Dr. Mark Jaime’s research is helping to shed light on the origins of autism. According to Jaime, “‘Autism or Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are terms used when referring to a group of complex disorders related to brain development that negatively impact social functioning. Autism is considered a ‘spectrum’ disorder because it affects every child in a different way. For example, some children with ASD may be very high functioning and have above average intelligence, while other children with ASD may have below average intelligence. Children who are at risk for ASD will show problems with social interaction, verbal and nonverbal communication, and display odd or unusual repetitive-like behaviors.’” 

Jaime’s research on ASD is primarily focused on the discovery of early “neurocognitive” markers of social impairment in ASD. These neurocognitive markers are important because they flag the imminent onset of the disorder in infants or toddlers before they learn to speak. His research is particularly interested in measures of brain connectivity as a potential neurocognitive marker.

This type of research is of importance because altered brain connectivity has serious implications for the developing brain of children with ASD. Social functioning can be impacted by an early brain disturbance because of a disruption in the flow of information in brain areas that support social functioning. The consequence of this is that a child with ASD may develop with a limited capacity to deal with a social world. Jaime, in his work, hopes to better understand how the social brain is wired so the pace of finding early signs of ASD can be accelerated. Early diagnosis is key for the implementation of interventions that can foster optimal outcomes for infants at-risk for having ASD.

A recent study by Jaime, published in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, measured brain connectivity in adolescents with high functioning autism during joint attention. Joint attention—or the ability to socially share a point of view with another person—is critical for the development of social brain areas and is one of the earliest appearing symptoms of autism. To measure brain connectivity, a high density EEG was used, which involves having participants wear a net with a bunch of sensors on it (see figure above). The procedure is completely painless and just feels like you are wearing a hat. This allowed for an analysis to the degree of which various areas of the brain were connected while engaging in joint attention. The results of this study revealed that the social brain of adolescents with ASD is weakly connected in comparison to adolescents who do not have ASD.

Jaime’s work continues to build on these findings. He hopes to transition his research toward more practical applications over the next few years. His vision is to have these measures used in pediatric settings allowing parents to bring their babies in for a routine visit that involves a brain connectivity assessment using this noninvasive method to determine if their social brain development is on track. To realize this goal, Dr. Jaime is teaming up with other researchers from Indiana University and the University of Tennessee to further investigate the role of brain connectivity and temperature on social functioning in children with ASD.

In Columbus, Jaime runs the Early Sensory Experiences Lab at IUPUC where he is an assistant professor of psychology. One current study in the lab is interested in how children use their senses to recognize their own movements. Jaime studies all children between two and eight years of age by having them wear a small camera strapped to the chest that records video of the child either walking of hopping across a hallway. The child later views two movies and attempts to identify the one that belongs to them.

Jaime earned his Ph.D. in psychology from Florida International University with a specialization in developmental science. He has six years of post-doctoral education in ASD research at leading research institutions; is a National Institutes of Health Post-doctoral Fellow at the University of Miami, where he worked with renowned developmental and clinical psychologist Dr. Peter Mundy, and a post-doctoral fellowship at Dalhousie University in Canada. He is currently an assistant professor of psychology at IUPUC.