collision

asperger's...

Source: http://www.medicinenet.com

Asperger Syndrome Tied to Low Cortisol Levels

THURSDAY, April 2 (HealthDay News) -- Low levels of a stress hormone may be responsible for the obsession with routine and dislike for new experiences common in children with a certain type of autism.

U.K. researchers found that children with Asperger syndrome (AS) do not experience the normal twofold increase of cortisol upon waking up. Levels of the hormone in their bodies do continue to decrease throughout the day, though, just as they do in those without the syndrome.

The body produces cortisol, among other hormones, in stressful situations. Cortisol increases blood pressure and blood sugar levels, among other duties, to signal the body's need to adapt to changes occurring around it. It's thought that the increase shortly after waking helps jump-start the brain for the day ahead, the researchers said.

People with Asperger syndrome notably have very repetitive or narrow patterns of thought and behavior, such as being obsessed with either a single object or topic. Though tending to become experts in this limited domain, they have otherwise very limited social skills, according to the study.

"Although these are early days, we think this difference in stress hormone levels could be really significant in explaining why children with AS are less able to react and cope with unexpected change," study co-leader Mark Brosnan, from the psychology department at the University of Bath, said in a news release issued by the school.

If these Asperger symptoms are caused primarily by stress, caregivers could learn to steer children away from situations that would add to anxiety, the researchers said.

"This study suggests that children with AS may not adjust normally to the challenge of a new environment on waking," study researcher David Jessop, from the University of Bristol, said in the news release. "This may affect the way they subsequently engage with the world around them."

The researchers, whose findings were published in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology, will next study if this lack of cortisol upon waking also occurs in children with other types of autism.

-- Kevin McKeever

robo-science

The Automation of Science
Ross D. King,1* Jem Rowland,1 Stephen G. Oliver,2 Michael Young,3 Wayne Aubrey,1 Emma Byrne,1 Maria Liakata,1 Magdalena Markham,1 Pinar Pir,2 Larisa N. Soldatova,1 Andrew Sparkes,1 Kenneth E. Whelan,1 Amanda Clare1

The basis of science is the hypothetico-deductive method and the recording of experiments in sufficient detail to enable reproducibility. We report the development of Robot Scientist "Adam," which advances the automation of both. Adam has autonomously generated functional genomics hypotheses about the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and experimentally tested these hypotheses by using laboratory automation. We have confirmed Adam's conclusions through manual experiments. To describe Adam's research, we have developed an ontology and logical language. The resulting formalization involves over 10,000 different research units in a nested treelike structure, 10 levels deep, that relates the 6.6 million biomass measurements to their logical description. This formalization describes how a machine contributed to scientific knowledge.

1 Department of Computer Science, Aberystwyth University, SY23 3DB, UK.
2 Cambridge Systems Biology Centre, Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, Sanger Building, 80 Tennis Court Road, Cambridge CB2 1GA, UK.
3 Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences, Aberystwyth University, SY23 3DD, UK.

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: rdk@aber.ac.uk

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all together now

gambol \GAM-buhl\, intransitive verb:

1. To dance and skip about in play; to frolic.
2. A skipping or leaping about in frolic.

Gambol, earlier gambolde or gambalde, comes from Medieval French gambade, "a leaping or skipping," from Late Latin gamba, "hock (of a horse), leg," from Greek kampe, "a joint or bend."

sister's are doin' it

Sisters spread happiness while brothers breed distress, experts believe.

Researchers quizzed 571 people aged 17 to 25 about their lives and found those who grew up with sisters were more likely to be happy and balanced.

The University of Ulster said having daughters made a family more open and willing to discuss feelings.

They said the influence of girls was particularly important after distressing family events such as marital break-ups.

The findings are due to be presented at the British Psychological Society in Brighton on Thursday.

During the study, participants filled in psychological questionnaires which researchers used to assess a range of issues, including whether they had a positive outlook and any mental health problems.


Lead researcher Professor Tony Cassidy said: "Sisters appear to encourage more open communication and cohesion in families.

"However, brothers seemed to have the alternative effect.

"Emotional expression is fundamental to good psychological health and having sisters promotes this in families."

He said many of the participants had been brought up in families where parents had split and the impact of sisters was even more marked in these circumstances.


"I think these findings could be used by people offering support to families and children during distressing times. I have a sister and am neither happy or balanced Richard Hill, Birmingham

"We may have to think carefully about the way we deal with families with lots of boys."

Geri Burnikell, co-ordinator of the charity Support Line, which offers counselling to young people and families, said: "This is very interesting and certainly chimes with our experiences.

"Boys tend to internalise problems and in families where there are lots of sons, I can see that can cause problems.

"I think the most important thing in these circumstances is to give people someone independent to talk to outside the immediate family unit."


Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/health/7977454.stm



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