Background: Knowledge of genetic influences, on developmental disorders such as autism spectrum, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder and learning disabilities, has increased the opportunities for understanding the influences of the early environment. Methods: This paper provides a selective, narrative review for clinicians of the effects of…

Background: Fragile X syndrome is one of the world's leading hereditary causes of developmental delay in males. The past decade has witnessed an explosion of research that has begun to unravel the condition at its various levels: from the genetic and brain levels to the cognitive level, and then to the environmental and behavioural levels. Our aim…

As researchers have examined the so-called "behavioral phenotypes" of different genetic mental retardation conditions, the measurement of behavior becomes increasingly important. From earlier, more global examinations of noteworthy behaviors or profiles, recent researchers have moved from reliance on a single, all-encompassing questionnaire to…

The early social and communicative development of very young siblings of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is the focus of the current study. Three groups of children were included: (1) young children diagnosed with ASD, (2) younger siblings in families with a somewhat older child with ASD, and (3) young typically developing children.…

M. McGue, I. Elkins, B. Walden, and W. G. Iacono (see record 2005-14938-011) presented the findings from a twin study examining the relative contributions of genetic and environmental factors to the developmental trajectories of parent-adolescent relationships. From a behavioral genetics perspective, this study is well conceptualized, is well…

Mathematics performance at 7 years as assessed by teachers using UK national curriculum criteria has been found to be highly heritable. For almost 3000 pairs of 7-year-old same-sex twins, we used multivariate genetic analysis to investigate the extent to which these genetic effects on mathematics performance overlap with genetic effects on reading…

Deletions, translocations, or point mutations in the CREB-binding protein (CBP) gene have been associated with Rubinstein-Taybi Syndrome; a human developmental disorder characterized by retarded growth and reduced mental function. To examine the role of CBP in memory, transgenic mice were generated in which the CaMKII[alpha] promoter drives…

Metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs) are known to play a role in synaptic plasticity and learning. We have previously shown that mGluR7 deletion in mice produces a selective working memory (WM) impairment, while other types of memory such as reference memory remain unaffected. Since WM has been associated with Theta activity (6-12 Hz) in…

This study addresses parental perspectives and coping strategies related to Duchenne muscular dystrophy and specific learning disabilities. Data were collected through individual semi-structured in-depth interviews with fifteen sets of parents. Participants were selected based on variables such as age of children, number of children with both…

The objective of this study is to further evaluate the association between asthma and ADHD, addressing issues of familiality in female probands. A case control study of referred ADHD proband girls, controls, and relatives are used. Participants include 140 ADHD proband girls and 122 non-ADHD comparisons, with 417 and 369 first-degree biological…

Background: Sleep problems in children with intellectual disability can be precipitated and maintained by intrinsic and external factors. The present study comprised a qualitative investigation of the experiences of parents of children with Rett syndrome, a neurodevelopmental disorder where sleep disturbance is common. Method: Audio-taped…

Evolution is considered by virtually all biologists to be the central unifying principle of biology, yet its fundamental concepts are not widely understood or widely disseminated. Teaching evolution--defined as descent with modification from a common ancestor as a result of natural selection acting on genetic variation--has traditionally been a…

Objectives: Our goal was to investigate the physical and mental health of mothers who care for a child with Rett syndrome. Methods: We assessed maternal physical and mental health by using the SF-12 version 1 physical component summary and mental component summary scores as the outcome measures of interest. Mothers (n = 135) of children with Rett…

Recent advances in neuroscience show clearly how experience can change brain neurochemicals, and how this in turn affects the way the brain functions. As a result, early negative events actually get built into the growing brain's neurochemistry, altering the brain's architecture. Research is continuing to investigate how children with genetic…

The present study combined parallel data from the Northeast-Northwest Collaborative Adoption Projects (N2CAP) and the Western Reserve Reading Project (WRRP) to examine sibling similarity and quantitative genetic model estimates for measures of reading skills in 272 school-age sibling pairs from three family types (monozygotic twins, dizygotic…