Virtual Reality-Based Postural Balance Training in Autistic Children: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.

: Beyond the core characteristics of the condition, autistic individuals often significantly struggle with postural balance. This pilot study aimed to investigate the effects of an immersive virtual reality-based training administered with Gait Real-time Analysis Interactive Lab (GRAIL) on postural balance of autistic children. : A total of 20 autistic participants aged 6 to 13 were enrolled in a 5-week randomized, parallel-group, open-label, controlled trial, and received either balance training with the GRAIL system or no training.

Internalizing and Externalizing Traits During Adolescence: Using Epigenetics and Perinatal Risks to Differentiate Clusters of Symptoms.

This cross-sectional study aims to identify clusters of internalizing and externalizing traits during adolescence using a bottom-up approach. The second aim is to investigate whether the different clusters differ by environmental risk factors and specific epigenetic profiles. A total of 205 adolescents, who had been referred for psychopathology in childhood, were recruited.

Quasi-Φ-Periodic Supercurrent at Quantum Hall Transitions.

The combination of superconductivity and quantum Hall (QH) effect is regarded as a key milestone in advancing topological quantum computation in solid-state systems. Recent quantum interference studies suggest that QH edge states can effectively mediate a supercurrent across high-quality graphene weak links. In this work we report the observation of a supercurrent associated with transitions between adjacent QH plateaus, where transport paths develop within the compressible two-dimensional bulk.

Clinical outcomes of a 12-week, first treatment with methylphenidate in an Italian representative sample of children and adolescents with ADHD.

Current clinical guidelines suggest methylphenidate (MPH) as first-line option for treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, the Lombardy ADHD Registry initiative has recently raised some concerns about discrepant therapeutic approaches between different clinical centers. In this naturalistic observational study, we report the experience of a third-level referral center in monitoring care services for young ADHD patients.

Protein-Altering Variants' Analysis in Autism Subgroups Uncovers Early Brain-Expressed Gene Modules Relevant to Autism Pathophysiology.

Understanding the functional implications of genes' variants in autism heterogeneity is challenging. Gene set analysis examines the cumulative effect of multiple functionally converging genes. Here we explored whether a multi-step analysis could identify gene sets with different loads of protein-altering variants (PAVs) between two subgroups of autistic children.

Time-Normalization Approach for fNIRS Data During Tasks with High Variability in Duration.

Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is particularly suitable for measuring brain activity during motor tasks, due to its portability and good motion tolerance. In such cases, the trials' duration may vary depending on the experimental conditions or the participant's response, therefore a comparison of hemodynamic responses across repetitions cannot be properly performed. In this work, we present a MATLAB (R2023a) function () developed for time-normalizing fNIRS data recorded during trials with different durations.

Motor difficulties in children with neurodevelopmental conditions: a report from a cross-national study in Belgian and Italian children.

Unlabelled: Motor behavior alterations are common in neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs), including autism, developmental coordination disorder (DCD), and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), but the extent of motor impairment remains unclear. In autism and ADHD, motor difficulties may be linked to co-occurring DCD, which often goes unrecognized. We aimed to map the prevalence of DCD in autism and ADHD, and to explore motor skill difficulties using the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-2 (MABC-2), by comparing children with typical motor development (TMD) with those who have NDDs, and by identifying specific profiles among NDDs.

Behavioural, cognitive, and neurophysiological effects of a synbiotic supplementation enriched with pigmented corn extract or cornstarch in drug-naïve children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: A randomised, double-blind, comparison-controlled clinical trial.

Background & Aims: Considerable interest has been recently given to the potential role of the gut-brain axis (GBA) -a two-way communication network between the gut microbiota and the central nervous system- in the pathogenesis of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), suggesting the potential usefulness of probiotic and synbiotic supplementations. In light of the limited available evidence, synbiotic efficacy in ADHD children not taking medications should be clarified. This study aimed to investigate the efficacy of a synbiotic dietary supplementation on fatty acids levels as well as on microbiota composition, behaviour, cognition, and brain function in children with ADHD.

Prospective Interrelation Between Sensory Sensitivity and Fine Motor Skills During the First 18 Months Predicts Later Autistic Features.

Sensory features are included in the diagnostic criteria of autism and atypical sensory responsiveness may produce "cascading effects" on later development. Similarly, autistic individuals often struggle with motor coordination and early delays in the motor domain appear to be linked to later development. However, the longitudinal interrelation between early sensory profiles and motor features on later socio-communicative skills remains to be defined.

Enhanced motor noise in an autism subtype with poor motor skills.

Background: Motor difficulties are common in many, but not all, autistic individuals. These difficulties can co-occur with other problems, such as delays in language, intellectual, and adaptive functioning. Biological mechanisms underpinning such difficulties are less well understood.

A gate tunable transmon qubit in planar Ge.

Gate-tunable transmons (gatemons) employing semiconductor Josephson junctions have recently emerged as building blocks for hybrid quantum circuits. In this study, we present a gatemon fabricated in planar Germanium. We induce superconductivity in a two-dimensional hole gas by evaporating aluminum atop a thin spacer, which separates the superconductor from the Ge quantum well.

Brain Alteration Patterns in Children with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy: A Machine Learning Approach to Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

Background: Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) is a genetic disease in which lack of the dystrophin protein causes progressive muscular weakness, cardiomyopathy and respiratory insufficiency. DMD is often associated with other cognitive and behavioral impairments, however the correlation of abnormal dystrophin expression in the central nervous system with brain structure and functioning remains still unclear.

Objective: To investigate brain involvement in patients with DMD through a multimodal and multivariate approach accounting for potential comorbidities.

Exposure to environmental pollutants and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: an overview of systematic reviews and meta-analyses.

Although heritability estimates suggest a role for genetic components, environmental risk factors have been described as relevant in the etiology of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Several studies have investigated the role of toxicological pollution, i.e.

A multimodal approach can identify specific motor profiles in autism and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

It is still unclear whether and to what extent the motor difficulties are specific to autism. This study aimed to determine whether a multimodal assessment of motor skills could accurately discriminate autistic children from attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and typically developing (TD) peers. Seventy-five children, aged 7-13, equally divided into three groups, were assessed with the developmental coordination disorder questionnaire (DCDQ), the movement assessment battery for children 2 (MABC2), the sensorimotor subtests of NEPSY-II, and the kinematic analysis of a reach-to-drop task.

Dynamic balance during walking in people with multiple sclerosis: A cross-sectional study.

Dynamic balance disorders are common impairments in People with Multiple Sclerosis (PwMS) leading to gait disorders and a higher risk of falling. However, the assessment of dynamic balance is still challenging and instrumented indexes provide objective and quantitative data of CoM movement and Base of Support, which are considered that are two key factors describing dynamic balance. This study aims at validating recent instrumented indexes based on the inverted pendulum model and characterizing dynamic balance disorders in PwMS.

Exploring telediagnostic procedures in child neuropsychiatry: addressing ADHD diagnosis and autism symptoms through supervised machine learning.

Recently, there has been an increase in telemedicine applied to child neuropsychiatry, such as the use of online platforms to collect remotely case histories and demographic and behavioral information. In the present proof-of-concept study, we aimed to understand to what extent information parents and teachers provide through online questionnaires overlaps with clinicians' diagnostic conclusions on attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Moreover, we intended to explore a possible role that autism spectrum disorders (ASD) symptoms played in this process.

Dynamics of Hole Singlet-Triplet Qubits with Large g-Factor Differences.

The spin-orbit interaction permits to control the state of a spin qubit via electric fields. For holes it is particularly strong, allowing for fast all electrical qubit manipulation, and yet an in-depth understanding of this interaction in hole systems is missing. Here we investigate, experimentally and theoretically, the effect of the cubic Rashba spin-orbit interaction on the mixing of the spin states by studying singlet-triplet oscillations in a planar Ge hole double quantum dot.

Smoothness of movement in idiopathic cervical dystonia.

Smoothness (i.e. non-intermittency) of movement is a clinically important property of the voluntary movement with accuracy and proper speed.

Evidence of Josephson Coupling in a Few-Layer Black Phosphorus Planar Josephson Junction.

Setting up strong Josephson coupling in van der Waals materials in close proximity to superconductors offers several opportunities both to inspect fundamental physics and to develop cryogenic quantum technologies. Here we show evidence of Josephson coupling in a planar few-layer black phosphorus junction. The planar geometry allows us to probe the junction behavior by means of external gates, at different carrier concentrations.

Patterns of Response to Methylphenidate Administration in Children with ADHD: A Personalized Medicine Approach through Clustering Analysis.

Individual responses to methylphenidate (MPH) can significantly differ in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in terms of the extent of clinical amelioration, optimal dosage needed, possible side effects, and short- and long-term duration of the benefits. In the present repeated-measures observational study, we undertook a proof-of-concept study to determine whether clustering analysis could be useful to characterize different clusters of responses to MPH in children with ADHD. We recruited 33 children with ADHD who underwent a comprehensive clinical, cognitive, and neurophysiological assessment before and after one month of MPH treatment.