Social Communication Research Articles

Vocal communication in asocial BTBR mice is more malleable by a ketogenic diet in juveniles than adults

Deficits in social communication and language development are a hallmark of autism spectrum disorder currently with no effective approaches to reduce the negative impact. Interventional studies using animal models have been very limited in demonstrating improved vocal communication. Autism has been proposed to involve metabolic dysregulation. Ketogenic diet (KD) is a metabolism-based therapy for medically intractable epilepsy, and its applications in other neurological conditions have been increasingly tested. However, how KD would affect vocal communication has not been explored. The BTBR mouse strain is widely used to model asocial phenotypes. They display robust and pronounced deficits in vocalization during social interaction, and have metabolic changes implicated in autism.We investigated the effects of KD on ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) in juvenile and adult BTBR mice during male–female social encounters.After a brief treatment with KD, the number, spectral bandwidth, and much of the temporal structure of USVs were robustly closer to control levels in both juvenile and adult BTBR mice. Composition of call categories and transitioning between individual call subtypes were more effectively altered to more closely align with the control group in juvenile BTBR mice.Together, our data provide further support to the hypothesis that metabolism-based dietary intervention could modify disease expression, including core symptoms, in autism. Future studies should tease apart the molecular mechanisms of KD’s effects on vocalization.

Functional assessment of children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder in Argentina: ICF-ASD multicenter study.

Introduction. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is characterized by difficulties in social communication and repetitive and stereotyped behaviors. In addition to the diagnostic category, the activities performed by children and adolescents and their social involvement are the main aspects to be considered according to the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF) proposed by the World Health Organization to describe health status. In a previous study, we developed the first version of a pediatric tool based on the ICF called ICF-ASD for the functional assessment of children and adolescents with ASD to capture functional characteristics adapted to our cultural setting. Our subsequent objective was to apply the ICF-ASD in a multicenter format to assess children and adolescents from different regions, review, and update it, and identify barriers and facilitators. Population and methods. The ICF-ASD version 1.0 was administered to children and adolescents younger than 16 years with a confirmed diagnosis of ASD (as per DSM-5 criteria), who were receiving follow-up at 5 children's health centers across Argentina. Results. Version 2.0 of the ICF-ASD was obtained, which included 34 categories (10 under body function, 15 under activities and participation, and 9 under environmental factors). A functional profile was developed for the whole sample (n = 308). Conclusions. The updated version of the ICF-ASD helps to standardize and systematize the collection of necessary data for an adequate follow-up of children and adolescents with ASD at a national level. It also allows to identify barriers to overcome and facilitators to be generalized.

TrustGNN: Graph Neural Network-Based Trust Evaluation via Learnable Propagative and Composable Nature.

Trust evaluation is critical for many applications such as cyber security, social communication, and recommender systems. Users and trust relationships among them can be seen as a graph. Graph neural networks (GNNs) show their powerful ability for analyzing graph-structural data. Very recently, existing work attempted to introduce the attributes and asymmetry of edges into GNNs for trust evaluation, while failed to capture some essential properties (e.g., the propagative and composable nature) of trust graphs. In this work, we propose a new GNN-based trust evaluation method named TrustGNN, which integrates smartly the propagative and composable nature of trust graphs into a GNN framework for better trust evaluation. Specifically, TrustGNN designs specific propagative patterns for different propagative processes of trust, and distinguishes the contribution of different propagative processes to create new trust. Thus, TrustGNN can learn comprehensive node embeddings and predict trust relationships based on these embeddings. Experiments on some widely-used real-world datasets indicate that TrustGNN significantly outperforms the state-of-the-art methods. We further perform analytical experiments to demonstrate the effectiveness of the key designs in TrustGNN.

Chronic administration of low dose aspirin alleviates ASD-like behaviors and activates AMPK in valproic acid-exposed rats

BackgroundAutism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder distinguished by deficits in social communication and the presence of restricted/repetitive behaviors. There has been a global increase in the prevalence of ASD, yet the underlying causes of ASD remain inadequately understood, and there is currently no pharmacological intervention for the core symptoms of ASD. However, recent studies have suggested that aspirin may have the potential for use in the treatment of ASD. MethodPregnant rats were administered either VPA or normal saline on gestational day 12.5. The male pups were administered a low dose of aspirin (1 mg/kg) or a vehicle control daily from postnatal day 23 to day 52. ASD-like behaviors were assessed by social interaction, spontaneous grooming test, open field test and light-dark transitions. The activity of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) was quantified by measuring the level of p-AMPK using an immunoblotting assay. ResultsChronic administration of low dose aspirin resulted in significant improvements in social approach deficits, a reduction in repetitive grooming, and the alleviation of anxiety-like behavior in ASD rats. Furthermore, aspirin administration also led to the activation of AMPK in the hippocampus of rats exposed to VPA. ConclusionsThese results raise the question of the need for further investigation of agents with mechanisms related to aspirin in ASD.

Does Delivery Format Matter? A Pilot Study Comparing Telehealth Versus Face-to-Face Movement Interventions for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) have motor, social communication, and behavioral challenges. During the pandemic, children lost access to face-to-face (F2F) services and had to revert to telehealth (TH) options. We compared the efficacy, fidelity, acceptability, and feasibility of a general motor (GM) intervention using an F2F or telehealth (TH) format. Fifteen children with ASD participated in an 8-week program involving gross motor games to promote motor and social communication skills. Differences across TH and F2F formats for motor and socially directed verbalization as well as stakeholder feedback on formats were collected. Gross motor and socially directed verbalization did not differ between the F2F and TH subgroups, and parents and trainers were satisfied with either format. However, TH interventions were longer, had more technological challenges, and required more parental effort. The findings of this study support the use of TH as a comparable and viable substitute for F2F interactions for children with ASD.

Regular sleep habits in toddlers are associated with social development and brain coherence

ObjectiveAlthough sleep habits are associated with the development of toddlers, factors affecting social development and brain function remain unclear. We aimed to elucidate the relationship between sleep habits and social development as well as brain coherence in toddlers. MethodsWe used the data set at 1.5-2 years old, in the longitudinal study until 6 years old. We evaluated sleep parameters, such as average wake-up time, bedtime, nighttime sleep duration, total sleep duration, and the standard deviation (SD) of sleep habits. We also examined the development, including the social stimuli fixation percentage using Gazefinder® and electroencephalography (EEG) coherence between brain regions. ResultsSeventy-two children (37 boys and 35 girls) were included. The fixation percentage for the human face was negatively correlated with the SD of the total sleep duration, nighttime sleep duration, nap duration, and bedtime (r=-0.516, p=0.000; r=-0.331, p=0.005; r=-0.330, p=0.005; and r=-0.324, p=0.005, respectively). The EEG analysis indicated that α-band coherence in the right centro-parietal area was negatively correlated with the total sleep duration (r=-0.283, p=0.016). The path diagram demonstrated a direct significant effect of sleep duration irregularity on development including social communication and fixation percentage for human faces. Additionally, total sleep duration exhibited a direct effect on α cortical coherence in the right centro-parietal area. ConclusionsIn this study, we found an association between sleep irregularity and the development of social communication, preference for humans, and brain coherence in toddlers. We suggest that regular sleep plays an important role in promoting the development of social communication.

A systematic review on social media utilization by health communicators in India: Insights from COVID-19 pandemic

Social media has become a vital tool for facilitating health communications, particularly during emerging health crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic. This systematic literature review aims to synthesize evidence regarding the benefits and barriers associated with the utilization of social media by health communicators in India for disseminating health-related information. A comprehensive search of databases like CINAHL, Google Scholar, PubMed, and WHO Global Index Medicus databases yielded a total of 13 relevant studies. The narrative analysis revealed six key benefits attributed to the usage of social media by health communicators, including the widespread adoption of social media platforms for health communications, health communicators leveraging social media as an information source, fostering the development of protective behaviors, aiding prompt and transparent health communication, promoting participatory communication and empowerment, and employing social media as a tool for monitoring public sentiments and mental well-being. Conversely, challenges such as the proliferation of misinformation and communication inequalities were identified as significant barriers in social media health communications. While social media platforms hold immense potential in advancing crisis communication agendas, health communicators are advocated to adopt a multifaceted approach by prioritizing digital inclusivity, combating misinformation, and fostering synergetic collaborations between governmental bodies and community entities.

Diagnosis of Autism in Children Based on their Gait Pattern and Movement Signs Using the Kinect Sensor

Abstract Background: Autism spectrum disorders are a type of developmental disorder that primarily disrupt social interactions and communications. Autism has no treatment, but early diagnosis of it is crucial to reduce these effects. The incidence of autism is represented in repetitive patterns of children’s motion. When walking, these children tighten their muscles and cannot control and maintain their body position. Autism is not only a mental health disorder but also a movement disorder. Method: This study aims to identify autistic children based on data recorded from their gait patterns using a Kinect sensor. The database used in this study comprises walking information, such as joint positions and angles between joints, of 50 autistic and 50 healthy children. Two groups of features were extracted from the Kinect data in this study. The first one was statistical features of joints’ position and angles between joints. The second group was the features based on medical knowledge about autistic children’s behaviors. Then, extracted features were evaluated through statistical tests, and optimal features were selected. Finally, these selected features were classified by naïve Bayes, support vector machine, k-nearest neighbors, and ensemble classifier. Results: The highest classification accuracy for medical knowledge-based features was 87% with 86% sensitivity and 88% specificity using an ensemble classifier; for statistical features, 84% of accuracy was obtained with 86% sensitivity and 82% specificity using naïve Bayes. Conclusion: The dimension of the resulted feature vector based on autistic children’s medical knowledge was 16, with an accuracy of 87%, showing the superiority of these features compared to 42 statistical features.

Effectiveness of Integrated Social and Behavior Change Communication Interventions in Mass Drug Administration Campaigns in Enhancing Knowledge, Perceptions, and Preventive Practices for Neglected Tropical Diseases in Jimma.

Despite control efforts, including mass drug administration (MDA), neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) continue to pose a significant public health threat, particularly in rural Ethiopia. Integrating social and behavior change communication (SBCC) into MDA is essential for success. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of tailored SBCC integrated into MDA campaigns to enhance community knowledge, perception, and preventive behaviors regarding targeted NTDs in the Jimma, Ethiopia. A community-based study was conducted using a pre-test post-test design. A multistage sampling technique was employed for surveys, while for qualitative insights, purposive sampling was employed. SBCC interventions tailored to local needs were implemented. Changes in knowledge, perception, and practices were evaluated using Cohen's d. Additionally, a score for key outcome variables comparisons were made to examine variations based on socio-demographic factors, employing suitable statistical tests. Qualitative data were analyzed thematically using Atlas.ti 7.1.5. The prevalence of SBCC exposure was 88.8%. The intervention had a more significant impact on improving knowledge and preventive practices related to Onchocerciasis (OC) compared to Soil-transmitted helminthes (STH). Specifically, most OC outcomes showed moderate to large effect sizes. In contrast, the effect on STH was more limited, with only knowledge of consequences improving moderately and preventive practices showing a small effect size. The mean score for OC preventive practices varied by educational level and sex, while the median score for STH perception varied among educational level and marital status. Additionally, score variation was observed across districts for all key outcome variables. The majority of the population was exposed to SBCC resulting in improvements in knowledge, perception, and preventive behaviors regarding OC and knowledge of consequences of STH and its prevention behavior. This highlights the importance of incorporating well-designed SBCC activities in to MDA campaigns to optimize the control and eventual elimination of targeted NTDs.

The Everyday Autobiographical Memory of Autistic Children

Autobiographical memory (ABM) and social cognition are mutually constituted, and both are affected in autism. Meanwhile, very little is known about the heterogeneity of ABM in autism, how ABM differences are present in real-world contexts, and how to best respond to autistic children’s ABM differences. The goals of this qualitative study were to examine the nature of ABM in autistic youth to understand its presentation and practical impacts in everyday life and to identify research priorities to inform clinical and educational practice. Nineteen parents of autistic children (ages 6–15) participated in a semi-structured interview designed to solicit information about their children’s ABM. Interviews were transcribed and coded for the presence of themes. The main themes and their subthemes (in parentheses) were: (1) episodic memory problems (disorganized/overgeneralized narratives; poor episodic foresight; confabulation and avoidance/escape) that demonstrated an effect of task support and (2) ABM strengths (semantic memory; sensory-perceptual memory; emotional memory) that were described as forms of motivated memory. Results were broadly consistent with existing empirical data but expand understanding of the complexity of the memory profiles of autistic youth with important research, practice, and advocacy implications. We conclude that a focus on ABM assessment and support is overdue and critically relevant for clinical and educational goals involving social cognition and communication.

Understanding public opinion formation in Southeast Europe: Exploring social forces and communication dynamics

The article investigates the mechanisms through which social forces, networks, cognitive frames, and institutions shape public opinion in Southeast Europe via communication. Employing a qualitative approach, data was collected through synchronous focus groups conducted in six Southeast European countries. The findings reveal that social networks play a pivotal role in shaping public opinion, with organizational position and relationships influencing communication effectiveness. Cognitive frames significantly impact public perception, with entrenched beliefs guiding interpretation of information. Meanwhile, social institutions, such as language and communication rules, influence the clarity and accessibility of messages, thereby shaping public understanding. The research underscores the need for deeper research, ethical standards, and transparent communication to build and maintain public trust. Continuous engagement with the public and adaptability in communication strategies are essential for fostering mutual understanding and trust. This research emphasizes social forces’ complexity and overlapping nature in shaping public opinion and the strategic approaches required for effective communication in Southeast Europe.

Krásná literatura a historická fakta

This article is concerned with the historical construction of images of Russia and Central Europe through fiction and looks at the pitfalls of using fiction as a historical source. In addition, the author uses concrete examples to consider Russian and Central European novelists´ interest in history and to analyse the way they perceive the past. She is critical of the fragmentary fashion in which Western historians use images of Russian life in Russian fiction, sometimes oversimplifying and distorting. At the same time she raises a basic question for the image of the past: how was fiction read at the time of its writing and how has fiction been used in the framework of social and cultural communication. At the theoretical level, she reaches the conclusion that historians will have to create their own methods, distinct from the methods of literary critics, for establishing the importance that fiction had at a particular time, in a particular political situation and within a certain social class or group.

Digital socialization: Insights into interpersonal communication motives for socialization in social networks among undergraduate students

Social interactions and communication between individuals have been completely transformed by digital technology (DT). People from all around the world can now communicate with each other thanks to social media platforms. The main focus of this study is on interpersonal communication motives (ICM) in social networks (SNs), aiming to examine how Ethiopian undergraduate students socialize in relation to digital technologies (DTs). A concurrent design with a mixed approach was utilized, including self-administered questionnaires and focus group discussions (FGD) during the data collection process. The students' ICM were used to gain a deeper understanding of their experiences and perspectives towards digital socialization (DS) in SNs. A total of 312 undergraduates aged 18 to 27 participated in the study, with 202 being male and 110 female. The results of the investigation highlighted the significance of SNs in shaping undergraduate students' ICM. The findings demonstrate the benefits of SNs in facilitating students' socialization process by providing a platform for interaction, communication, and relationship-building. Interestingly, there were no significant variations in ICM in DS using SNs based on gender. By exploring how students socialize within SNs, this study aims to contribute to the existing body of knowledge on the subject. Educational institutions and policymakers could leverage these findings to understand the advantages of incorporating SNs into students' academic experiences, ultimately enhancing their socialization process and overall well-being.

Effect of physical activity on social communication impairments in children with autism spectrum disorder: A meta-analysis

This meta-analysis aims to systematically evaluate if different physical activities (PA) improve the social communication impairments (SCI) seen in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). For this meta-analysis, five databases (Web of Science, PubMed and Cochrane Library database in English, and CNKI and Wanfang Data Knowledge Service Platform in Chinese) were searched from database inception to September 11, 2024. The eligibility criteria included (1) study population comprised children with ASD, with no gender restriction; (2) experimental group consisted of a PA intervention; (3) control group consisted of nonPA interventions or routine activities; (4) outcomes were assessed using validated SCI scales (e.g., social cognition, social motivation, and/or social awareness); and (5) study design involved a randomized parallel group design. The quality of the evidence for each study was assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool. From a pool of 2714 potentially relevant articles, 17 were eligible for inclusion in this review. The results of overall response of PA intervention to SCI illustrated a Medium degree of statistical heterogeneity between studies (I2 = 53.3 %, p < 0.01); the effect size of PA intervention on SCI (expressed as standardized mean difference) was −0.34 (95 % CI: −0.57, −0.11), which was statistically significant. SCI of autistic children could be potentially improved by PA interventions, though further research is needed to clarify if benefits achieve clinical significance in addition to statistical significance. Proper design of PA interventions (45–90 min per session, more than 3 times per week and for 8–12 weeks) may enhance their effectiveness in treating SCI in children with ASD.

Sniffing out a solution: How emotional body odors can improve mindfulness therapy for social anxiety

BackgroundHuman body odors (BOs) serve as an effective means of social communication, with individuals exposed to emotional BOs experiencing a partial replication of the sender's affective state. This phenomenon may be particularly relevant in conditions where social interactions are impaired, such as social anxiety. Our study aimed to investigate if emotional human BOs could augment the benefits of mindfulness-based interventions. MethodsWe enrolled 48 women with social anxiety symptoms and assigned them to groups exposed to happiness BO, fear BO, or clean air. Participants engaged in mindfulness practice over two consecutive days, which included breathing, meditation, and relaxation exercises. During these interventions, the odor specific to each group was presented. Affective symptoms were assessed at the beginning and end of each day, with heart rate variability (HRV) and skin conductance level (SCL) recorded during the intervention. ResultsSelf-reported anxiety level revealed a significant reduction in anxiety on the second day for both happiness and fear conditions, but not for the clean air group. However, on a physiological level, fear BO exposure compared to clean air led to decreased HRV, indicating that fear BO may induce a less physiological relaxed state. No significant differences were observed in SCL between odor conditions. ConclusionsThese findings suggest that exposure to BOs triggers the perception of a “social presence”, improving the ecological validity of a psychological treatment. If replicated and expanded, these findings could pave the way for using BOs as catalysts in existing therapies.

131P Social communication abilities in treated children with spinal muscular atrophy type 1 (SMA1): a cross-sectional study from two tertiary neuromuscular centres

131P Social communication abilities in treated children with spinal muscular atrophy type 1 (SMA1): a cross-sectional study from two tertiary neuromuscular centres

Individual differences in emotion prediction and implications for social success.

The social world requires people to predict others' thoughts, feelings, and actions. People who successfully predict others' emotions experience significant social advantages. What makes a person good at predicting emotions? To predict others' future emotional states, a person must know how one emotion transitions to the next. People learn how emotions transition from at least two sources: (a) internal information, or one's own emotion experiences, and (b) external information, such as the social cues detected in a person's face. Across five studies collected between 2018 and 2020, we find evidence that both sources of information are related to accurate emotion prediction: individuals with atypical personal emotion transitions, difficulty understanding their own emotional experiences, and impaired emotion perception displayed impaired emotion prediction. This ability to predict others' emotions has real-world social implications. Individuals who make accurate emotion predictions have better relationships with their friends and communities and experience less loneliness. In contrast, disruptions in both internal and external information sources explain prediction inaccuracy in individuals with social difficulties, specifically with social communication difficulties common in autism spectrum disorder. These findings provide evidence that successful emotion prediction, which relies on the perception of accurate internal and external data about how emotions transition, may be key to social success. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Enhancing the analysis of murine neonatal ultrasonic vocalizations: Development, evaluation, and application of different mathematical models.

Rodents employ a broad spectrum of ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) for social communication. As these vocalizations offer valuable insights into affective states, social interactions, and developmental stages of animals, various deep learning approaches have aimed at automating both the quantitative (detection) and qualitative (classification) analysis of USVs. So far, no notable efforts have been made to determine the most suitable architecture. We present the first systematic evaluation of different types of neural networks for USV classification. We assessed various feedforward networks, including a custom-built, fully-connected network, a custom-built convolutional neural network, several residual neural networks, an EfficientNet, and a Vision Transformer. Our analysis concluded that convolutional networks with residual connections specifically adapted to USV data, are the most suitable architecture for analyzing USVs. Paired with a refined, entropy-based detection algorithm (achieving recall of 94.9 % and precision of 99.3 %), the best architecture (achieving 86.79 % accuracy) was integrated into a fully automated pipeline capable of analyzing extensive USV datasets with high reliability. In ongoing projects, our pipeline has proven to be a valuable tool in studying neonatal USVs. By comparing these distinct deep learning architectures side by side, we have established a solid foundation for future research.

Early life seizures and olfactory communication in rats.

Early life seizures (ELS) are commonly associated with autism spectrum disorder (ASD); however, the exact role of ELS in the pathology is unknown. Prior studies have demonstrated social deficits, a core feature of ASD, following ELS; consequently, alterations in sensory modalities may contribute to the overall social deficits. Considering the speculated contribution of sensory deficit to social communication, we examined the developmental consequences of early postnatal kainic acid (KA)-induced seizures on olfactory preference and neural markers in the olfactory bulb in both male and female Sprague Dawley rats. KA-induced seizures or saline was administered. Rats were then exposed to a series of biologically relevant scents including male scent, female scent, nest scent, and phenylethylamine during the juvenile period and again during adulthood. Alterations in sensory modalities were expected to be expressed via abnormal preference for certain scents and/or production of abnormal ultrasonic vocalizations in response to scents. The olfactory bulbs were also assessed for the biologically relevant markers glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CAMKII). Our findings resulted in no significant differences in olfactory preference following ELS for juveniles or adults compared to controls. Similarly, there were no differences in GFAP expression or the ratio of phosphorylated CAMKII to CAMKII in either olfactory bulb. Interestingly, despite a lack of treatment differences, different scents were shown to elicit different responses in juvenile rats, yet these differences subsided in adulthood. Overall, the results of this study suggest that olfaction does not contribute to socialization deficit following ELS within the KA model.

Therapeutic efficacy of Genistein in activation of neuronal AC/cAMP/CREB/PKA and mitochondrial ETC-Complex pathways in experimental model of autism: Evidence from CSF, blood plasma and brain analysis

Autism is a complex neurodevelopmental condition characterized by repetitive behaviors, impaired social communication, and various associated conditions such as depression and anxiety. Its multifactorial etiology includes genetic, environmental, dietary, and gastrointestinal contributions. Pathologically, Autism is linked to mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative stress, neuroinflammation, and neurotransmitter imbalances involving GABA, glutamate, dopamine, and oxytocin. Propionic acid (PRPA) is a short-chain fatty acid produced by gut bacteria, influencing central nervous system functions. Elevated PRPA levels can exacerbate Autism-related symptoms by disrupting metabolic processes and crossing the blood–brain barrier. Our research investigates the neuroprotective potential of Genistein (GNT), an isoflavone compound with known benefits in neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders, through modulation of the AC/cAMP/CREB/PKA signaling pathway and mitochondrial ETC complex (I-IV) function. In silico analyses revealed GNT’s high affinity for these targets. Subsequent in vitro and in vivo experiments using a PRPA-induced rat model of autism demonstrated that GNT (40 and 80 mg/kg., orally) significantly improves locomotion, neuromuscular coordination, and cognitive functions in PRPA-treated rodents. Behavioral assessments showed reduced immobility in the forced swim test, enhanced Morris water maze performance, and restored regular locomotor activity. On a molecular level, GNT restored levels of key signaling molecules (AC, cAMP, CREB, PKA) and mitochondrial complexes (I-V), disrupted by PRPA exposure. Additionally, GNT reduced neuroinflammation and apoptosis, normalized neurotransmitter levels, and improved the complete blood count profile. Histopathological analyses confirmed that GNT ameliorated PRPA-induced brain injuries, restored normal brain morphology, reduced demyelination, and promoted neurogenesis. The study supports GNT’s potential in autism treatment by modulating neural pathways, reducing inflammation, and restoring neurotransmitter balance.