The TAS1R2 sweet taste receptor regulates skeletal muscle mass and fitness.

Muscle fitness and mass deteriorate under the conditions of obesity and aging for reasons yet to be fully elucidated. Herein, we describe a novel pathway linking peripheral nutrient sensing and skeletal muscle function through the sweet taste receptor TAS1R2 and the involvement of ERK2-PARP1-NAD signaling axis. Muscle-specific deletion of TAS1R2 (mKO) in mice produced elevated NAD levels due to suppressed PARP1 activity, improved mitochondrial function, increased muscle mass and strength, and prolonged running endurance.

Profiles and academic trajectories of cognitively gifted children with autism spectrum disorder.

Gifted children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are often referred to as twice-exceptional, the term that highlights the co-occurrence of exceptional challenges and exceptional giftedness. This study performed secondary data analysis on samples of twice-exceptional children from the Pre-Elementary Education Longitudinal Study and the Special Education Elementary Longitudinal Study datasets. The results provide a descriptive profile of twice-exceptional (e.

Adult perceptions of children with dyslexia in the USA.

This study examined adult perceptions of dyslexia among US adults. Participants (n = 623) answered survey questions pertaining to characteristics, views, and possible causes of DYS. Exploratory factor analysis revealed five distinct factors: (1) psychosocial causes, (2) external causes, (3) biological causes, (4) consequences, and (5) controllability.

Beyond a reading disability: comments on the need to examine the full spectrum of abilities/disabilities of the atypical dyslexic brain.

A panel of practioners and researchers convened to consider how to advance a broader understanding of the neurocognitive profile of people with dyslexia. While a great deal of research has been conducted on the reading process, the panel recognized that the "dyslexia brain" may be unique in other ways as well. In particular, the panel focused on complex nonverbal/spatial skills and correlated attributes such as career choice.

Preliminary Report on Neuroanatomical Differences Among Reading Disabled, Nonverbally Gifted, and Gifted-Reading Disabled College Students.

Regional comparisons (cortical surface area and thickness) were performed on a well described sample of adults with reading disability alone (RD), nonverbal giftedness alone (G), and reading disability and nonverbal giftedness combined (GRD). These anatomical results are considered in relation to behavioral and functional work previously reported on this sample. GRD-RD regional differences were found in both hemispheres and were more common than GRD-G differences.

Reading disability and enhanced dynamic spatial reasoning: A review of the literature.

Previous research on reading disabilities (RD) has primarily focused on the cause and expression of the disability. The vast majority of this research has focused on the disorder itself, although it has been proposed that RD embodies other qualities not necessarily related to language or reading deficits. In fact, strengths in nonverbal processing and visual-spatial talents have been proposed to exist in persons with RD.

An fMRI study of nonverbally gifted reading disabled adults: has deficit compensation effected gifted potential?

Neuroscience has advanced our understanding of the neurological basis of reading disability (RD). Yet, no functional imaging work has been reported on the twice-exceptional dyslexic: individuals exhibiting both non-verbal-giftedness and RD. We compared groups of reading-disabled (RD), non-verbally-gifted (G), non-verbally-gifted-RD (GRD), and control (C) adults on validated word-rhyming and spatial visualization fMRI tasks, and standardized psychometric tests, to ascertain if the neurological functioning of GRD subjects was similar to that of typical RD or G subjects, or perhaps some unique RD subtype.

Beyond phonological processing deficits in adult dyslexics: atypical FMRI activation patterns for spatial problem solving.

It is unclear the extent to which neurodevelopmental differences observed in reading disabled individuals are limited to traditional language processing areas. Some have suggested atypical processing of complex spatial problems in these individuals. Hitherto, research on this question has been limited to behavioral studies, yielding mixed results.

The aromatase gene CYP19A1: several genetic and functional lines of evidence supporting a role in reading, speech and language.

Inspired by the localization, on 15q21.2 of the CYP19A1 gene in the linkage region of speech and language disorders, and a rare translocation in a dyslexic individual that was brought to our attention, we conducted a series of studies on the properties of CYP19A1 as a candidate gene for dyslexia and related conditions. The aromatase enzyme is a member of the cytochrome P450 super family, and it serves several key functions: it catalyzes the conversion of androgens into estrogens; during early mammalian development it controls the differentiation of specific brain areas (e.

Biomechanical correlates of symptomatic and asymptomatic neurophysiological impairment in high school football.

Concussion is a growing public health issue in the United States, and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is the chief long-term concern linked to repeated concussions. Recently, attention has shifted toward subconcussive blows and the role they may play in the development of CTE. We recruited a cohort of high school football players for two seasons of observation.

Testing the double-deficit hypothesis in an adult sample.

The double-deficit hypothesis of dyslexia posits that reading deficits are more severe in individuals with weaknesses in phonological awareness and rapid naming than in individuals with deficits in only one of these reading composite skills. In this study, the hypothesis was tested in an adult sample as a model of reading achievement. Participants were parents of children referred for evaluation of reading difficulties.

Brain morphology and neuropsychological profiles in a family displaying dyslexia and superior nonverbal intelligence.

Behavioral research suggests that individuals with dyslexia may have exceptional skills in nonverbal cognitive processes, while genetic studies have noted that giftedness, high IQ and/or special talents tend to run in families. Taken together, these results suggest that persons within families (particularly offspring) may share similar cortical systems supporting those functions. Postmortem and in vivo imaging studies have linked dyslexia to abnormalities in the structures associated with the parietal operculum (PO) (e.

Genotype-environment correlations for language-related abilities: implications for typical and atypical learners.

Recent behavioral genetic research has shown that genetic propensities are associated with individual differences in experiences, and thus, what may appear to be environmental effects can reflect genetic influence. This study examines passive genotype-environment correlations (GECs) for language-related abilities by comparing environment-child language associations in adoptive and nonadoptive families. The results provide evidence for the genetic mediation of the association between home environmental variables, such as the provision of toys and games, maternal involvement, and degree of intellectual/cultural orientation with children's language-related abilities.

Atypical brain development: a conceptual framework for understanding developmental learning disabilities.

This article presents ideas that are, in part, a response to the ambiguity in the neurological research on learning disorders, the growing awareness that developmental disabilities are typically nonspecific and heterogeneous, and the growing scientific literature showing that comorbidity of symptoms and syndromes is the rule rather than the exception. This article proposes the term atypical brain development (ABD) as a unifying concept to assist researchers and educators trying to come to terms with these dilemmas. ABD is meant to serve as an integrative concept of etiology, the expression of which is variable within and across individuals.

Contributions and promise of human behavioral genetics.

Human behavioral genetics has contributed greatly to our understanding of human behavioral development. Twin, family, and adoption studies have shown that genetic effects are ubiquitous and that both genes and environments contribute to individual differences in behavior. The unique ability of behavioral genetic methods to separate genetic from environmental effects has also led to important discoveries about how the environment works in development and to the elucidation of the complex ways environments and genes interact across the life span.

A twin and family study of the association between immune system dysfunction and dyslexia using blood serum immunoassay and survey data.

We conducted a study of the association between developmental reading disability (DRD) and immune disorders (ID) using both survey and immunoassay data in two separate samples of families. One sample was made up of twins and their parents and was ascertained through a population-based sampling scheme. The other sample was a set of extended pedigrees selected for apparent autosomal dominant transmission of DRD.

Behavioral genetics: concepts for research and practice in language development and disorders.

This paper is an introduction to behavioral genetics for researchers and practitioners in language development and disorders. The specific aims are to illustrate some essential concepts and to show how behavioral genetic research can be applied to the language sciences. Past genetic research on language-related traits has tended to focus on simple etiology (i.

Commingling and segregation analysis of reading performance in families of normal reading probands.

This paper reports the results of commingling and genetic segregation analyses performed on a quantitative reading phenotype in 125 families ascertained through normal, nondisabled readers. Commingling analysis using SKUMIX suggested that the reading phenotype best fit a skewed, single distribution model. Complex segregation using POINTER was then performed on the power adjusted data.

Hyperactivity and spelling disability: testing for shared genetic aetiology.

The influence of genetic factors in the comorbidity of spelling disability and hyperactivity was investigated in two samples of 190 and 260 same sex twin pairs. The method of bivariate group heritability was used to estimate the genetic correlation for spelling disability and hyperactivity. A similar though not statistically significant value for the genetic correlation was obtained for the two samples (0.

The external validity of age- versus IQ-discrepancy definitions of reading disability: lessons from a twin study.

Recent research has raised the question of whether age- and IQ-discrepancy forms of reading disability (RD) are distinguishable in terms of either their underlying linguistic deficit or their response to treatment, thus threatening the external validity of the traditional distinction between specific reading retardation and reading backwardness. The present study pursued the external validity of this distinction in three domains: (a) genetic etiology, (b) sex ratio and clinical correlates, and (c) neuropsychological profiles. Each of these domains was explored in the RD (n = 640) and control (n = 436) twins participating in the Colorado Reading Project (514 males, 562 females, with an overall mean age of 12.

Gender ratios among reading-disabled children and their siblings as a function of parental impairment.

Gender ratios are reported for 374 reading-disabled probands and their 530 siblings included in five independent studies of reading disability. Ratios were tabulated for each study as a function of parental impairment (neither parent affected, mother only affected, father only affected, and both parents affected). Results reveal a small excess of male probands in referred and clinic samples of reading-disabled children, but not in research-identified samples.