Efficacy of atomoxetine for symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in children with a history of child abuse.

Objective: Recent studies suggest that the severity and drug response of depression and anxiety are correlated with childhood abuse. However, whether a history of child abuse can predict the severity and/or drug response of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is unclear. Therefore, we conducted a retrospective study to assess the efficacy of atomoxetine in children with a history of child abuse.

Resequencing and association analysis of OXTR with autism spectrum disorder in a Japanese population.

Aims: The oxytocin receptor (OXTR) is implicated in the pathophysiology of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). A recent study found a rare non-synonymous OXTR gene variation, rs35062132 (R376G), associated with ASD in a Japanese population. In order to investigate the association between rare non-synonymous OXTR variations and ASD, we resequenced OXTR and performed association analysis with ASD in a Japanese population.

Altered activity of the primary visual area during gaze processing in individuals with high-functioning autistic spectrum disorder: a magnetoencephalography study.

Background: Individuals with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) demonstrate an impaired ability to infer the mental states of others from their gaze. Thus, investigating the relationship between ASD and eye gaze processing is crucial for understanding the neural basis of social impairments seen in individuals with ASD. In addition, characteristics of ASD are observed in more comprehensive visual perception tasks.

Neural activity in the posterior superior temporal region during eye contact perception correlates with autistic traits.

The present study investigated the relationship between neural activity associated with gaze processing and autistic traits in typically developed subjects using magnetoencephalography. Autistic traits in 24 typically developed college students with normal intelligence were assessed using the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ). The Minimum Current Estimates method was applied to estimate the cortical sources of magnetic responses to gaze stimuli.

Decreased leftward bias of prefrontal activity in autism spectrum disorder revealed by functional near-infrared spectroscopy.

Hemodynamic responses in rostral prefrontal cortex (RoPFC) were measured by functional near-infrared spectroscopy. Although performance level was equal, autistic patients showed a decrease in leftward bias of the balance between right and left RoPFC activity when compared with typically developing children when anatomical imitation was contrasted with mirror-image imitation.

A detailed association analysis between the tryptophan hydroxylase 2 (TPH2) gene and autism spectrum disorders in a Japanese population.

We conducted a detailed association analysis between the tryptophan hydroxylase 2 gene and autism spectrum disorders in a Japanese population using 19 markers, including tagging single nucleotide polymorphisms and a novel missense variation, p.R225Q, identified through exon resequencing. However, we failed to obtain supportive evidence for an association.

Reduced thalamic volume observed across different subgroups of autism spectrum disorders.

We measured the thalamic volumes of 38 subjects with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), including autism, Asperger's disorder, and pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified, and 16 matched healthy controls. Thalamic volume in all ASD subgroups was significantly smaller compared with volume in the control subjects.

5-HTTLPR polymorphism influences prefrontal neurochemical metabolites in autism spectrum disorder.

We investigated whether the promoter region of the serotonin transporter gene (5-HTTLPR) polymorphism influenced neurochemical metabolism in 26 individuals with autism spectrum disorder. Individuals with the S/S genotype of the 5-HTTLPR polymorphism showed significantly lower levels of N-acetylaspartate/creatine in the right medial prefrontal cortex compared with those with the S/L genotype.

Factor structure of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) in subjects who had suffered from the 2004 Niigata-Chuetsu Earthquake in Japan: a community-based study.

Background: Factor structure of the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) was studied by a survey of subjects who had experienced the 2004 Niigata-Chuetsu earthquake (6.8 on the Richter scale) in Japan.

Methods: Psychological distress was measured at two years after the earthquake by using GHQ-12 in 2,107 subjects (99.

Altered chemical metabolites in the amygdala-hippocampus region contribute to autistic symptoms of autism spectrum disorders.

Background: Although several previous studies have been conducted, the neural basis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is poorly understood. The objective of the present study was to determine whether individuals with ASD have altered brain chemical metabolites and whether such alterations are related to their autistic symptoms.

Methods: N-acetylaspartate (NAA)/creatine (Cr) and choline/Cr ratios in the right medial temporal lobe (MTL), medial prefrontal cortex, and cerebellar vermis were measured in 38 individuals with ASD (mean age = 12.

Routine use of operational diagnostic criteria affects the pharmacotherapy of dysthymia: national questionnaire survey of experienced psychiatrists in Japan.

The purpose of the present paper was to evaluate, with the use of a questionnaire, how Japanese psychiatrists diagnose and treat a typical adult dysthymia case. Clinicians who routinely use operational diagnostic criteria (ODC) had more correct diagnoses than those who did not. Approximately 70% of psychiatrists who routinely use ODC chose selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors (SSRI) as the first choice of treatment, while of those psychiatrists who do not use these criteria, only half prescribed SSRI.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and dissociative disorder among abused children.

The aim of this study was to investigate the psychiatric problems and characteristics among children of child abuse (CA). Specifically, the authors investigated whether attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms were exhibited before or after CA. A total of 39 abused child inpatients who were treated at Aichi Children's Health and Medical Center, Aichi, Japan, (mean age, 10.

Effective encapsulation of proteins into size-controlled phospholipid vesicles using freeze-thawing and extrusion.

We are aiming to improve the encapsulation efficiency of proteins in a size-regulated phospholipid vesicle using an extrusion method. Mixed lipids (1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphatidylcholine (DPPC), cholesterol, 1,5-dipalmitoyl-l-glutamate-N-succinic acid (DPEA), and 1,2-distearoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine-N-[monomethoxy poly(ethylene glycol) (5,000)] (PEG-DSPE) at a molar ratio of 5, 5, 1, and 0.033 were hydrated with a NaOH solution (7.