Neurobiology of Behavior Therapy for Children with Tourette Syndrome

描述（由申请人提供）：本指导研究科学家发展奖（K01）申请概述了跨越行为治疗和发育神经生理学领域的职业发展计划，特别关注妥瑞氏综合征（TS）。这个应用程序的短期目标是开发专业知识的最先进的电生理学方法通过程序的集中训练和对行为的影响进行研究治疗抽搐减少在TS患儿mesial-frontal脑电图α一致性。这种K01的长期目标是开发一个独立的程序的研究,确定了神经生物学标记和儿童神经行为干预机制障碍。通过培训，我是一名临床心理学家，擅长儿童行为治疗。我还在耶鲁儿童研究中心完成了NIMH资助的为期三年的儿童神经精神疾病博士后研究，并对患有TS的儿童进行了小规模的临床研究，并于2003年7月被任命为儿童研究中心的副研究科学家。从那时起，我参与了两项研究，这两项研究刺激了这个职业奖项的准备工作：1)由行为科学联盟（BSC）进行的行为治疗减少抽搐的多位点疗效研究；2)耶鲁大学发展电生理实验室进行的TS额纹状体功能研究。这个KO1将使我能够发展技能并获得必要的知识，从而成功地为行为科学和基础神经科学之间的接口做出贡献。我很幸运有一群杰出的导师和顾问，他们在神经生理学、发育神经科学的实验方法以及临床研究的设计和实施方面提供必要的培训指导。本申请中提出的研究计划是一项随机对照研究，对36名8-12岁的TS儿童进行结构化行为治疗，以减少抽动。该申请基于运动抑制的神经心理学测量可以预测对行为治疗的反应，以及中额脑电图α相干性的增加可以与成功的抽动抑制有关。本研究旨在通过评估抽动减少与治疗期间和治疗后脑电图α相干性之间的关系，深入了解行为疗法治疗抽动减少的神经生物学机制。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This Mentored Research Scientist Development Award (K01) application outlines a program of career development spanning the fields of behavioral therapy and developmental neurophysiology, with a specific focus on Tourette Syndrome (TS). The short-term objective of this application is to develop expertise in the state-of-the-art methods of electrophysiology through a program of focused training and by conducting a study of the effects of a behavior therapy for tic reduction on mesial-frontal EEG alpha coherence in children with TS. The long-term objective of this K01 is to develop an independent program of research that identifies neurobiological markers and mechanisms of behavioral interventions for child neuropsychiatric disorders. By training, I am a clinical psychologist with expertise in child behavior therapy. I have also completed a three year NIMH funded postdoctoral research fellowship in childhood neuropsychiatric disorders at the Yale Child Study Center and conducted small scale clinical studies in children with TS. I was appointed Associate Research Scientist in the Child Study Center in July of 2003. Since that time, I have become involved in two lines of research that stimulated the preparation of this career award: 1) multi- site efficacy studies of behavior therapy for tic reduction conducted by the Behavioral Sciences Consortium (BSC) and 2) studies of fronto-striatal function in TS conducted in the Yale developmental electrophysiology lab. This KO1 would allow me to develop skills and acquire knowledge necessary to successfully contribute to the interface between behavioral science and basic neuroscience. I am fortunate to have an outstanding group of mentors and advisors to provide guidance with respect to required training in experimental methods in neurophysiology, developmental neuroscience, and the design and conduct of clinical research. The research plan presented in this application is a randomized controlled study of structured behavior therapy for tic reduction in 36 children, aged 8-12, with TS. This application builds on findings that neuropsychological measures of motor inhibition can predict response to behavior therapy and that increases in mesial-frontal EEG alpha coherence can be associated with successful tic suppression. The proposed study is designed to gain insight into the neurobiological mechanisms of behavior therapy for tic reduction by evaluating the association between tic reduction and EEG alpha coherence during and after the treatment.