risk for violence obtained from case files. Conclusions: These findings provide preliminary evidence for the validity of the CAPE 1.1 as clinician rated measure of CU traits

CAPE for measuring callous-unemotional traits in disadvantaged families: a cross-sectional validation study

Background: Callous-unemotional (CU) traits are important for designating a distinct subgroup of children and adolescents with behaviour problems. As a result, CU traits are now used to form the specifier “with Limited Prosocial Emotions” that is part of the diagnostic criteria for the Conduct Disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5th Edition (DSM-5) and International Classification of Diseases 11th Revision (ICD-11). Given this inclusion in major classification systems, it is important to develop and test methods for assessing these traits that can be used in clinical settings. The present study aimed to validate a clinician rating of CU traits, the Clinical Assessment of Prosocial Emotions, Version 1.1 (CAPE 1.1), in a sample of hard-to-reach families referred to a government program designed to prevent the development of behaviour problems in high risk families. Methods: Clinical ratings of children were obtained from 34 families of children ages 3 to 19 (M=12.2; SD=4.3). The ratings on the CAPE 1.1 were based on interviews with both parent and child. Results: Of the sample, 21% (100% male) met the diagnostic cut-off for the specifier according to the CAPE 1.1, and CAPE 1.1 scores were associated with parent ratings of CU traits, psychopathic traits, and externalising behaviours. CAPE 1.1 ratings were also associated with risk for violence obtained from case files. Conclusions: These findings provide preliminary evidence for the validity of the CAPE 1.1 as clinician rated measure of CU traits

Correction: Characterization and Therapeutic Potential of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiovascular Progenitor Cells.

<div><h3>Background</h3><p>Cardiovascular progenitor cells (CPCs) have been identified within the developing mouse heart and differentiating pluripotent stem cells by intracellular transcription factors Nkx2.5 and Islet 1 (Isl1). Study of endogenous and induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived CPCs has been limited due to the lack of specific cell surface markers to isolate them and conditions for their <em>in vitro</em> expansion that maintain their multipotency.</p> <h3>Methodology/Principal Findings</h3><p>We sought to identify specific cell surface markers that label endogenous embryonic CPCs and validated these markers in iPSC-derived Isl1⁺/Nkx2.5⁺ CPCs. We developed conditions that allow propagation and characterization of endogenous and iPSC-derived Isl1⁺/Nkx2.5⁺ CPCs and protocols for their clonal expansion <em>in vitro</em> and transplantation <em>in vivo</em>. Transcriptome analysis of CPCs from differentiating mouse embryonic stem cells identified a panel of surface markers. Comparison of these markers as well as previously described surface markers revealed the combination of Flt1⁺/Flt4⁺ best identified and facilitated enrichment for Isl1⁺/Nkx2.5⁺ CPCs from embryonic hearts and differentiating iPSCs. Endogenous mouse and iPSC-derived Flt1⁺/Flt4⁺ CPCs differentiated into all three cardiovascular lineages <em>in vitro</em>. Flt1⁺/Flt4⁺ CPCs transplanted into left ventricles demonstrated robust engraftment and differentiation into mature cardiomyocytes (CMs).</p> <h3>Conclusion/Significance</h3><p>The cell surface marker combination of Flt1 and Flt4 specifically identify and enrich for an endogenous and iPSC-derived Isl1⁺/Nkx2.5⁺ CPC with trilineage cardiovascular potential <em>in vitro</em> and robust ability for engraftment and differentiation into morphologically and electrophysiologically mature adult CMs <em>in vivo</em> post transplantation into adult hearts.</p> </div

Characterization and therapeutic potential of induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiovascular progenitor cells.

BackgroundCardiovascular progenitor cells (CPCs) have been identified within the developing mouse heart and differentiating pluripotent stem cells by intracellular transcription factors Nkx2.5 and Islet 1 (Isl1). Study of endogenous and induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived CPCs has been limited due to the lack of specific cell surface markers to isolate them and conditions for their in vitro expansion that maintain their multipotency.Methodology/principal findingsWe sought to identify specific cell surface markers that label endogenous embryonic CPCs and validated these markers in iPSC-derived Isl1(+)/Nkx2.5(+) CPCs. We developed conditions that allow propagation and characterization of endogenous and iPSC-derived Isl1(+)/Nkx2.5(+) CPCs and protocols for their clonal expansion in vitro and transplantation in vivo. Transcriptome analysis of CPCs from differentiating mouse embryonic stem cells identified a panel of surface markers. Comparison of these markers as well as previously described surface markers revealed the combination of Flt1(+)/Flt4(+) best identified and facilitated enrichment for Isl1(+)/Nkx2.5(+) CPCs from embryonic hearts and differentiating iPSCs. Endogenous mouse and iPSC-derived Flt1(+)/Flt4(+) CPCs differentiated into all three cardiovascular lineages in vitro. Flt1(+)/Flt4(+) CPCs transplanted into left ventricles demonstrated robust engraftment and differentiation into mature cardiomyocytes (CMs).Conclusion/significanceThe cell surface marker combination of Flt1 and Flt4 specifically identify and enrich for an endogenous and iPSC-derived Isl1(+)/Nkx2.5(+) CPC with trilineage cardiovascular potential in vitro and robust ability for engraftment and differentiation into morphologically and electrophysiologically mature adult CMs in vivo post transplantation into adult hearts