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Autistic adults face elevated risks for depression and unemployment, yet a systematic review of studies on the intersection of depression and employment in autism is needed to inform research and clinical efforts. The present review synthesizes findings from studies that (1) measure both depression and employment in autistic adults, and (2) empirically test associations between these constructs. Results support other work indicating elevated prevalence rates of depression and unemployment in autism with new information on the complex associations between constructs. Insights from the present review were used to (1) discuss associations between depression and employment in autism, (2) identify current challenges to understanding the intersection of depression and employment in autism, (3) propose future lines of research, and (4) suggest clinical applications for providers (e.g., mental health clinicians, vocational rehabilitation practitioners) working with autistic adults.

Jorunn Drageset,1,2 Geir Egil Eide,3,4 Anne Corbett5 1Department of Nursing, Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, 2Department of Public Health and Primary Health Care, University of Bergen, 3Centre for Clinical Research, Western Norway Health Region Authority, 4Department of Public Health and Primary Health Care, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway; 5Institute of Health Research, Exeter University Medical School, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK Background: Limited information exists regarding the natural development of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and its determinants among mentally intact nursing home (NH) residents. We aimed to examine HRQOL over time during a 6-year period among residents of NHs, who are not cognitively impaired, and to examine whether sense of coherence and a diagnosis of cancer influence HRQOL. Methods: The study was prospective and included baseline assessment and 6-year follow-up. After baseline assessment of 227 cognitively intact NH residents (Clinical Dementia Rating score ≤ 0.5), we interviewed 52 living respondents a second time at the 5-year follow-up and 18 respondents a third time at the 6-year follow-up. We recorded data from the interviews using the Short Form-36 (SF-36) Health Survey and the Sense of Coherence Scale. To study different developments over time for residents without and with cancer, we tested interactions between cancer and time. Results: The subscores of physical functioning and role limitation–physical domains declined with time (P

Abstract Background The development of sequence-specific precision treatments like CRISPR gene editing therapies for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) requires sequence humanized animal models to enable the direct clinical translation of tested strategies. The current available integrated transgenic mouse model containing the full-length human DMD gene, Tg(DMD)72Thoen/J (hDMDTg), has been found to have two copies of the transgene per locus in a tail-to-tail orientation, which does not accurately simulate the true (single) copy number of the DMD gene. This duplication also complicates analysis when testing CRISPR therapy editing outcomes, as large genetic alterations and rearrangements can occur between the cut sites on the two transgenes. Results To address this, we performed long read nanopore sequencing on hDMDTg mice to better understand the structure of the duplicated transgenes. Following that, we performed a megabase-scale deletion of one of the transgenes by CRISPR zygotic microinjection to generate a single-copy, full-length, humanized DMD transgenic mouse model (hDMDTgSc). Functional, molecular, and histological characterisation shows that the single remaining human transgene retains its function and rescues the dystrophic phenotype caused by endogenous murine Dmd knockout. Conclusions Our unique hDMDTgSc mouse model simulates the true copy number of the DMD gene, and can potentially be used for the further generation of DMD disease models that would be better suited for the pre-clinical assessment and development of sequence specific CRISPR therapies.

Abstract The reinforcing nature of social interactions is necessary for the maintenance of appropriate social behavior. However, the neural substrates underlying social reward processing and how they might differ based on the sex and internal state of the animal remains unknown. It is also unclear whether these neural substrates are shared with those involved in nonsocial rewarding processing. We developed a fully automated, two choice (social-sucrose) operant assay in which mice choose between social and nonsocial rewards to directly compare the reward-related behaviors associated with two competing stimuli. We performed cellular resolution calcium imaging of medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) neurons in male and female mice across varying states of water restriction and social isolation. We found that mPFC neurons maintain largely non-overlapping, flexible representations of social and nonsocial reward that vary with internal state in a sex-dependent manner. Additionally, optogenetic manipulation of mPFC activity during the reward period of the assay disrupted reward-seeking behavior across male and female mice. Thus, using a two choice operant assay, we have identified sex-dependent, non-overlapping neural representations of social and nonsocial reward in the mPFC that vary with internal state and that are essential for appropriate reward-seeking behavior.

Abstract Reactive capture of carbon dioxide (CO2) offers an electrified pathway to produce renewable carbon monoxide (CO), which can then be upgraded into long-chain hydrocarbons and fuels. Previous reactive capture systems relied on hydroxide- or amine-based capture solutions. However, selectivity for CO remains low (

Background: The under-representation of women and other minority group members in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) academia is a problem internationally and is attributed in part to hostile workplace cultures. We draw on the social identity perspective to examine the dynamic inter and intragroup processes entailed in these experiences. In this paper, we report a reflexive thematic analysis of 219 responses to a free-text question on bullying and harassment embedded in a national survey of 40 STEM departments from across the United Kingdom. Most were women (53%) at an early, pre-lectureship career stage. Main findings: Our analysis shows who is the perpetrator and who is the victim is not arbitrary, and neither is the form that it takes; majority group members draw on discourses that warrant the exclusion of minority group members (e.g., women are not smart; incompatibility with religious identity). In this 'othering', minority group members learn that one is not regarded as a bona fide STEM academic ingroup member and accordingly are constrained in being able to claim and act on that identity. Thus, it is not just the acts themselves that are problematic, but the ways in which being denied a shared STEM academic identity is consequential for a range of putative benefits and leads to a range of strategies that all confer costs. Conclusions/potential implications: The solution must rest with senior STEM academics and with institutions. First, we need to challenge discourses and practices that narrowly define the boundaries and content of STEM academic identity. Second, all members of a community need to perceive an alignment between the purported values of an organisation for diversity, inclusion, and respect and how that organisation responds when those principles are violated. Formal processes of remedy need to recognise the dynamics entailed in status differences and remove the onus of complaint from isolated, low status individuals. In addition, there is a need to recognise the ways in which perpetrators are embedded in networks of support both within and without the university; and the importance, therefore, of widening the scope of evidence gathering and intervention.

Examining emotion recognition and response to music can isolate recognition of and resonance with emotion from the confounding effects of other social cues (e.g., faces). In a within-sample design, participants aged 5-6 years in the eastern region of the United States (N = 135, M[subscript age] = 5.98, SD[subscript age] = 0.54; 78 female, 56 male; eight Asian, 43 Black, 62 White, 13 biracial, and nine "other") listened to clips of calm, scary, and sad music. In separate sessions, participants identified the emotional content of the music or reported on the feelings elicited by the music clip, with above-chance accuracy. Emotion "recognition" was associated with age and higher levels of child emotional verbal expressivity. Children with higher parent-reported empathy reported greater "resonance" with the emotion conveyed by music, specifically for sad music. Recognition and resonance were correlated (i.e., alignment), although the relationship varied as a function of the emotion expressed, with the greatest alignment for sad music. Results provide insights into emotion recognition and resonance in the absence of direct social signals and provide evidence that children's ability to recognize and resonate with emotion differs depending on characteristics of the music and the child.

Expert fingerprint examiners demonstrate impressive feats of memory that may support their accuracy when making high-stakes identification decisions. Understanding the interplay between expertise and memory is therefore critical. Across two experiments, we tested fingerprint examiners and novices on their visual short-term memory for fingerprints. In Experiment 1, experts showed substantially higher memory performance compared to novices for fingerprints from their domain of expertise. In Experiment 2, we manipulated print distinctiveness and found that while both groups benefited from distinctive prints, experts still outperformed novices. This indicates that beyond stimulus qualities, expertise itself enhances short-term memory, likely through more effective organisational processing and sensitivity to meaningful patterns. Taken together, these findings shed light on the cognitive mechanisms that may explain fingerprint examiners' superior memory performance within their domain of expertise. They further suggest that training to improve memory for diverse fingerprints could practically boost examiner performance. Given the high-stakes nature of forensic identification, characterising psychological processes like memory that potentially contribute to examiner accuracy has important theoretical and practical implications.