2023 Associates Meeting - Posters

Maternal psychological factors may impact neural processing and have downstream parenting consequences. Previous works assessing impacts of psychological factors have assessed each in isolation, despite co-morbidity and identified associations with processing of facial stimuli. Here, mothers viewed infant faces while EEG was recorded and completed anxiety, depression, and substance use measures. An LPA identified two profiles of psychological factors. The higher risk profile was associated with delayed N170 suggesting that maternal psychological risk across multiple indicators may together shape neural processing of infant faces, which may also have downstream consequences.

Kathryn Wall (Graduate Student) <kathryn.wall@yale.edu>

The present study is centered on data collected from a concluded clinical trial intervention for fathers (N=94) who have used intimate-partner violence (IPV) behavior. Given the prevalence of ACEs in this population, more research is needed to elucidate the affective mechanisms involved in the intergenerational transmission of violence. Drawing a rationale from a neuropsychoanalytic framework, the combined mediating role of emotion regulation and reflective functioning was analyzed. Given that the mediators accounted for 21% of the association between ACEs and adult IPV, important clinical and legal implications are presented.

Edoardo Modanesi (Master's Student) <edoardo.modanesi@yale.edu>

Fathers for Change (F4C) is a program that works with fathers who have IPV histories to reduce violence and child maltreatment. The intervention offers optional sessions with the co-parent and is provided by six clinics around the state of Connecticut. This study investigated factors that improve and detract from treatment motivation and completion. Our findings suggest having at least one joint session with a co-parent benefits the father’s motivation and their likelihood to meet their treatment goals.

Carter McCaskill (Postgraduate Associate) <carter.mccaskill@yale.edu>

Rhesus monkeys experiencing experimentally-induced early life adversity (ELA) show significant positive correlations between accelerated epigenetic aging, chronic inflammation, and poorer health outcomes as they approach midlife. These findings provide initial causal evidence linking ELA with poorer aging outcomes in adulthood.

Amanda Dettmer (Research Scientist) <amanda.dettmer@yale.edu>

Racial disparities in healthcare and research persist. EEG is a methodology utilized to assess maternal brain development across the perinatal period. However, systematic bias exists in EEG methodology. To examine racial disparities in maternal brain EEG research, we assessed diversity in studies d maternal neural processing of infant emotional expression identified in recent meta-analytic work. A lack of racial, ethnic, and geographic diversity was identified, highlighting the need to adapt EEG methodology to accommodate characteristics of all races and ethnicities to ensure our inclusive understanding of the maternal brain.

Kathryn Wall (Graduate Student) <kathryn.wall@yale.edu>

The current study examined the association between perceived risk of harm from opioid use and family functioning (derived from assessments of parent-adolescent relationships) and found that adolescents with stronger family functioning are more likely to report a greater perception of risk of harm from opioids. These findings suggest a potential pathway by which family functioning can influence opioid use and underscore the importance of targeting family functioning when addressing adolescent opioid misuse.

Jenny Meyer (Postgraduate Associate) <jenny.meyer@yale.edu>

This study examined the link between prenatal cocaine exposure (PCE) and young adult intimate partner violence (IPV) in a longitudinal cohort of 206 participants, established at the Yale-New Haven Hospital in 1991. No direct or indirect associations were found between PCE and IPV. Instead, low maternal education indirectly influenced IPV through early substance use and late adolescent executive function. Unique risk pathways were identified for boys and girls. Findings emphasized the effects of maternal education, early substance use, and executive function on young adults' IPV risk. Interventions that enhance adolescent executive function and prevent early substance misuse may prevent young adult IPV and its multigenerational consequences.

Ellen Martin (Postgraduate Associate) <e.martin@yale.edu>

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and chronic tic disorders (CTD) are debilitating, difficult-to-treat conditions that commonly co-occur and impact 1-3% of children. Previous research demonstrates the role of common and rare genetic factors in OCD and CTD. However, it remains unknown how these factors interact to affect risk within individuals. Preliminary data examining parent-child trios where the child has tics suggest an over transmission of common variant risk to affected children from parents. We are currently integrating rare variant data to better understand individual genetic risk for OCD and CTD.

Sam Greenspun <sam.greenspun@yale.edu>

We applied whole-exome DNA sequencing of two large multiplex families (multiple individuals affected with OCD) to identify genes and biological processes contributing to risk. We prioritized several genes as candidates for contributing OCD risk and identified calcium signaling as a candidate pathway in these families. Although our findings require confirmation in larger OCD cohorts, this study demonstrates the potential for identifying risk genes and biological systems by studying rare inherited variants in multiplex families.

Kiran Masroor (Postgraduate Associate) <kiran.masroor@yale.edu>

Research has shown that having a neurotypical sibling has a positive effect on adaptive functioning skills in autistic children, however, most studies exclude autistic children with siblings with neurodevelopmental disabilities. The study examined relationships among adaptive functioning skills, birth order, sibling diagnosis, and IQ. Later birth order was associated with weaker communication skills but unrelated to other aspects of adaptive functioning when accounting for IQ, indicating that cognitive abilities may be more influential on other skills. Furthermore, family dynamics like birth order may play a role in children’s communication skills.

Lindsey Rosenthal (Postgraduate Associate) <lindsey.rosenthal@yale.edu>

The current study investigated whether the functional connectome during resting-state fMRI predicts anxiety severity in autistic children. This study included 74 children with ASD ages 8-15 years (17 females). Patterns of intrinsic connectivity predictive of anxiety were identified within and between networks implicated in cognitive control (medial frontal, frontoparietal), social functioning (default mode, salience), emotion generation (subcortical), and sensory control/movement (sensorimotor). These findings have potential to advance identification of neuroendophenotypes predictive of anxiety in ASD that can inform targeted treatments.

Karim Ibrahim (Assistant Professor) <karim.ibrahim@yale.edu>

This study examined whether a shared phenotype of impairment in eye gaze processing is reflected in a profile of convergent neurobiological dysfunction in ASD and schizophrenia. Activation likelihood estimation meta-analyses were conducted. Fifty-six experiments (n=30 with schizophrenia, n=26 with ASD) met inclusion criteria, which comprised 354 participants with ASD, 275 with schizophrenia and 613 controls (1,242 participants in total). In ASD, aberrant activation was found in the amygdala during gaze processing. Across ASD and schizophrenia, aberrant activation was found in the inferior frontal gyrus. These findings may advance transdiagnostic biomarkers to inform targeted treatments for ASD and schizophrenia.

Karim Ibrahim (Assistant Professor) <karim.ibrahim@yale.edu>

The pupillary light reflex (PLR) is a promising biomarker for autism but data loss in this assay is common. Data loss causes current research to reflect only a subset of autistic individuals. Using data from 277 autistic and 119 typically developing (TD) children (ages 6-11) collected through the Autism Biomarkers Consortium for Clinical Trials (ABC-CT), we found that autistic participants with higher sensory sensitivities lost more data and had longer PLR latencies than non-autistic participants and autistic participants with lower sensory sensitivities.

Sophie Cramer-Benjamin (Postgraduate Associate) <sophie.cramer-benjamin@yale.edu>

Eye-tracking (ET) technology provides researchers with an objective measure of visual attention that can be used to study social attention in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Studies exclude individuals who display high rates of data loss, however, which reduces the generalizability of findings to the broader autism population. The current study examined how the number of breaks taken during an ET paradigm was correlated with autism symptom severity, social functioning, and IQ. The results revealed that across participants, breaks were correlated with all investigational variables. Future research should investigate the use of breaks in ET paradigms to decrease data loss in autism research.

Nicole Herman (Postgraduate Associate) <n.herman@yale.edu>

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have a high rate of co-occurring irritability symptoms. About 50% of children with ASD exhibit irritability. Few studies have evaluated the effect of irritability on the core symptom domain of restrictive, repetitive behavior (RRB) in children with ASD. The current study investigated the association of irritability, measured by the Affective Reactivity Index (ARI) with the dimensions of RRB, measured by the Repetitive Behavior Scale-Revised (RBS-R). Irritability was correlated with sameness behavior ritualistic behavior, and compulsive behavior. These domains of RRBs may provide a target for future psychological interventions aimed at improving emotional well-being of children with ASD.

Megan Rutten (Postgraduate Associate) <megan.rutten@yale.edu>

Reduced social attention is a common feature of autism but how it fluctuates across time remains unknown. This study used a computational modeling approach to investigate the spatiotemporal dynamics of social attention (measured with eye movements) in autistic and neurotypical children. Two distinct eye movement patterns emerged: a focused pattern and an exploratory pattern. Autistic children exhibited more of the exploratory pattern, indicating a qualitative difference in how they allocate attention to social information across time. These findings suggest that reduced efficiency in early face processing may be a significant marker of autism.

Jason Griffin, PhD (Postdoctoral Fellow) <jason.griffin@yale.edu>

In contrast to previous literature, autistic adults demonstrated increased motivated attention to emotional facial expressions compared to neurotypical adults and adults with schizophrenia. Adults with schizophrenia did not differ in LPP amplitude from the NT group.

Cara Keifer (Assistant Professor) <cara.keifer@yale.edu>

Childhood Disintegrative Disorder (CDD) is a rare, severe, late-onset form of autistic regression. Although CDD is rare, regression is commonly described in autism, affecting a third of individuals. Studying CDD provides valuable insights into autistic regression in general. Because of Yale’s long-standing expertise in CDD, we developed an international reputation for studying this disorder and characterized the largest known cohort in the world. We published the first neurogenetic analysis, revealing important differences between CDD and other forms of autism. Therefore, treating CDD and autistic regression may require different approaches from the broader spectrum.

Abha Gupta (Associate Professor) <abha.gupta@yale.edu>

Symptoms of ADHD and irritability are both associated with peer problems. However, their unique contribution to peer difficulties is unclear. Using longitudinal data from 739 children, we found that poor peer functioning (i.e., physical victimization, peer rejection) contributed to increases in ADHD and irritability symptoms over time. Conversely, positive social interactions (i.e., being liked by peers) decreases inattention and irritability symptoms over time. Fostering social-emotional skills and positive social interactions and environments in children with ADHD and irritability may be a promising target for future interventions to reduce symptoms.

Wan-Ling Tseng (Assistant Professor) <wan-ling.tseng@yale.edu>