Last update:

Autism spectrum disorders news

Autism spectrum disorders

Scientists grow mini brains to uncover cells behind autism-related brain overgrowth

A new study in the lab of Jason Stein, Ph.D., modeled brain development in a dish to identify cells and genes that influence infant brain growth, a trait associated with autism.

Neuroscience

Molecular difference in autistic brains may explain signaling imbalance

Yale School of Medicine (YSM) scientists have discovered a molecular difference in the brains of autistic people compared to their neurotypical counterparts.

Autism spectrum disorders

AI-assisted device may improve autism care access

Access to autism evaluations through specialty health care is notorious for long wait times across the United States. In Missouri, many families wait nearly a year for a diagnostic appointment. AI might be a solution to cutting ...

Neuroscience

Protein abnormality illuminates communication struggles in autism

A DGIST research team identified that the mutation of the collybistin protein found in autistic patients weakens the brain's inhibitory synaptic function and leads to communication deficiencies. The results of this research ...

Neuroscience

Study maps brain wiring differences in youth with autism

Researchers at the Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute (Stevens INI) at the Keck School of Medicine of USC have uncovered new insights into how brain wiring differs in children and young adults with ...

Autism spectrum disorders

What to know about the CDC's baseless new guidance on autism

The rewriting of a page on the CDC's website to assert the false claim that vaccines may cause autism sparked a torrent of anger and anguish from doctors, scientists, and parents who say Health and Human Services Secretary ...

Autism spectrum disorders

Vaccines 'don't cause autism': How scientists figured that out

In the late 1990s, a theory gripped parents around the world: What if childhood vaccines—particularly the combined measles-mumps-rubella vaccine—cause autism? Nearly three decades later, the debunked theory has gained ...

Genetics

Does an ancient virus genome drive autism?

Although autism is a common neurodevelopmental disorder, the multiple factors behind its onset are still not fully understood. Animal models of idiopathic autism, especially mice, are often used to help researchers understand ...

Medications

Drug shown to alleviate autism-associated behavior in mice

The behavioral disorders observed in autism are associated with a multitude of genetic alterations. Scientists from the Hector Institute for Translational Brain Research (HITBR) have now found another molecular cause for ...

Psychology & Psychiatry

Stress levels sky high for families of neurodiverse kids

New Curtin University-led research has found caregivers of neurodivergent children are more likely to experience clinically significant levels of stress, poor mental health, financial hardship, and negative relationships.

Autism spectrum disorders

Electronic health record data may predict early autism

Autism detection using electronic health record (EHR) data achieves clinically meaningful accuracy by age 30 days, which improves by age 1 year, according to a study published online Feb. 2 in JAMA Network Open.

Psychology & Psychiatry

Research to reduce insomnia in autistic adults

Researchers from La Trobe University have conducted a world first pilot study investigating a sleep intervention for autistic adults, showing promising evidence at reducing insomnia and co-occurring anxiety symptoms.