Identifying the role of emotion processes in core features of Autism Spectrum Disorder

项目摘要/摘要 这是加州大学精神病学助理教授Vanessa H.Bal博士的K23申请表 加州旧金山。贝尔博士正在确立自己作为临床医生兼科学家的地位，她从事跨学科的研究， 以患者为中心的研究旨在促进对自闭症谱系生物学基础的了解 精神障碍(ASD)症状。这款K23将为Bal博士提供必要的支持，以实现以下目标 目标：1)发展情感科学理论基础方面的专门知识；2)熟练掌握方法 (收集和分析心理生理和面部行为数据)，以进行未来的情绪研究 患有各种能力的自闭症儿童(例如，最低限度的语言能力)；3)熟悉神经系统 调节情绪过程；4)获得必要的知识，以便使用基于实验室的发现来 了解社会情绪障碍临床测量的潜在机制；5)学习翻译 动物模型和治疗发展研究的临床表型；6)获得所需的知识 对神经发育人群进行纵向研究；以及7)开发独立的 跨学科研究生涯。为了实现这些目标，巴尔博士组织了一个多学科的指导 团队包括一名主要导师：霍华德·罗森博士(一位神经学家，在心理生理学和 大脑中情绪系统的组织)；四位共同导师：弗吉尼亚·斯特姆博士(神经心理学家， 在实验室评估患者的情绪和社会行为方面的专业知识)，Stephen Hinshaw(A 在发展精神病理学和神经发育纵向研究方面有专长的心理学家 马修州立大学(精神病学家和遗传学家，在自闭症跨学科研究方面有专长)； 还有一位统计顾问凯文·德鲁奇博士(一位在精神病学研究方面有专长的生物统计学家)。 拟议的项目探索情绪过程(反应性和调节)之间的关系。 以及自闭症患者的社会情绪障碍。Bal博士将使用基于实验室的范例来测量生理学 (心脏、呼吸、皮肤电)和行为(面部肌肉)儿童的情绪反应和调节 任与ASD和典型的发展(目标1和2)。然后，她将把实验室的发现与临床相结合。 测量社会情绪功能和ASD症状以确定情绪对现实世界的影响 减损(目标3)。贝尔博士研究的目标是找出潜在的社会情绪机制 可用于描述遗传风险因素和临床结果之间的关联的损害。 这个项目具有创新性，因为它探索了情绪处理在ASD症状中的潜在作用，使用 来自情感科学的成熟的翻译方法澄清了潜在的机制 其他患者组的临床损害。结果将大大有助于我们对 ASD症状的生物学基础。Bal博士的K23培训将为她进行尖端研究做好准备 终生异常的社会情绪发育，这将为临床和基础ASD研究提供信息。

PROJECT SUMMARY / ABSTRACT This is a K23 application for Dr. Vanessa H. Bal, an Assistant Professor in Psychiatry at the University of California San Francisco. Dr. Bal is establishing herself as a clinician-scientist who conducts interdisciplinary, patient-oriented research aimed at advancing understanding of the biological bases of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) symptoms. This K23 will provide Dr. Bal with essential support to accomplish the following goals: 1) develop expertise in the theoretical basis of affective science; 2) gain methodological proficiency (collection and analysis of psychophysiological and facial behavior data) to conduct future emotion studies in children with ASD across the range of ability (e.g., minimally verbal); 3) gain familiarity with the neural systems mediating emotion processes; 4) obtain the knowledge necessary to use laboratory-based findings to understand mechanisms underlying clinical measures of socioemotional impairments; 5) learn to translate clinical phenotypes to animal model and treatment development studies; 6) acquire knowledge needed to conduct longitudinal research with neurodevelopmental populations; and 7) develop an independent interdisciplinary research career. To achieve these goals, Dr. Bal has assembled a multidisciplinary mentoring team including a primary mentor: Dr. Howard Rosen (a neurologist with expertise in psychophysiology and the organization of emotional systems in the brain); four co-mentors: Drs. Virginia Sturm (a neuropsychologist with expertise in laboratory assessment of emotion and social behavior in patients), Stephen Hinshaw (a psychologist with expertise in developmental psychopathology and longitudinal studies of neurodevelopmental disorders), and Matthew State (a psychiatrist and geneticist with expertise in interdisciplinary ASD research); and a statistical advisor, Dr. Kevin Delucchi (a biostatistician with expertise in psychiatric research). The proposed project explores the relationship between emotional processes (reactivity and regulation) and socioemotional dysfunction in ASD. Dr. Bal will use laboratory-based paradigms to measure physiological (cardiac, respiratory, electrodermal) and behavioral (facial muscles) emotional reactivity and regulation in child- ren with ASD and typically development (Aims 1 & 2). She will then integrate laboratory findings with clinical measures of socioemotional functioning and ASD symptoms to determine the real-world impact of emotional impairments (Aim 3). The goal of Dr. Bal's research is to identify mechanisms underlying socioemotional impairments that can be used to delineate associations between genetic risk factors and clinical outcomes. This project is innovative because it explores the potential role of emotion processing in ASD symptoms, using well-established, translational methods from affective science that have clarified mechanisms underlying clinical impairments in other patient groups. Results will significantly contribute to our understanding of the biological basis of ASD symptoms. Dr. Bal's K23 training will prepare her to conduct cutting-edge studies of aberrant socioemotional development across the lifespan that will inform clinical and basic ASD research.