Psychology Commons^™

Preadolescent Sensation Seeking And Early Adolescent Stress Relate To At-Risk Adolescents' Substance Use By Age 15, Nora E. Charles, Charles W. Mathias, Ashley Acheson, Donald M. Dougherty

Faculty Publications

Background and aims

Substance use during adolescence can lead to the development of substance use disorders and other psychosocial problems. These negative outcomes are especially likely for individuals who use substances at earlier ages and those who engage in heavier use during adolescence, behaviors which are both more common among youth at higher risk for developing a substance use disorder, such as those with a family history of substance use disorders (FH +). Factors such as increased sensation seeking and greater exposure to stressors among FH + youth may influence these associations. Therefore, the aim of this study was to …

Progressive Deterioration Of Thalamic Nuclei Relates To Cortical Network Decline In Schizophrenia, Derin J. Cobia, Matthew J. Smith, Ilse Salinas, Charlene Ng, Mohktar Gado, John G. Csernansky, Lei Wang

Faculty Publications

Thalamic abnormalities are considered part of the complex pathophysiology of schizophrenia, particularly the involvement of specific thalamic nuclei. The goals of this study were to: introduce a novel atlas-based parcellation scheme for defining various thalamic nuclei; compare their integrity in a schizophrenia sample against healthy individuals at baseline and follow-up time points, as well as rates of change over time; examine relationships between the nuclei and abnormalities in known connected cortical regions; and finally, to determine if schizophreniarelated thalamic nuclei changes relate to cognitive functioning and clinical symptoms. Subjects were from a larger longitudinal 2-year follow-up study, schizophrenia (n=20) and …

Developmental Markers Of Genetic Liability To Autism In Parents: A Longitudinal, Multigenerational Study, Molly Losh, Gary E. Martin, Michelle Lee, Jessica Klusek, John Sideris, Sheila Barron, Thomas Wassink

Faculty Publications

Genetic liability to autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can be expressed in unaffected relatives through subclinical, genetically meaningful traits, or endophenotypes. This study aimed to identify developmental endophenotypes in parents of individuals with ASD by examining parents' childhood academic development over the school-age period. A cohort of 139 parents of individuals with ASD were studied, along with their children with ASD and 28 controls. Parents' childhood records in the domains of language, reading, and math were studied from grades K-12. Results indicated that relatively lower performance and slower development of skills (particularly language related skills), and an uneven rate of development …