Addressing aggressive behavior in adolescence is a key step toward preventing violence and associated social and economic costs in adulthood. This study examined the secondary effects of the personality-targeted substance use preventive program Preventure on aggressive behavior from ages 13 to 20.

In total, 339 young people from nine independent schools (M age = 13.03 years, s.d. = 0.47, range = 12–15) who rated highly on one of the four personality traits associated with increased substance use and other emotional/behavioral symptoms (i.e. impulsivity, anxiety sensitivity, sensation seeking, and negative thinking) were included in the analyses (n = 145 in Preventure, n = 194 in control). Self-report assessments were administered at baseline and follow-up (6 months, 1, 2, 3, 5.5, and 7 years). Overall aggression and subtypes of aggressive behaviors (proactive, reactive) were examined using multilevel mixed-effects analysis accounting for school-level clustering.

Across the 7-year follow-up period, the average yearly reduction in the frequency of aggressive behaviors (b = −0.42; 95% confidence interval [CI] −0.64 to −0.20; p < 0.001), reactive aggression (b = −0.22; 95% CI 0.35 to −0.10; p = 0.001), and proactive aggression (b = −0.14; 95% CI −0.23 to −0.05; p = 0.002) was greater for the Preventure group compared to the control group.

The study suggests a brief personality-targeted intervention may have long-term impacts on aggression among young people; however, this interpretation is limited by imbalance of sex ratios between study groups.

Adolescence is a key developmental period for the emergence of psychopathology. Reward-related brain activity increases across adolescence and has been identified as a potential neurobiological mechanism of risk for different forms of psychopathology. The reward positivity (RewP) is an event-related potential component that indexes reward system activation and has been associated with both concurrent and family history of psychopathology. However, it is unclear whether the RewP is also associated with higher-order psychopathology subfactors and whether this relationship is present across different types of reward.

In a sample of 193 adolescent females and a biological parent, the present study examined the association between adolescent and parental psychopathology subfactors and adolescent RewP to monetary and social reward.

Results indicated that the adolescent and parental distress subfactors were negatively associated with the adolescent domain-general RewP. The adolescent and parental positive mood subfactors were negatively associated with the adolescent domain-general and domain-specific monetary RewP, respectively. Conversely, the adolescent and parental fear/obsessions subfactors were positively associated with the adolescent domain-general RewP. The associations between parental and adolescent psychopathology subfactors and the adolescent RewP were independent of each other.

The RewP in adolescent females is associated with both concurrent and parental psychopathology symptoms, suggesting that it indexes both severity and risk for higher-order subfactors.

Accumulating evidence suggests that corpus callosum development is critically involved in the emergence of behavioral and cognitive skills during the first two years of life and that structural abnormalities of the corpus callosum are associated with a variety of neurodevelopmental disorders. Indeed by adulthood ∼30% of individuals with agenesis of the corpus callosum (ACC), a congenital condition resulting in a partial or fully absent corpus callosum, exhibit phenotypic features consistent with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, very little is known about developmental similarities and/or differences among infants with ACC and infants who develop ASD. This study describes temperament in infants with ACC during the first year of life in comparison with a neurotypical control group. Additionally, it examines the potential contribution of disrupted callosal connectivity to early expression of temperament in ASD through comparison to children with high familial likelihood of ASD.

Longitudinal ratings of positive and negative emotionality were acquired at 6 and 12 months on the Infant Behavior Questionnaire-Revised across four groups of infants: isolated complete and partial ACC (n=104), high familial likelihood of ASD who do and do not have a confirmed ASD diagnosis (HL+ n=81, HL- n=282), and low-likelihood controls (LL- n=152).

Overall, the ACC group demonstrated blunted affect, with significantly lower positive and negative emotionality than LL controls at both timepoints. Specifically, the ACC group exhibited lower activity and approach dimensions of positive emotionality at both timepoints, with lower high-intensity pleasure at 6 months and lower vocal reactivity at 12 months. On negative emotionality subscales, the ACC group exhibited lower distress to limitations and sadness at both timepoints, as well as lower falling reactivity at 6 months. The ACC and HL groups did not differ significantly on positive emotionality at either timepoint. However, negative emotionality was lower in the ACC group than the HL- group at both timepoints and lower than the HL+ group at 12 months, with lower distress to limitations and sadness ratings than both HL groups at both timepoints.

These findings highlight the importance of interhemispheric connections in facilitating active engagement and pursuit of pleasurable activities during the first year of life, as well as expression of sadness and distress to limitations. Notably, similarities between infants with ACC and infants at elevated familial risk of ASD suggest that disrupted callosal connectivity may specifically contribute to reductions in positive emotionality.

It is unclear how agenesis of the corpus callosum (ACC), a congenital brain malformation defined by complete or partial absence of the corpus callosum, impacts language development. fMRI studies of middle childhood suggest that the corpus callosum plays a role in the interhemispheric language network (Bartha-Doering et al., 2020), and that reduced interhemispheric functional connectivity is correlated with worse language abilities in children with ACC (Bartha-Doering et al., 2021). Additionally, accumulating evidence suggests structural abnormalities of the corpus callosum play a role in neurodevelopmental disorders. While children who go on to receive an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis may show early signs of altered word and gesture acquisition (Iverson et al., 2018), the same is not known about ACC. This study examined language development during the second year of life in children with ACC in comparison to neurotypical control participants, as well as other children at elevated risk of ASD.

The MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventories (MCDI): Words and Gestures scales were administered to parents of 74 children with isolated ACC at 12, 18 and 24 months of age. Children whose first language was not English and children who were bilingual were excluded. Comparison groups consisted of individuals with a low familial likelihood of ASD (LL- n=140) and individuals with high familial likelihood of ASD who do and do not have a confirmed ASD diagnosis (HL+ n=68, HL- n=256).

Compared to LL controls, the ACC group produced fewer words at 18 and 24 months of age, and demonstrated fewer words understood at all three timepoints. Similarly, compared to the HL- group, the ACC group demonstrated fewer words produced and understood at 18 months of age, and fewer words produced at 24 months of age. The ACC and HL+ groups did not differ in words produced or words understood at any timepoint.

Overall, infants with ACC demonstrated delayed vocabulary expansion from 12 to 24 months of age. These findings illustrate the role of callosal connectivity in the development of language across the first 2 years of life, and highlight the need for support and interventions that target vocabulary production and comprehension.

This study examines the clinical validity of the NIH Toolbox Cognition Battery measures in patients with oncological diagnoses and tumor predisposition syndromes, including Neurofibromatosis, Type 1 (NF1).

Participants included 158 patients (61% male, 67% White) ages 3 to 25 years (M = 8.38, SD = 4.32) who underwent neuropsychological evaluation between 2019 and 2022. Patients with brain tumors (n = 50) and leukemias (n = 49) accounted for 2/3 of the sample. The remainder had solid tumors, lymphomas, or cancer predisposition syndrome. Forty-eight had a diagnosis of NF1. Performance-based measures of attention, executive functioning, and processing speed were administered as part of neuropsychological evaluations. Patients were administered between 1 to 4 NIH Toolbox Cognition measures, including Flanker Inhibitory Control and Attention Test (Flanker), Dimensional Change Card Sort Test (DCCS), Pattern Comparison Processing Speed Test (PCCS), and List Sorting Test. Parent-reported measures of attention and EF were also obtained. Z-scores were used to compare performance across measures that assessed equivalent constructs. The rates of weak performance (>1 SD below the mean) using Toolbox measures were compared to rates of weak performance on traditional neuropsychological measures (e.g., Digit Span), and rates of functional impairment (e.g., parent-reported concerns, ADHD diagnosis).

FSIQ, Coding, and NEPSY Inhibition correlated with all 4 Toolbox measures, while Digit Span correlated with List Sorting, DCCS, and Flanker. DCCS and PCCS correlated with verbal fluency measures. NF1 patients scored lower than non-NF1 patients on Flanker, F(1,126) = 13.01, p<.001 and DCCS, F(1,150) = 6.85, p = .01. Toolbox performance did not differ significantly by age group. Rates of identified weakness were relatively similar on Toolbox measures, some traditional measures, and parent-reported attention problems. In identifying those with and without weakness, the agreement between Flanker and other measures ranged from 52% (Auditory Attention) to 66% (Coding). Agreement between DCCS and traditional measures ranged from 47% (Letter Fluency) to 80% (Switching). For PCCS, concordance ranged from 45% (Semantic Fluency) to 69% (Switching). List Sorting had 80% agreement with Digit Span and Coding.

List Sorting had the highest agreement with parent-reported attention problems (76%), EF problems (72%), and ADHD diagnosis (79%). There was relatively high concurrence between DCCS and ADHD diagnosis (69%) and parent-reported attention problems (60%) and EF problems (65%) and between Flanker and ADHD diagnosis (67%). PCCS had less agreement with functional outcomes, ranging from 49% for EF problems to 58% for attention problems and ADHD diagnosis. In comparison, Digit Span had 64% agreement for EF problems, 70% for attention problems, and 73% for ADHD diagnosis.

The NIH Toolbox Cognition Battery can be used to identify neurocognitive weaknesses in pediatric oncology patients and provide clinically meaningful data. Evaluation of the Toolbox measures’ sensitivity to change over time is warranted, as monitoring the progression of cognitive late effects is particularly salient in cancer survivorship.

Non-motor symptoms, such as mild cognitive impairment and dementia, are an overwhelming cause of disability in Parkinson’s disease (PD). While subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation (STN DBS) is safe and effective for motor symptoms, declines in verbal fluency after bilateral DBS surgery have been widely replicated. However, little is known about cognitive outcomes following unilateral surgeries.

We enrolled 31 PD patients who underwent unilateral STN-DBS in a randomized, cross-over, double-blind study (SUNDIAL Trial). Targets were chosen based on treatment of the most symptomatic side (n = 17 left hemisphere and 14 right hemisphere). All participants completed a neuropsychological battery (FAS/CFL, AVLT, DKEFS Color-Word Test) at baseline, then 2, 4, and 6 months post-surgery. Outcomes include raw scores for verbal fluency, immediate and delayed recall, and DKEFS Color-Word Inhibition trial (Trial 3) completion time. At 2, 4, and 6 months, the neurostimulation type (directional versus ring mode) was randomized for each participant. We compared baseline scores for all cognitive outcome measures using Welch’s two-sample t-tests and used linear mixed effects models to examine longitudinal effects of hemisphere and stimulation on cognition. This test battery was converted to a teleneuropsychology administration because of COVID-19 mid-study, and this was included as a covariate in all statistical models, along with years of education, baseline cognitive scores, and levodopa equivalent medication dose at each time point.

At baseline, patients who underwent left hemisphere implants scored lower on verbal fluency than right implants (t(20.66) = -2.49, p = 0.02). There were not significant differences between hemispheres in immediate recall (p = 0.57), delayed recall (p = 0.22), or response inhibition (p = 0.51). Post-operatively, left STN DBS patients experienced significant declines in verbal fluency over the study period (p = 0.02), while patients with right-sided stimulation demonstrated improvements (p < .001). There was no main effect of stimulation parameters (directional versus ring) on verbal fluency, memory, or inhibition, but there was a three-way interaction between time, stimulation parameters, and hemisphere on inhibition, such that left STN DBS patients receiving ring stimulation completed the inhibition trial faster (p = 0.035). After surgery, right STN DBS patients displayed faster inhibition times than patients with left implants (p = 0.015).

Declines in verbal fluency after bilateral stimulation are the most commonly reported cognitive sequalae of DBS for movement disorders. Here we found group level declines in verbal fluency after unilateral left STN implants, but not right STN DBS up to 6 months after surgery. Patients with right hemisphere implants displayed improvements in verbal fluency. Compared to bilateral DBS, unilateral DBS surgery, particularly in the right hemisphere, is likely a modifiable risk factor for verbal fluency declines in patients with Parkinson’s disease.

A Health Equity Task Force (HETF) of members from seven Centers funded by the National Cancer Institute’s (NCI) Implementation Science in Cancer Control Centers (ISC3) network sought to identify case examples of how Centers were applying a focus on health equity in implementation science to inform future research and capacity-building efforts.

HETF members at each ISC3 collected information on how health equity was conceptualized, operationalized, and addressed in initial research and capacity-building efforts across the seven ISC3 Centers funded in 2019–2020. Each Center completed a questionnaire assessing five health equity domains central to implementation science (e.g., community engagement; implementation science theories, models, and frameworks (TMFs); and engaging underrepresented scholars). Data generated illustrative examples from these five domains.

Centers reported a range of approaches focusing on health equity in implementation research and capacity-building efforts, including (1) engaging diverse community partners/settings in making decisions about research priorities and projects; (2) applying health equity within a single TMF applied across projects or various TMFs used in specific projects; (3) evaluating health equity in operationalizing and measuring health and implementation outcomes; (4) building capacity for health equity-focused implementation science among trainees, early career scholars, and partnering organizations; and (5) leveraging varying levels of institutional resources and efforts to engage, include, and support underrepresented scholars.

Examples of approaches to integrating health equity across the ISC3 network can inform other investigators and centers’ efforts to build capacity and infrastructure to support growth and expansion of health equity-focused implementation science.

Data are scarce regarding hospital infection control committees and compliance with infection prevention and control (IPC) recommendations in Brazil, a country of continental dimensions. We assessed the main characteristics of infection control committees (ICCs) on healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) in Brazilian hospitals.

This cross-sectional study was conducted in ICCs of public and private hospitals distributed across all Brazilian regions. Data were collected directly from the ICC staff by completing an online questionnaire and during on-site visits through face-to-face interviews.

In total, 53 Brazilian hospitals were evaluated from October 2019 to December 2020. All hospitals had implemented the IPC core components in their programs. All centers had protocols for the prevention and control of ventilator-associated pneumonia as well as bloodstream, surgical site, and catheter-associated urinary tract infections. Most hospitals (80%) had no budget specifically allocated to the IPC program; 34% of the laundry staff had received specific IPC training; and only 7.5% of hospitals reported occupational infections in healthcare workers.

In this sample, most ICCs complied with the minimum requirements for IPC programs. The main limitation regarding ICCs was the lack of financial support. The findings of this survey support the development of strategic plans to improve IPCs in Brazilian hospitals.

Impactful, transdisciplinary scientific discoveries are created by teams of researchers spanning multiple disciplines, but collaboration across disciplines can be challenging. We examined how team dynamics and collaboration are related to successes and barriers faced by teams of researchers from multiple disciplines.

A mixed-methods approach was used to examine 12 research teams granted multidisciplinary pilot awards. Team members were surveyed to assess their team dynamics and individual views about transdisciplinary research. Forty-seven researchers (59.5%) responded, including two to eight members from each funded team. Associations were examined between collaborative dynamics and scholarly product outcomes, including manuscripts, grant proposals, and awarded grants. One member from each team was selected for an in-depth interview to contextualize and extend information about collaborative processes, successes, and barriers to performing transdisciplinary research.

Quality of team interactions was positively associated with achievement of scholarly products (r = 0.64, p = 0.02). Satisfaction with team members (r = 0.38) and team collaboration scores (r = 0.43) also demonstrated positive associations with achievement of scholarly products, but these were not statistically significant. Qualitative results support these findings and add further insight into aspects of the collaborative process that were particularly important to foster success on multidisciplinary teams. Beyond scholarly metrics, additional successes from the multidisciplinary teams were identified through the qualitative portion of the study including career development and acceleration for early career researchers.

Both the quantitative and qualitative study results indicate that effective collaboration is critical to multidisciplinary research team success. Development and/or promotion of team science-based trainings for researchers would promote these collaborative skills.