Illustration by Laurène Boglio

The search for autism biomarkers continues, as some researchers on Twitter made plain this past week: There are “no candidate diagnostic #biomarkers for #neurodevelopmental disorders,” including autism, tweeted Sam Cortese, professor of child and adolescent psychiatry at University of Southampton in the United Kingdom, about his systematic review published in World Psychiatry earlier this month.

Out in World Psychiatry @WPA_Psychiatry. We systematically reviewed 780 studies: no candidate diagnostic #biomarkers for #neurodevelopmental disorders with specificity and sensitivity ≥80% replicated in independent studies. https://t.co/Us3mF7SMIW@SotonPsych @UoS_Medicine pic.twitter.com/AeJmkMiQ8t

— Samuele Cortese (@CorteseSamuele) January 14, 2023

Cortese and his colleagues reviewed 780 studies and found no biomarkers that had been “reported in at least two independent studies providing evidence of sensitivity and specificity of at least 80%.” The null result echoes one we covered in a December issue of Community Newsletter.

“Won’t the threshold depend on how any potential biomaker is used in practice?” asked Seena Fazel, professor of forensic psychiatry at Oxford University in the United Kingdom, in regard to the 80 percent cutoff.

Interested in the choice of the 80% cut off for both sens and spec? Won’t the threshold depend on how any potential biomaker is used in practice?

— Seena Fazel (@seenafazel) January 16, 2023

“The same conclusions will be made in 2030 or 2050,” wrote Martin Plöderl, professor of psychiatry at Paracelsus Medical University in Salzburg, Austria, in a quote tweet.

I think the same conclusions will be made in 2030 or 2050, and up to then, there will always be promising research findings, novel research methods, requests for larger studies,…. https://t.co/2Rrxl44oNb

— Pfluft (@PloederlM) January 15, 2023

Moving along, a new Nature study published last week reveals “a surprising role for dopamine as a teaching signal during free exploration” in mice, tweeted lead investigator Sandeep Robert Datta, professor of neurobiology at Harvard University.

How does the brain organize spontaneous behavior? Our latest (from the amazing @vulcnethologist @GillisDub @neurojaym), reveals a surprising role for dopamine as a teaching signal during free exploration, even without an explicit task or exogenous reward. https://t.co/SevJFObvwN

— Sandeep Robert Datta (@Datta_Lab) January 18, 2023

Dopamine in the dorsolateral striatum, a brain region crucial for learning and performing movements, “fluctuates a ton during spontaneous behavior,” Datta explained, and those fluctuations “causally structure ongoing action, even without task structure or rewards.”

A lot packed in here, but take home is that DLS DA fluctuates a ton during spontaneous behavior, and that these fluctuations causally structure ongoing action, even without task structure or rewards. pic.twitter.com/WJiadGfdAR

— Sandeep Robert Datta (@Datta_Lab) January 18, 2023

Björn Brembs, professor of neurogenetics at University of Regensburg in Germany, tweeted that this research, which he was already excited about after seeing it presented at Neuroscience 2022, “really does move the field forward.”

Was already excited about this when I saw it at SfN! That really does move the field forward, congratulations!

— Björn Brembs ???????????????? (@brembs) January 19, 2023

“Understanding how spontaneous behavior gets organized is absolutely essential to nail down as we move to wireless, freely-moving paradigms,” tweeted David Barack, presidential scholar in society and neuroscience at Columbia University in New York City.

This looks super interesting. Understanding how spontaneous behavior gets organized is absolutely essential to nail down as we move to wireless, freely-moving paradigms. https://t.co/AlXLT01wWY

— David L Barack (@DLBarack) January 18, 2023

Social media users chatted about another recent finding last week: Children with certain rare neurodevelopmental genetic conditions are more likely to have sleep disturbances than their unaffected siblings are, according to a Translational Psychiatry study published this month.

????????new article???????? Pleased to share our work on sleep and mental health in children with rare neurodevelopmental genetic conditions https://t.co/WVl4FYSBfK @CNGGcardiff @G2MH_Network @bm_marianne

— Dr Samuel Chawner (@ChawnerSamuel) January 12, 2023

Those with sleep problems “were more likely to experience mental health difficulties,” including autism, tweeted study investigator Samuel Chawner, research fellow in psychology at Cardiff University in Wales. The results highlight “the potential for early intervention strategies for psychiatric risk informed by sleep profile,” Chawner added.

Children who had sleep problems were more likely to experience mental health difficulties. The often early onset of sleep problems highlights the potential for early intervention strategies for psychiatric risk informed by sleep profile

— Dr Samuel Chawner (@ChawnerSamuel) January 12, 2023

Lastly, the Autism Science Foundation “announced the recipients of its inaugural profound autism pilot grants.” The foundation awarded grants to four projects “examining sleep, neuropsychiatric regression, and self-injurious behaviors, as well as methods to improve access to communications systems for people with profound autism.”

The Autism Science Foundation announced the recipients of its inaugural profound autism pilot grants. This unique funding mechanism supports research on autistic people with highest support needs. Read the press release: https://t.co/5ZPl2QVfyL#autism #profoundautism #science pic.twitter.com/9rjy7WdYIX

— ASF (@AutismScienceFd) January 11, 2023

Anne Roux, a director at The Policy Impact Project in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, tweeted “this focus moves us toward actually improving people’s lives.”

This focus moves us toward actually improving people’s lives. Greatly appreciate that! Particularly excited about the neuroinflammatory study.

— Anne Roux, MPH (@annemroux) January 14, 2023

That’s it for this week’s Community Newsletter! If you have any suggestions for interesting social posts you saw in the autism research sphere, feel free to send an email to [email protected].

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Cite this article: https://doi.org/10.53053/NQPC9928