Deficits In Social Functioning Research Articles

Advancing the Measurement of Social Functioning in Schizophrenia: Applications of Egocentric Social Network Analysis.

People with schizophrenia face challenges with forming and maintaining social relationships, often resulting in poor social functioning. Commonly used measures of social functioning provide broad information relating to social relationships, but they do not adequately capture information regarding network structure and characteristics of network members. One method that can assess these more detailed aspects of social networks and provide a more comprehensive understanding of social functioning deficits is egocentric social network analysis (SNA). SNA is a scientific discipline that uses principles of network science and graph theory to analyze social relations quantitatively. Even though some types of SNA have been applied in prior schizophrenia studies, its application as a framework to measure social functioning has been extremely limited. Therefore, this article aims to formally introduce SNA and select quantitative SNA metrics, including measures of network composition, structure, homophily, and centrality, to schizophrenia researchers as novel ways of measuring components of social functioning. To demonstrate the application of SNA, we provide illustrative examples of the SNA metrics and graphical diagrams of social networks for two individuals with schizophrenia.

An Exploratory Investigation of Organic Chemicals Detected in Baby Teeth: Differences in Children with and without Autism.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a behaviorally defined neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by deficits in language, communication, and social function with an estimated prevalence rate of between 1 in 30 and 44 U.S. births. Gene/environment (G × E) interactions are widely regarded as the most probable explanation for idiopathic ASD, especially because some genes are selectively targeted by various environmental xenobiotics. Because deciduous teeth are a likely biomarker of in utero exposure, the present study investigated if the quantity of chemicals found in deciduous teeth differs between children with and without ASD. Twenty-two deciduous teeth from children with ASD and 20 teeth from typically developed children were prepared and analyzed using THE Two-Dimensional Gas Chromatography Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometer (GC × GC-TOF MS) with ChromaTOF version 23H2 software and Agilent 7890 gas chromatograph. The autism sample had significantly more chemicals in their teeth than the typical developing sample (99.4 vs. 80.7, respectively) (p < 0.0001). The majority of chemicals were identified as phthalates, plasticizers, pesticides, preservatives, or intermediary solvents used in the production of fragranced personal care or cleaning products or flavoring agents in foods. The known toxic analytes reported in this study are likely biomarkers of developmental exposure. Why there were greater concentrations of toxic chemicals in the teeth that came from children with ASD is unclear. A further understanding of the cavalcade of multiple biological system interactions (Interactome) could help with future efforts to reduce risks. Notwithstanding, the avoidance of pesticides, plastics, and scented personal care products may be warranted under the precautionary principle rule.

Social Interaction in Adolescent Rats with Neonatal Ethanol Exposure: Impact of Sex and CE-123, a Selective Dopamine Reuptake Inhibitor.

Children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs) demonstrate deficits in social functioning that contribute to early withdrawal from school and delinquency, as well as the development of anxiety and depression. Dopamine is involved in reward, motivation, and social behavior. Thus, we evaluated whether neonatal ethanol exposure (in an animal model of FASDs) has an impact on social recognition memory using the three-chamber social novelty discrimination test during early and middle adolescence in male and female rats, and whether the modafinil analog, the novel atypical dopamine reuptake inhibitor CE-123, can modify this effect. Our study shows that male and female rats neonatally exposed to ethanol exhibited sex- and age-dependent deficits in social novelty discrimination in early (male) and middle (female) adolescence. These deficits were specific to the social domain and not simply due to more general deficits in learning and memory because these animals did not exhibit changes in short-term recognition memory in the novel object recognition task. Furthermore, early-adolescent male rats that were neonatally exposed to ethanol did not show changes in the anxiety index but demonstrated an increase in locomotor activity. Chronic treatment with CE-123, however, prevented the appearance of these social deficits. In the hippocampus of adolescent rats, CE-123 increased BDNF and decreased its signal transduction TrkB receptor expression level in ethanol-exposed animals during development, suggesting an increase in neuroplasticity. Thus, selective dopamine reuptake inhibitors, such as CE-123, represent interesting drug candidates for the treatment of deficits in social behavior in adolescent individuals with FASDs.

Music as a Language

The number of children in western countries diagnosed with Down syndrome (DS), a disease caused by chromosomal abnormalities, is still increasing. The resulting delayed cognitive development also leads to deficits in social functioning in children under 12. Active music therapy (MT), as a natural intervention to achieve therapeutic functions through improvisation, performance, and singing, has been proven to promote the socialization development of children with DS. To get a better idea of the extent of the promotion and exactly what aspects it has improved, I conducted literature reviews and interviews with a music therapist. The results suggest that active MT can stimulate the socialization development of children under 12 with DS in three aspects: language skills, social-emotional development, and prosocial behavior. Although the improvement effect of active MT is better than that of passive MT, it requires the client to have a basis of music theory, that is, it requires higher requirements on the client, so the treatment method should be selected according to the severity of the client's DS or a combination of the two. Hence, future research could be aimed at finding the simplest interventions with sufficient client engagement and verifying the continuation of the effect of active MT.

Supraphysiological testosterone levels from anabolic steroid use and reduced sensitivity to negative facial expressions in men

RationaleAnabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS) are used to improve physical performance and appearance, but have been associated with deficits in social cognitive functioning. Approximately 30% of people who use AAS develop a dependence, increasing the risk for undesired effects.ObjectivesTo assess the relationship between AAS use (current/previous), AAS dependence, and the ability to recognize emotional facial expressions, and investigate the potential mediating role of hormone levels.MethodsIn total 156 male weightlifters, including those with current (n = 45) or previous (n = 34) AAS use and never-using controls (n = 77), completed a facial Emotion Recognition Task (ERT). Participants were presented with faces expressing one out of six emotions (sadness, happiness, fear, anger, disgust, and surprise) and were instructed to indicate which of the six emotions each face displayed. ERT accuracy and response time were recorded and evaluated for association with AAS use status, AAS dependence, and serum reproductive hormone levels. Mediation models were used to evaluate the mediating role of androgens in the relationship between AAS use and ERT performance.ResultsCompared to never-using controls, men currently using AAS exhibited lower recognition accuracy for facial emotional expressions, particularly anger (Cohen’s d = −0.57, pFDR = 0.03) and disgust (d = −0.51, pFDR = 0.05). Those with AAS dependence (n = 47) demonstrated worse recognition of fear relative to men without dependence (d = 0.58, p = 0.03). Recognition of disgust was negatively correlated with serum free testosterone index (FTI); however, FTI did not significantly mediate the association between AAS use and recognition of disgust.ConclusionsOur findings demonstrate impaired facial emotion recognition among men currently using AAS compared to controls. While further studies are needed to investigate potential mechanisms, our analysis did not support a simple mediation effect of serum FTI.

Psychotherapies in opioid use disorder: toward a step-care model

Opioid use disorder (OUD) is characterized by a lack of control in opioid use, resulting in psychological distress and deficits in interpersonal and social functioning. OUD is often associated with psychiatric comorbidities that increase the severity of the disorder. The consequences of OUD are dramatic in terms of increased morbi-mortality. Specific medications and psychotherapies are essential tools not only in the treatment of OUD but also in the prevention of suicide and overdoses. In our review, we assess the different types of psychotherapies (counseling, motivational interviewing, contingency management, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and dialectical-behavior therapy) that are delivered to opioid users, either associated or un-associated with OUD medications and/or medications for psychiatric disabilities. We describe the application of these therapies first to adult opioid users and then to adolescents. This work led us to propose a stepped-care model of psychotherapies for OUD which provided information to assist clinicians in decision-making regarding the selection of psychotherapeutic strategies according to patients’ OUD severity.

46 Exploring Social Cognition Deficits Characterised by Impulsive Responding in Children

Objective:Theory suggests that symptoms of Attention-deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD; e.g., hyperactivity and impulsivity) may be associated with social cognition deficits characterised by fast but erroneous processing of social cues. Despite this, prior research has provided mixed evidence for (a) deficits in social cognition skills and (b) a link between such deficits and poor social outcomes among children with ADHD. We sought to clarify this ambiguity by (a) exploring variation in social cognition skills across a mixed clinical and normative population and (b) examining the demographic, clinical, and dimensional symptom profiles of children presenting with reduced social cognition skills characterised by fast but erroneous processing.Participants and Methods:Participants were children and adolescents (N = 1,097) aged 4–18 years (M = 9.02, SD = 2.72) assessed using the Paediatric Evaluation of Emotions Relationships and Socialisation (PEERS), a child-direct, ecologically sensitive measure of social cognition. Latent profile analysis of standardised social cognition scores and response times for incorrect encoding of social cues (error-response times) was used to identify social cognition profiles. Differences between each profile in terms of demographics, clinical profiles, symptom dimensions, and social outcomes were explored.Results:Four social cognition profiles were identified. Two profiles were identified as being of particular interest: one which captured typically developing children (TDC; n = 727), and another which was characterised by lower social cognition scores and faster error-response times (impulsive responding; n = 201). The remaining profiles captured the response styles of younger participants (n = 152) and children with more pervasive social cognition deficits (n = 17). Comparison of the two profiles of interest revealed a number of statistically significant differences (p &lt; .05). Compared to the TDC group, the impulsive responding group had: higher SDQ scores for hyperactivity, conduct, emotional, and peer problems; lower IQ and prosocial scores, and; greater parent-perceived social function deficits. Children in this group were also more likely to be male and from a lower SES background. Clinically, 18% of children in the impulsive responding group had an ADHD diagnosis, and 14% had at lease one mental health diagnosis other than ADHD.Conclusions:A large minority of children (~18%) demonstrate social cognition deficits characterised by fast but erroneous processing of social cues. Although the explorative nature of this study does not allow conclusions to be made about the causes of such deficits, it is reasonable to conclude that they are not reducible to clinically significant symptoms of hyperactivity-impulsivity — less than 1/5 of the children in this group had an ADHD diagnosis, and 2/3 of children in this group had no mental health diagnosis at all. Child-direct tools designed to detect individual differences in social cognition skills may be beneficial in identifying individuals who will benefit from social support or interventions aimed at reducing social cognition deficits despite being missed by more traditional screening measures (e.g., clinical diagnoses). Future work should focus on understanding the causal relationships between symptoms of hyperactivity-impulsivity, fast but erroneous processing of social cues, social cognition skills, and social outcomes for this group of children.

A - 131 Social Adjustment and Functioning in Serious Mental Illness Is Predicted by Social Cognition.

Deficits in social cognition (SC) and social functioning (SF) are prominent in schizophrenia. This study used standardized assessments to examine SC and SF to determine if similar deficits are present in persons diagnosed with bipolar disorders. The Awareness of Social Inference Test (TASIT) was used to assess emotion identification and social inference, and the Social Functioning Scale (SFS) to assess SF domains (Social Engagement, Interpersonal Communication, Independent Performance, Independent Competence, Recreation, Prosocial, and Employment). The TASIT and SFS were administered to individuals with schizophrenia (SZ; N = 22), bipolar disorder with psychotic features (BP+; N = 20) or without psychotic features (BP-; N = 21), and healthy controls (HC; N = 22). Mixed model ANOVA examined group differences and multiple regression determined if SC predicted SF. The SZ group showed significantly worse SF compared to all other groups. There was no significant difference between the BP+ and BP-, and both BP groups performed worse than HCs. For multiple regression, the three clinical groups (SZ, BP+, BP-) were combined to yield an overall SMI group (N = 63). TASIT emotion identification and social inference predicted performance on SFS domains of Independent Performance, Independent Competence, Recreation, Prosocial, and SFS total score. Emotion identification was the strongest predictor of the Independent Performance domain in comparison to social inference. Performance on the TASIT predicted performance across several domains of SF in SMI. Differences were present based on the specific SC abilities and SF domains, suggesting SC abilities are more strongly associated with some functional domains but not others, which may help guide clinical decision making.

Relationship between cognitive disengagement syndrome (CDS) (formerly sluggish cognitive tempo) and social functioning in child autism, ADHD, and elementary school samples

Background and aimsNo studies have compared relationships between specific social functioning deficits and cognitive disengagement syndrome/CDS (formerly sluggish cognitive tempo) in autism, ADHD, and general population child samples. MethodsMothers rated 1177 children with autism, 725 with ADHD-Combined, and 307 with ADHD-Inattentive (4–17 years) and 665 elementary school children (6–12 years) on the Pediatric Behavior Scale. ResultsIn all four groups, children with CDS had significantly greater frequencies of rejection by peers than children without CDS, and in the three clinical groups, withdrawn/shy behavior was significantly more prevalent in children with CDS. Low prosocial behavior did not differ between children with and without CDS. CDS contributed significantly and independently to predicting withdrawn/shy behavior and peer rejection, although its contribution was small compared with some other psychological problems. Overall, autism symptoms were the most powerful predictors of withdrawn/shy behavior and peer rejection. Conclusions and implicationsCDS studies sometimes control for ADHD and other psychopathology in multivariate analyses, but autism is usually overlooked. This is a critical oversight because CDS is as common in autism as in ADHD and because social problems, autism symptoms, and CDS are significantly interrelated.

A multivariate cognitive approach to predict social functioning in recent onset psychosis in response to computerized cognitive training

Clinical and neuroimaging data has been increasingly used in recent years to disentangle heterogeneity of treatment response to cognitive training (CT) and predict which individuals may achieve the highest benefits. CT has small to medium effects on improving cognitive and social functioning in recent onset psychosis (ROP) patients, who show the most profound cognitive and social functioning deficits among psychiatric patients. We employed multivariate pattern analysis (MVPA) to investigate the potential of cognitive data to predict social functioning improvement in response to 10 h of CT in patients with ROP. A support vector machine (SVM) classifier was trained on the naturalistic data of the Personalized Prognostic Tools for Early Psychosis Management (PRONIA) study sample to predict functioning in an independent sample of 70 ROP patients using baseline cognitive data. PRONIA is a part of a FP7 EU grant program that involved 7 sites across 5 European countries, designed and conducted with the main aim of identifying (bio)markers associated with an enhanced risk of developing psychosis in order to improve early detection and prognosis. Social functioning was predicted with a balanced accuracy (BAC) of 66.4% (Sensitivity 78.8%; Specificity 54.1%; PPV 60.5%; NPV 74.1%; AUC 0.64; P = 0.01). The most frequently selected cognitive features (mean feature weights > ± 0.2) included the (1) correct number of symbol matchings within the Digit Symbol Substitution Test, (2) the number of distracting stimuli leading to an error within 300 and 200 trials in the Continuous Performance Test and (3) the dynamics of verbal fluency between 15 and 30 s within the Verbal Fluency Test, phonetic part. Next, the SVM classifier generated on the PRONIA sample was applied to the intervention sample, that obtained 54 ROP patients who were randomly assigned to a social cognitive training (SCT) or treatment as usual (TAU) group and dichotomized into good (GF-S ≥ 7) and poor (GF-S < 7) functioning patients based on their level of Global Functioning-Social (GF-S) score at follow-up (FU). By applying the initial PRONIA classifier, using out-of-sample cross-validation (OOCV) to the sample of ROP patients who have undergone the CT intervention, a BAC of 59.3% (Sensitivity 70.4%; Specificity 48.1%; PPV 57.6%; NPV 61.9%; AUC 0.63) was achieved at T0 and a BAC of 64.8% (Sensitivity 66.7%; Specificity 63.0%; PPV 64.3%; NPV 65.4%; AUC 0.66) at FU. After SCT intervention, a significant improvement in predicted social functioning values was observed in the SCT compared to TAU group (P ≤0.05; ES[Cohens' d] = 0.18). Due to a small sample size and modest variance of social functioning of the intervention sample it was not feasible to predict individual response to SCT in the current study. Our findings suggest that the use of baseline cognitive data could provide a robust individual estimate of future social functioning, while prediction of individual response to SCT using cognitive data that can be generated in the routine patient care remains to be addressed in large-scale cognitive training trials.

Associations between social engagement, internalizing symptoms, and delusional ideation in the general population.

Delusions are a hallmark feature of psychotic disorders and lead to significant clinical and functional impairment. Internalizing symptoms-such as symptoms of depression, anxiety, and trauma exposure-are commonly cited to be related to delusions and delusional ideation and are often associated with deficits in social functioning. While emerging studies are investigating the impact of low social engagement on psychotic-like experiences, little work has examined the relationship between social engagement, internalizing symptoms, and delusional ideation, specifically. Using general population data from the Nathan Kline Institute-Rockland (NKI-Rockland) database (N = 526), we examined the relationships between self-reported delusional ideation, internalizing symptoms, and social engagement and tested four indirect effect models to understand how these factors interrelate. Delusional ideation was significantly associated with both increased internalizing symptoms (r = 0.41, p < 0.001) and lower social engagement (r = -0.14, p = 0.001). Within aspects of social engagement, perceived emotional support showed the strongest relationship with delusional ideation (r = -0.17, p < 0.001). Lower social engagement was also significantly associated with increased internalizing symptoms (r = -0.29, p < 0.001). Cross-sectional models suggest that internalizing symptoms have a significant indirect effect on the association between delusional ideation and social engagement. These findings reveal that elevated delusional ideation in the general population is associated with lower social engagement. Elevated internalizing symptoms appear to play a critical role in reducing engagement, possibly exacerbating delusional thinking. Future work should examine the causal and temporal relationships between these factors.

Wildtype peers rescue social play and 50-kHz ultrasonic vocalization deficits in juvenile female Cacna1c heterozygous rats.

Healthy brain development depends on early social practices and experiences. The risk gene CACNA1C is implicated in numerous neuropsychiatric disorders, in which key characteristics include deficits in social functioning and communication. Recently, we reported sex-dependent impairments in social behavior and ultrasonic vocalizations (USV) in juvenile heterozygous Cacna1c+/- (HET) rats. Specifically, HET females displayed increases in rough-and-tumble play that eliminated the typically observed sex difference between male and female rats. Interestingly, female wild-type Cacna1c+/+ (WT) pairs also showed a similar increase in social play when housed with HET females, suggesting their behavior may be influenced by HET cage mates. This indicates that the genetic makeup of the social environment related to Cacna1c can influence social play, yet systematic studies are lacking. In the present study, we housed juvenile females in MIXED- or SAME-genotype cages and tested them in a social play paradigm with a same- and opposite-genotype partner. The results show that the early social environment and the genotype of the play partner influence social play and 50-kHz USV emission. Experience with a WT play partner appears necessary for HET females to show comparable levels of play and 50-kHz USV emission. Same-genotype HET pairs played less and emitted fewer 50-kHz USV than same-genotype WT or opposite-genotype pairs; however, we found that the decrease in social play and 50-kHz USV in HET pairs can be rescued by playing with a WT partner. The effect was particularly prominent when the first play partner was WT, as we found it increased play and 50-kHz USV emission in all subsequent interactions with ensuing partners. These findings suggest that the genetic makeup related to the social environment and/or social peers influences social play in Cacna1c+/- haploinsufficient rats. Specifically, our results show that WT peers can rescue behavior and communication alterations in Cacna1c female rats. Our findings have important implications because they show that the genetic makeup of the social environment can divulge phenotypic changes in genetic rat models of neuropsychiatric disorders.

Development of social functioning in preadolescent children at familial high-risk of schizophrenia or bipolar disorder – a 4-year follow-up study from age 7 to 11

Social functioning is a major indicator of psychosis risk and evidence is lacking regarding social functioning development during preadolescence in children at familial high risk of schizophrenia (FHR-SZ) or bipolar disorder (FHR-BP). We aimed to investigate development of social functioning from age 7 to 11 in children at FHR-SZ or FHR-BP compared with population-based controls. At 4-year follow-up, 179 children at FHR-SZ (mean age 12.0 y, SD 0.3), 105 children at FHR-BP (mean age 11.9 y, SD 0.2), and 181 controls (mean age 11.9 y, SD 0.2) participated. We used the Vineland-II to measure social functioning. Development of social functioning was non-significantly different across groups on the Socialization Composite score as well as the subscales Interpersonal Relations, Play and Leisure, and Coping Skills. At 4-year follow-up, children at FHR-SZ demonstrated impaired social functioning, whereas children at FHR-BP displayed social functioning comparable to controls except from impaired coping skills. From age 7 to 11, the maturational pace of social functioning in children at FHR-SZ and FHR-BP is parallel to that of controls. Children at FHR-SZ show stable social functioning deficits, whereas children at FHR-BP show normal social functioning except from emergence of discretely impaired coping skills at age 11.

The Effects of Enfacement Illusion on Self and Other Perception and Relevant Implications

Perceiving self is one of the crucial issues discussed in psychology. Studies have suggested that the evaluation of the self could be manipulated by divergent factors and operations. Some experiments proved the variability of self-concept. A typical instance is the rubber hand illusion, causing a discrepancy between the visual and tactile sensation and the confusion of identity. Enfacement illusion, similarly, have the resembling influence but focuses on the human face instead of the hand. Its an important phenomenon with the significant meaning of being related to the perception of self and other. The impact of the enfacement effect on one's perspective of oneself and that of others was examined through the analysis of recent research, with further implications given. Discussions done in this paper could make contributions in the area of comprehension of self and other. First, various fingdings bring up the individualized irregularity that emerged among people. Second, according to plenty of studies, enfacement has the potential to encourage the establishment of relationships with more intimacy. Thirdly, studies on illusions other than the perception of faces were conducted, and they demonstrated similarities to the enfacement illusion's effect. Limitations of not elaborating on compound factors associated exist in previous research. Addition explorations are required for examining the causation of values altered. This review can provide some suggestions for intervention studies and applications in children with social functioning deficits.

Long-term effects of Roluperidone on negative symptoms of schizophrenia.

Roluperidone has antagonist properties for 5-HT2A, sigma2, α1A- and α1B-adrenergic receptors, but no dopaminergic binding affinities. In 2 randomized controlled trials (RCT), treatment improved negative symptoms of schizophrenia and social functioning among patients with moderate to severe negative symptoms. We report results of the protocol specified analysis of 2 open-label extension studies of 24 and 40weeks investigating whether improvement of negative symptoms was sustained without significant adverse effects or worsening of psychosis. Following 12-week double-blind phase of both RCTs, patients were eligible to receive monotherapy roluperidone 32mg/day or 64mg/day for 24weeks (trial 1) or 40weeks (trial 2) in open-label extension study. Trial 1 included 244 patients of whom 142 entered 24-week open-label extension and trial 2 included 513 patients of whom 341 entered 40-week open-label extension. Trial 1 had PANSS negative factor score of Pentagonal Structure Model as primary outcome. Trial 2 had Marder Negative Symptoms Factor Score as primary outcome measure and Personal and Social Performance (PSP) Total score as secondary outcome. During open-label extensions, continued improvements in negative symptoms and on PSP were observed. Overall rate of symptomatic worsening requiring discontinuation of roluperidone and treatment with an antipsychotic was <10%. Roluperidone was well tolerated with no meaningful changes in vital signs, laboratory values, weight gain, metabolic indices, or extrapyramidal symptoms. Results of 2 open-label extension trials support roluperidone as a treatment of negative symptoms and social functioning deficits in patients with moderate to severe negative symptoms of schizophrenia.

Atypical Face Process in Autism Spectrum Disorder and Relevant Interventions

The current study overviewed previous research on abnormalities in face processing in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and concluded implications on development of relevant social skill interventions. Overall, autistic individuals exhibited deviated neural activity patterns during face processing across different ages, suggesting that atypical development of neural structures might be accountable for deficits in social functioning. Similarly, familial studies found no significant variations in neural activity patterns for high-risk family members, providing insufficient evidence for the inheritance of autism. Although neural activity indices might not be effective as biomarkers for early life diagnosis, researchers could use these indicators to predict the extent of social impairment for patients in later life stages. Social functioning programs based on facial processing schemes had a significant training effect on young patients, but further testing trials are required to estimate their impact on patients social behaviors in real life. This review can provide some guidance for the design of intervention programs at schools for children with ASD.

Social Functioning Deficits in Schizophrenia and Relevant Interventions

The social function of clients has been linked to the acquisition effect and prognosis during recuperation. Studies have shown that the impact of antipsychotics on cognitive impairment is limited to improving social ability. A previous study shows that cognitive rehabilitation (CR) aimed at improving social ability can increase recollection and concentration. Although recent evidence shows that schizophrenia patients have obstacles in using emotion regulation strategies in society, few studies have explored the relationship between these regulation strategies and emotion and social behavior in daily life. The social symptoms of schizophrenia are usually considered as a reflection of low social cognitive ability. Here, the research on the response to social reward is a feature of human engagement, which is not prominent in the published studies. Daily functions need to motivate individuals to negotiate the social environment and establish friendships by using their social psychological talents. There's evidence that some schizophrenias don't have the social skills that they need in daily life, such as social norms, and show social unhappiness and/or vexatious behaviors. It is suggested that community rehabilitation can address the social and clinical needs of schizophrenia patients in a resource deficient environment. Reinforcement production process is a technique that helps people stay motivated in social situations. The experience and expectation in the interaction determine the happiness in the interaction. Social rewards usually come from social cues, such as facial expressions. This review can provide some guidance to the prevention programs for at-risk children in schools and communities.

Role of cyclin-dependent kinase 5 in psychosis and the modulatory effects of cannabinoids

Cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (CDK5) is a serine/threonine kinase that has emerged as a key regulator of neurotransmission in complex cognitive processes. Its expression is altered in treated schizophrenia patients, and cannabinoids modulate CDK5 levels in the brain of rodents. However, the role of this kinase, and its interaction with cannabis use in first-episode psychosis (FEP) patients is still not known. Hence, we studied the expression changes of CDK5 and its signaling partner, postsynaptic density protein 95 (PSD95) in olfactory neuroepithelial (ON) cells of FEP patients with (FEP/c) and without (FEP/nc) prior cannabis use, and in a dual-hit mouse model of psychosis. In this model, adolescent mice were exposed to the cannabinoid receptor 1 agonist (CB1R) WIN-55,212–2 (WIN: 1 mg/kg) during 21 days, and to the N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) blocker phencyclidine (PCP: 10 mg/kg) during 10 days. FEP/c showed less social functioning deficits, lower CDK5 and higher PSD95 levels than FEP/nc. These changes correlated with social skills, but not cognitive deficits. Consistently, exposure of ON cells from FEP/nc patients to WIN in vitro reduced CDK5 levels. Convergent results were obtained in mice, where PCP by itself induced more sociability deficits, and PSD95/CDK5 alterations in the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus than exposure to PCP-WIN. In addition, central blockade of CDK5 activity with roscovitine in PCP-treated mice restored both sociability impairments and PSD95 levels. We provide translational evidence that increased CDK5 could be an early indicator of psychosis associated with social deficits, and that this biomarker is modulated by prior cannabis use.

Cerebellar correlates of social dysfunction among individuals at clinical high risk for psychosis.

Social deficits are a significant feature among both individuals with psychosis and those at clinical high-risk (CHR) for developing psychosis. Critically, the psychosis risk syndrome emerges in adolescence and young adulthood, when social skill development is being fine-tuned. Yet, the underlying pathophysiology of social deficits in individuals at CHR for psychosis remains unclear. Literature suggests the cerebellum plays a critical role in social functioning. Cerebellar dysfunction in psychosis and CHR individuals is well-established, yet limited research has examined links between the cerebellum and social functioning deficits in this critical population. In the current study, 68 individuals at CHR for developing psychosis and 66 healthy controls (HCs) completed social processing measures (examining social interaction, social cognition, and global social functioning) and resting-state MRI scans. Seed-to-voxel resting-state connectivity analyses were employed to examine the relationship between social deficits and lobular cerebellar network connectivity. Analyses indicated that within the CHR group, each social domain variable was linked to reduced connectivity between social cerebellar subregions (e.g., Crus II, lobules VIIIa and VIIIb) and cortical regions (e.g., frontal pole and frontal gyrus), but a control cerebellar subregion (e.g., lobule X) and was unrelated to these social variables. These results indicate an association between several cerebellar lobules and specific deficits in social processing. The cerebellum, therefore, may be particularly salient to the social domain and future research is need to examine the role of the cerebellum in psychosis.

Resting-state functional connectivity in adults with 47,XXX: a 7 Tesla MRI study.

Triple X syndrome is a sex chromosomal aneuploidy characterized by the presence of a supernumerary X chromosome, resulting in a karyotype of 47,XXX in affected females. It has been associated with a variable cognitive, behavioral, and psychiatric phenotype, but little is known about its effects on brain function. We therefore conducted 7T resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging and compared data of 19 adult individuals with 47,XXX and 21 age-matched healthy control women using independent component analysis and dual regression. Additionally, we examined potential relationships between social cognition and social functioning scores, and IQ, and mean functional connectivity values. The 47,XXX group showed significantly increased functional connectivity of the fronto-parietal resting-state network with the right postcentral gyrus. Resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) variability was not associated with IQ and social cognition and social functioning deficits in the participants with 47,XXX. We thus observed an effect of a supernumerary X chromosome in adult women on fronto-parietal rsFC. These findings provide additional insight into the role of the X chromosome on functional connectivity of the brain. Further research is needed to understand the clinical implications of altered rsFC in 47,XXX.