Modeling Heart Diseases in Drosophila

Fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP) plays an important role in heart development and disease. Here we set out to create a Drosophila model of heart disease that will complement the existing mouse model based on Fragile X protein deficiency. Proteins within the Fragile X family are RNA binding proteins that control the translation of specific RNAs. Previous studies have shown that loss of Fragile X mental retardation protein, autosomal homolog 1 (FXR1) leads to heart phenotypes in the mouse. The Drosophila model will allow us to perform rapid genetic rescue experiments to identify specific targets of FMR1, the only type of FMR expressed in the fly, that are responsible for creating the structural and functional defects when FMR1 is repressed. To create a model of heart disease in the fly, we knocked down FMR1 and examined its effects by measuring the heart rate in early pupae. We discovered that the total loss of function for FMR1 leads a decreased heart rate. Interestingly, heterozygous loss of function (LOF) mutants exhibited a significant decrease in heart rate that could be partially rescued by inserting hFXR1, a human homolog of FMRP

Comparison of Prompting Techniques to Teach Children With Autism to Ask Questions in the Context of a Conversation

An adapted alternating treatments design was used to compare the efficacy of echoic and textual prompts to teach three students with autism (ages 8–15) to ask questions related to two pre-selected topics of conversation. Participants were first required to answer questions related to the topics to determine whether accurate responses were within their repertoire. This was followed by a transfer of stimulus control procedure to teach participants to ask relevant questions to the experimenter on the same topics. Probes with a novel conversation topic were conducted in the natural environment with a peer, and follow-up probes were conducted after training. Results indicate questions taught using an echoic prompt were acquired in fewer trials to criterion than questions taught using a textual prompt for two of the three participants. Limitations and implications for future research will be discussed. </jats:p