Autism-associated biomarkers: test-retest reliability and relationship to quantitative social trait variation in rhesus monkeys.

Background: Rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) exhibit pronounced individual differences in social traits as measured by the macaque Social Responsiveness Scale-Revised. The macaque Social Responsiveness Scale was previously adapted from the Social Responsiveness Scale, an instrument designed to assess social and autistic trait variation in humans. To better understand potential biological underpinnings of this behavioral variation, we evaluated the trait-like consistency of several biological measures previously implicated in autism (e.

Assessment of medical morbidities in a rhesus monkey model of naturally occurring low sociality.

People with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) exhibit a variety of medical morbidities at significantly higher rates than the general population. Using an established monkey model of naturally occurring low sociality, we investigated whether low-social monkeys show an increased burden of medical morbidities compared to their high-social counterparts. We systematically reviewed the medical records of N = 152 (n = 73 low-social; n = 79 high-social) rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) to assess the number of traumatic injury, gastrointestinal, and inflammatory events, as well as the presence of rare medical conditions.

The factor structure of the macaque social responsiveness scale-revised predicts social behavior and personality dimensions.

Most primate species are highly social. Yet, within species, pronounced individual differences in social functioning are evident. In humans, the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS) measures variation in social functioning.

A Psychometrically Robust Screening Tool To Rapidly Identify Socially Impaired Monkeys In The General Population.

Naturally low-social rhesus macaques exhibit social impairments with direct relevance to autism spectrum disorder (ASD). To more efficiently identify low-social individuals in a large colony, we exploited, refined, and psychometrically assessed the macaque Social Responsiveness Scale (mSRS), an instrument previously derived from the human ASD screening tool. We performed quantitative social behavior assessments and mSRS ratings on a total of N = 349 rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) housed in large, outdoor corrals.