Identifying Autism from Neural Representations of Social Interactions: Neurocognitive Markers of Autism

Abstract: Autism is a psychiatric/neurological condition in which alterations in social interaction (among other symptoms) are diagnosed by behavioral psychiatric methods. The main goal of this study was to determine how the neural representations and meanings of social concepts (such as to insult) are altered in autism. A second goal was to determine whether these alterations can serve as neurocognitive markers of autism.

The approach is based on previous advances in fMRI analysis methods that permit (a) the identification of a concept, such as the thought of a physical object, from its fMRI pattern, and (b) the ability to assess the semantic content of a concept from its fMRI pattern. These factor analysis and machine learning methods were applied to the fMRI activation patterns of 17 adults with high-functioning autism and matched controls, scanned while thinking about 16 social interactions.

One prominent neural representation factor that emerged (manifested mainly in posterior midline regions) was related to self-representation, but this factor was present only for the control participants, and was near-absent in the autism group. Moreover, machine learning algorithms classified individuals as autistic or control with 97% accuracy from their fMRI neurocognitive markers.

The findings suggest that psychiatric alterations of thought can begin to be biologically understood by assessing the form and content of the altered thought's underlying brain activation patterns.

Paper by: Marcel Adam Just mail, Vladimir L. Cherkassky, Augusto Buchweitz, Timothy A. Keller, Tom M. Mitchell

Visit: http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0113879

Case Report: Multifocal Breast Cancer in Young Women with Prolonged Contact between Their Breasts and Their Cellular Phones

bott3 Abstract: Breast cancer occurring in women under the age of 40 is uncommon in the absence of family history or genetic predisposition, and prompts the exploration of other possible exposures or environmental risks.

We report a case series of four young women—ages from 21 to 39—with multifocal invasive breast cancer that raises the concern of a possible association with nonionizing radiation of electromagnetic field exposures from cellular phones.

All patients regularly carried their smartphones directly against their breasts in their brassieres for up to 10 hours a day, for several years, and developed tumors in areas of their breasts immediately underlying the phones.

All patients had no family history of breast cancer, tested negative for BRCA1 and BRCA2, and had no other known breast cancer risks. Their breast imaging is reviewed, showing clustering of multiple tumor foci in the breast directly under the area of phone contact.

Pathology of all four cases shows striking similarity; all tumors are hormone-positive, low-intermediate grade, having an extensive intraductal component, and all tumors have near identical morphology. These cases raise awareness to the lack of safety data of prolonged direct contact with cellular phones.

By John G. West, Nimmi S. Kapoor, Shu-Yuan Liao, June W. Chen, Lisa Bailey, and Robert A. Nagourney

This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Go to: http://www.hindawi.com/journals/crim/2013/354682/

[Interconnections News image from Botticelli]

Project aims to transform training in complex learning needs across Europe

A project which aims to make a difference to the educational experiences of young people across Europe with complex learning needs and disabilities is set to be launched in Brussels.

The Erasmus Plus-funded Inclusion Training in Intellectual Disability for Educators in Europe (ITIDE) project will see the development and roll out of a suite of open access online training materials to educators, parents and other stakeholders at all levels across Europe.

Contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Pacific Rim International Conference on Disability and Diversity – Honolulu, HI, May 2015. Will you contribute?

conventioncenter2 The 2015 conference theme is Deep Impact. Recognizing our shared responsibility, how can we strengthen the positive impact we already have on our communities, regions, and countries and in the world?

By attending the conference, you will be part of a wide network of individuals and communities who strive to make a positive difference in the world for our hundreds of millions of fellow human beings who just want a shot at living to their own full potential.

Be there and share your brilliance with the world.

Go to: http://www.pacrim.hawaii.edu/node/1